Wall hatch plan vs section

[bamckenzie69]

Our office is just getting into Revit, so hopefully this is a stupid question that has as easy answer. We have CMU walls and want the plan hatch to be lines at 16" O.C. We want the section hatch to be double lines at 8" O.C., to look more like CMU. How can you make the plan hatch look different from the section hatch? To make it even better, is there a way to make a CMU wall section actually look like CMU without having to go in and draft it?
Thanks,

[damon.sidel]

Good luck with Revit as you get into it!

There is no automatic way to make the plan and section hatches be different. Here are some options/advice:
1. Don't try to force it to look like you're used to. At 1/8" = 1'-0", you could just use a diagonal hatch (we use a diagonal overlaid on concrete hatch for CMU) without worrying about the actual size of the CMU. At larger scales, you'll want to use a Detail Component. Revit comes with CMU detail components, but then check out Repeating Details for a nice way to array them quickly.

2. If you really want to do what you're asking, you can use View Templates in conjunction with Filters. You could set the CMU hatch to 16" for plans and then in section you'll be able to override the CMU hatch to be 8" with a Filter. However, you get into problems. You probably have CMU walls running North-South and East-West. You'd have to duplicate the wall type to have horizontals and vertical lines to get what you are asking for.

3. A final thought, you could take advantage of the Detail Scale. At Coarse (for plans, let's say), you could specify a 16" hatch, but at Medium (for sections), the CMU material could be 8".

[bamckenzie69]

Thanks for the info. I am beginning to find that Revit is a little too rigid for my taste. It does some things great, but does not allow for enough customization. I guess we are just going to live with it.

[DaveP]

Most people have pretty much that same reaction when they begin making the transition from CAD to BIM.
Then, once they start realizing that they are creating smart objects the exist in multiple Views, they see the advantage.
In CAD, you're just drawing a bunch of dumb lines, and the graphics is king of the only thing that matters, because that's all the drawing is - a picture.
But for example, when you place a Door in Revit, you'll find that the door may not look exactly like you're used to seeing it. But it still looks like a door. And now you've got one door that exists in Plan, in Elevation, in Section, in the Ceiling Plan, in any 3D Views and in the Schedule.
Just wait until you QA your Door Schedule. No more comparing a printed plan to a printed Excel spreadsheet. It's just there.
The amount of money you'll save in highlighters alone will amaze you!

[gbrowne]

Here here. The graphics 'issues' are small potatoes. The real important thing is the quality, speed, accuracy etc of the produced information. Funnily enough the same thing was said during the last paradigm shift, the one from hand drawing to CAD...

[bamckenzie69]

Thanks for the encouragement. It is certainly a better way of doing things, we just have to work through the learning curve. I had a hard time convincing people to use walls, doors, windows, and schedules in ADT years ago. I guess I am not as flexible as I was back then, so now the kids fresh out of school are helping drive the switch to Revit. :-)