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How do I change or add new line types in a drawing?

Drawing Environment

How do I change or add new line types in a drawing?

by  CorBlimeyLimey  Posted    (Edited  )
The following method although still valid, has been made redundant by SW2006.
You can now customize lines in simple interface under the Tools > Options > Document Properties > Line Font section.

Line scales cannot be changed, but the file which creates the lines can be modified to give the same effect.
The file is swlines.lin and can be found in C:\Program Files\SolidWorks\lang\english. A sample is shown below:-
The positive number is the line length & the negative number is the space "length".

NOTE: Make a copy of the original file before modifying it, and save a copy of the new file somewhere safe, so that it will not be overwritten by SolidWorks updates or patches.

NOTE: SolidWorks must be restarted after changing the file before it takes effect.

After you have modified the file, open your Drawing Template file, and set the default Line Font to your preference (Tools>Options>Document Properties>Line Font) then re-save your Drawing Template file.

Lines can also be changed individually directly from a drawing. RMB on the line>Component Line Font>deselect Use document defaults>select linetype, etc.

A big thanks goes to Dave (djw2k3) for pointing out this file in thread559-80886


;;
;; Based on AutoCAD Ver. 13.0's Line Styles Format
;;
;; A length/space of '1.0' is equivalent to .2 inches.
;;
*CONTINUOUS,Solid
A,12
*HIDDEN,Dashed
A,.25,-.125
*HIDDEN,Dashedx2
A,.5,-.25
*HIDDEN,Dashedx3
A,.75,-.375
*HIDDEN,Dashedx4
A,1.0,-.5
*PHANTOM,Phantom
A,1.25,-.25,.25,-.25,.25,-.25
*PHANTOM,Phantomx2
A,2.5,-.5,.5,-.5,.5,-.5
*PHANTOM,Phantomx3
A,3.75,-.75,.75,-.75,.75,-.75
*CHAIN,Chain
A,1.25,-.25,.25,-.25
*CHAIN,Chainx2
A,2.5,-.5,.5,-.5
*CENTER,Center
A,3,-.25,.25,-.25
*CENTER,Centerx2
A,6,-.5,.5,-.5
*STITCH,Stitch
A,0,-.125
*STITCH,Stitchx2
A,0,-.25
*CHAIN_THICK,Thin/Thick Chain
A,1.25,-.25,.25,-.25
B,THICKENDS
*CHAIN_THICK,Thin/Thick Chainx2
A,2.5,-.5,.5,-.5
B,THICKENDS
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