Setting up Lineweights, in Revit.

[Twiceroadsfool]

I always hear that the lineweights in Revit are terrible. Ive been in 4 offices, and- although its still tough to make elevations have decent depth- most people are under the misconception that even plans, sections, and details have to look like garbage. Most people arent aware of the full interaction between Object Styles, Lineweights, and the Lineweight table per view scale. So in a post Over There a few months ago, i finally typed out my process, and a lot of people emailed saying it helped them out. So: its not perfect, but heres how Aaron does Lineweights:

Start with Object Styles. Decide what should be darker or lighter RELATIVE to one another. (And i get rid of at least half of the 16. 16 is just nuts. 8 is plenty, IMHO. Then i use the other 8 for super huge stuff like Titleblock lines). So lets say i have 8 numbers. I assign the OS cuts and projections to 2-8 (keeping 1 for hatch).

Then when im done with Object Styles (pass 1), i go and do a plan detail. With modeled objects, detail components, stuff in projection, stuff thats cut. And i duplicate it, 10 times. I change it to ten different scales. I plot it. i look at it. Theyre not all going to look good. So i check the CONTRAST between the items. If i dont like the CONTRAST, i readjust the OS (pass 2), and go back to print.

Once im happy with the CONTRAST, i print my OS settings, and go scale to scale, with that pesky lineweight chart. This line is too light. What is it? A cut wall. Thats a 7. How thick is a 7 at this scale? Make it thicker. Rinse and reprint. And do it again, and do it again. For all of the scales (pass 1). Its not necessarily true that just because the scale gets bigger the lines should too, but sometimes, it is. So you have to monkey with it, for every single scale.

When i get that one pesky sheet of details to look decent, i revisit OS (pass 3). Anything there i want to revisit? If im happy with them, i do a wall section. Print it at a bunch of scales. Check it, it shouldnt need as much as the plan details did, but it may need some adjustments (LW pass 2). Make some.

Decide which adjustments need to be project wide in the OS/LW, and which ones you want View Templates to override (i dont like using VT's this way, so i try to avoid it).

I also find you have to do it after your content is done, which is a double edged sword, in case you have to go back and adjust your content. But until you know how everything will be built, how do you know how it will plot?

[iru69]

Awesome! I was hoping you would re-post this.

[Twiceroadsfool]

It was one i got tired of searching for, then copying, and reposting. So i finally just copied it to Word. How i wish i had that presence of mind times 4500. LOL.

[Dave Jones]

thanks for that Aaron! :beer: I saw this posted at the other place a few months ago and at the time I couldn't get my head around your process. I'm going to try to dive in again and figure this out. Maybe with a couple more months of Revit experience will get me there this time

[Twiceroadsfool]

Give it a go, step by step. its not that bad, just takes a lot of paper. LOL

[B Arch]

This is more of a question than a tip, but here goes anyways:

I'm unsure how Revit files deal with Object styles from families that are brought into an project file. When a family comes in with a 'new object style', and its not a match to the weight system in the project file, you need to re-map it don't you? So if the setup is radically different than OOTB, every foreign object brought has to be re-set?

[Twiceroadsfool]

Thats why i mentioned you want to have a plan, and have your content done, before hand. For symbology, you want to know what youre calling the subcategories, the Linestyles, and the corresponding lineweights. And you want to know what each subcategories lineweight is going to be, before you try to do it in the template. Thats why i leave it for very last.

[Alex Cunningham]

Aaron,

How many view scales to you set up in line weights? Do you need a scale of line weights for each scale used in a project? By default Revit has 1" 1/2" 1/4" 1/8" 1/16" 1/32" Do the line weights scale automatically for all the scales not listed? Are the scaled line weights the printed line thickness?

I am just starting into a rats nest of visual setup your experience would be greatly appreciated.

[Twiceroadsfool]

Im not sure what it does if there ARENT scales with lineweights defined, and you use those scales, honestly... Because i set them up when i do my lineweights. Not all of them, mind you. And a lot of them are dupes. 1/4" and 3/16"... They use the same lineweights. But in my template ive got:

3"=1'-0"
1 1/2"=1'-0"
1"=1'-0"
3/4"=1'-0"
1/2"=1'-0"
1/4"=1'-0"
1/8"=1'-0"
1/16"=1'-0"

In retrospect, i guess i DONT even have all the scales in there anymore. I used to.

[JeffreyMcGrew]

Am I a bad person in that I don't care enough to change them so I just accept the defaults and run with that?

Do I need to turn in my Architect's licence now? ;-)