How do I change material of family?

[pat.walsh]

I have created a finial with extrusions and revolves, see attached. I didn't think to assign it a material. How do I make it stainless steel?

[STHRevit]

A little bit more information would help.
Is it an in place family in the project or a separate family loaded into the project?

[pat.walsh]

My question just changed. I created it as a loadable family. It is a .rfa file. I think I should have made this an in-place family: per the Revit 2010 families guide, if you don't plan on re-using the family, which I don't, you would create it as an in-place family. But the families guide doesnt show how to create in-place families, it just mentions it is easier than creating loadable families. So how do you create an in-place family?

[dan302720]

If its an external family that you've loaded in, just edit it. Add a parameter to the family under the materials and finishes category and call it...whatever you want. When you load it into your project, select it, go to its properties, and change your materials parameter to whatever material you'd like..

Dan

[STHRevit]

My question just changed. I created it as a loadable family. It is a .rfa file. I think I should have made this an in-place family: per the Revit 2010 families guide, if you don't plan on re-using the family, which I don't, you would create it as an in-place family. But the families guide doesnt show how to create in-place families, it just mentions it is easier than creating loadable families. So how do you create an in-place family?

Be careful how many in place families you create in a project. it can sometime bog your project down.
We prefer to make external families and store them in project specific folder if they won't be used again, saying that, you never know when the need may arise and if it is an external family it is pretty easy to load it into a new project.

[pat.walsh]

It doesnt seem like there is much need to "model in place" then. When do you typically do that?

[cdatechguy]

We mostly use in-place families for custom desks and such...but I try to get people to create families as much as possible.

As for your finial..create material names for each object that can change and assign the modeled object that material. This way if someone says lets see what it looks like as bronze instead of stainless steel, you can change it on the fly without having to open the family again.

[pat.walsh]

Thanks much. I think I am getting the hang of it.