Plane Re-sizing

[McDesign25]

1) Is there a setting in Solidworks where you can set the standard planes to be only a certain size? For example, when mating parts in an assembly it becomes difficult to mate parts that have different sized planes, both standard and later generated, because solidworks disenables zooming, panning, etc during mating. I would like to find a way to preset the size both for new and old parts, like a system property.

2) Is there a way to copy sketches from one part to another, or from an assembly to a part. Sometimes I am working in an assembly, and I want to edit in context, but I forget, and I end up spending 10 minutes on a sketch that is unsable because it ends up being an assembly feature not a part feature.

3) Is there a way to pick part features, faces, edges, etc while that part in being viewed with an assembly transparency, not a part transparency? Normally when I am measuring parts that are transparent in an assembly, I am never able to pick edges. I want the best of both worlds, to be able to see through the part and still pick the features with the measure tool.

4) Has anyone wrote a macro that prompts the user to fill in the custom properties in a part, so they do not forget to do it later, so it populates the assembly?

5) How do you link the custom properties from a part to the drawing, so that it populates the fields in the drawing. For example, I would like to have it fill in the material type, part name, scale, drawing number automatically depending on what I put in the parts custom properties.

Thanks again so much, these are a few things that I would like to figure out that would make my Solidworks sessions go much easier.

 

[EdDanzer]

1. I hide the planes after creation. To mate parts, open the mate box, pick the planes in the feature manager choose you mate type, preview, then you can zoom and pan all you want.

2. Find the sketch you want in the feature manager, click on it and hit Ctrl C to copy it, go to where you want the sketch, a face, or plane, be sure to highligh it then hit Ctrl V to paste.

3. Try selection filters, after clicking on the feature in the feature manager.

5. Read the what help has to say.

 

[SBaugh]

1) You can RMB the plane an click autosize. This changes the plane to the size of the part, or click on the plane and pull the corner out. SW doesn't disable the zooming, panning, etc toolbar commands, those are still available. If yours are disabling then your having more problems than you know.

2)See above

3) Also if you pick the wrong face etc.. RMB and click Select other and it lets you click something else like a face behind it, etc...

4)

http://www.solidworks.com

they have a Custom property API program there.

5) see above plus

http://www.frontiernet.net/~mlombard/

I hope this helps,

Scott Baugh, CSWP
3DVision Technologies

http://www.3dvisiontech.com

http://www.3dmca.com

faq731-376
When in doubt, always check the help

 

[BBJT]

3.) Not sure if this is what your after. In 2001PLus, Tools, Options, Display/Selection, the bottom check box....Enable selection through transparency.
BBJT CSWP