Swept blend - 2010? draw path in drawing?

[still.james]

hi on 2010 i dont seem to have the option to draw a swept blend within the drawing (ie in 2009 it was via massing)

only way i get the tools up is to draw a family file...what i want to do is draw a path around something on the drawing and then draw the profile.

[aaronrumple]

In-place families work the same. Massing is different and pass backwards.

You draw model lines for the path. Then you draw model lines for the profile. Then you select both the path and the profile and hit create form.

It is a bit of a pain, because you need a plane for the profile. The old way gave you the plane automatically. So I end up making a mass extrusion, since you can't place a ref. plane in plan. Then use that as a the "path" and a vertical surface as the plane for the profile.

Odd. Just plain odd.

[jeffh]

It is a bit of a pain, because you need a plane for the profile. The old way gave you the plane automatically. So I end up making a mass extrusion, since you can't place a ref. plane in plan. Then use that as a the "path" and a vertical surface as the plane for the profile..

You can place a reference point on the path. The reference point object has planes defined in it that can be set or accquired when the point is selected. You can then draw the profile on that plane.

[aaronrumple]

You can place a reference point on the path.

...and is equally odd.

[jeffh]

...and is equally odd.

It is essentially the same as in the 2009 version, with the exception being you can control "where" the profiles are drawn on the path by manually placing the reference points. In 2009 the reference points were automatically placed at the beginning and end points of the path.

Since in 2010 the tool is not selected first, i.e. "swept blend", the points can't be automatically inserted while using the tool.

[aaronrumple]

It is essentially the same as in the 2009 version...

And the point HAS to be on the line or you might get really screwy geometry (You can miss and hit the wrong line when placing a point in a complex drawings which still works, but might produce incorrect geometry.)
And you have to activate the point before sketching - you can't tab to select its planes the way the other auto-orient tools work.
And the point isn't consumed into the geometry like the model lines - so you need to erase the points unless you want a lot of black blobs on your work when you zoom out.
And if you leave the point - it still says it is hosted - even though the host is gone.
And if you re-host the point to a line that has been displaced using the gizmo - the point rotates along the line's axis (sometimes).
And named points don't show up on the re-hosting drop down until they have a sketch on them.
And point names don't show when the point is selected in the same way reference places display the name.
And rotaing a point moves a sketch on its planes, but NOT if you rotate it when hosted on a line.
And curve by points seems to have its own mind. You can't select an order for the resulting curve as it passes through points (points placed in a spiral).

I'll grant that as I look at this from a developers eyes - its a programer's wet dream. However - trying to explain these in's and out's to the end user makes you sound like a total geek (or is that a git? Probably a git.)

[still.james]

thanks for the replies, it makes it some what clearer, but it seems hit and miss for me at the moment