Structural Steel Toolbox; WTF;Over?
Structural Steel Toolbox; WTF;Over?
(OP)
Say I want to make a detail part, say of a rolled shape like an angle.
I open a new part, select an extruded feature, pick a sketch plane, pick the Structural Steel Toolbox, select a shape, say L angles, select a size, say 3x3x3/8, and press 'Create'.
At that point, SW generates a sketch of what looks like the correct part at the correct size, partially behind the dialog box, all in grey. So far so good.
Then, before I can press 'Done', the sketch changes its proportions and goes all green. So I press 'Done', and then I 'smart-dimension' the part.
Guess what? It's not 3x3x3/8! It's 1x1x1/8!
If I try to override the smart dimensions, the shape goes crazy, like the center of the internal fillet radius is tied down.
Some days it happens like that, some days I get what I want.
I think I've caught it in similar chicanery on other shapes, too. ... but again, not always.
What am I doing wrong?
I open a new part, select an extruded feature, pick a sketch plane, pick the Structural Steel Toolbox, select a shape, say L angles, select a size, say 3x3x3/8, and press 'Create'.
At that point, SW generates a sketch of what looks like the correct part at the correct size, partially behind the dialog box, all in grey. So far so good.
Then, before I can press 'Done', the sketch changes its proportions and goes all green. So I press 'Done', and then I 'smart-dimension' the part.
Guess what? It's not 3x3x3/8! It's 1x1x1/8!
If I try to override the smart dimensions, the shape goes crazy, like the center of the internal fillet radius is tied down.
Some days it happens like that, some days I get what I want.
I think I've caught it in similar chicanery on other shapes, too. ... but again, not always.
What am I doing wrong?
Mike Halloran
Pembroke Pines, FL, USA






RE: Structural Steel Toolbox; WTF;Over?
What I do is go directly to the Toolbox tab, select the profile I need, the length, and then select Create Part (like I do with nuts, screws, whatever). Seems to work properly for me, even in v2009.
Jeff Mowry
www.industrialdesignhaus.com
A people who value security over freedom will soon find they have neither.
RE: Structural Steel Toolbox; WTF;Over?
I'll try it your way and see how it goes.
Thanks.
Mike Halloran
Pembroke Pines, FL, USA
RE: Structural Steel Toolbox; WTF;Over?
1. select a plane
2. Create the profile using the menu Toolbox: Structural Steel then click done.
3. I then have a sketch that is the correct profile and just needs to be edited to set the location and orientation.
4. Finally extrude as needed.
If I try any other order (such as start with extrude, start in a sketch, etc) I get a "default" size profile with no dimensions. This is the way it has always worked for me in prevous versions of SW also (currently on 2009sp2).
RE: Structural Steel Toolbox; WTF;Over?
Thanks.
I hate fragile software...
Mike Halloran
Pembroke Pines, FL, USA