Structural Shape Tool Set Elevations and Sections

Alex Carnahan
Alex Carnahan Posts: 2
edited September 16 in Peer Support

In consulting and in my current role as a fabricator, I draw/sketch a lot of connection details. I've started creating a tool set of shape sections, but it's tedious. I'd also like to create elevations of shapes that I can shorten and lengthen that are also to scale.

For the elevation, it's proving to be difficult. A wide flange for example is just 4 lines. I can't just make a line type as I can't control the scale/height. I can't group 4 lines as it won't let me stretch the grouping. I can stretch a rectangle, but I can't get the lines to look right.

Has anyone found a solution to this (besides just draw it in CAD).

Best Answer

  • Shanoc Halliday
    Shanoc Halliday Posts: 33
    Answer ✓

    Yes! Coming from a steel background myself, I wanted steel sections and elevations.

    So the trick is to draw your 4 lines representing a beam elevation, but don't draw each end.
    Then, use the SnapShot to capture the 4 lines (make sure the snaping is very close to the corners, Paste, and save to a ToolSet. once placed, you can stretch the new image as long as you require. if you want ends, (you might have a break line on one end and coping on the other) use the LineWidth that is in Properties to create a boarder.

    Be careful with linestyles in that this is a true stretch, so a dashed line for beams in the plan with the web in hidden lines will stretch, but to my mind, it's a markup, and it communicates the requirement.

    Where are you based? or what steel sizes are you using? I can help with Australian standards.

    Another thing, if you build out a Tool Set, in Revu 21.2, we incorporated ToolSet Search, so think about naming conventions to enable staff to quickly find what they need.

    UNIVERSAL BEAMS (UB)_Bluebeam.btx

Answers

  • Alex Carnahan
    Alex Carnahan Posts: 2

    I'm in Iowa, US. I work for a fabricator where we try to limit the number of shapes we have. I'll try the snapshot idea. I'm very intrigued with the ToolSet Search, I'll have to do some research.

  • Luke Shiras
    Luke Shiras Posts: 190

    I love @Shanoc Halliday's solution and can see it used to solve a lot of common problems people face.

    To build on it a little, I would make the "inner" lines a lighter shade of red to help distinguish them from the boundary lines. Plus, if you want to use the "change colors" option, then you can manage them separately.

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