Video: Control Line Weights

Use the Object Styles and Line Weights dialogues to control line weights in models.

This video demonstrates the following:

1. Understand cut and projected views.
2. Use the Object Styles Modify tab to change line weights for projected and cut elements in model views.
3. Control the representation of element subcategories.
4. Use the Line Weights dialog to control line widths in a model element when it is printed.

Note: This video was recorded using Revit 2016. When using a newer software release, you may notice differences in functionality and user interface.

Transcript

The object styles of each category control the line weights in views. Changing the line weight of a category in the Object Styles dialog changes the way the element is displayed in all views of the model.

In a view, a model element is either cut or projected. A cut element intersects the cut plane of a plan or section/elevation. A projected element does not intersect the cut plane of the view. In this view of the cafeteria, the walls, doors, and columns are all "cut" because they intersect the cut plane of the view. The tables and the countertop, made up of wall and casework elements, are "projected".

On the Manage tab, click Object Styles to open the Object Styles dialog. On the Model Objects tab, you can modify the projection and cut line weights for each category. For example, we'll change the cut line of the walls category, and apply the change. To change the line weight of the stub wall near the countertop, we'll change the Projection value. To change the countertop, we need to change the Projection value for the Casework category.

Notice that you cannot assign a cut value to the furniture category. Some categories, like furniture, can't be cut, and always use the projected line weight.

Expand a category to see the sub-categories. You can use sub-categories to control separate pieces of an element. For example, you can assign the panel and swing portions of a door family to different sub-categories and control their representation separately.

Annotation categories are controlled in a similar way in the Object Styles dialog.

The number values used for line weight correspond to a "real world" line width when printed. Click Additional Settings > Line Weights. In the Line Weights dialog, each value is listed along with its corresponding printed line width. Line widths used for model elements are scale dependent. For example, at a small scale, line weights 1 through 3 are printed at the same width, but at a larger scale, each line weight is printed at a different width. The printed line width of perspective views and annotation elements is not scale dependent and uses a straight table for each line weight.

Use the Objects Styles dialog to control the line weights used for elements in model views, and use the Line Weight dialog to control the thickness of each line weight when printed.