Problem with plot scale in page setup

[Guest]

I'm trying to plot a set of drawings that need to be set at 1:1. Everytime I pick Custom or 1:1 and set it to 1mm = 1unit, AutoCAD immediately switches it to whatever 1:1_6 is, leaving me with a bunch of empty space around all my viewports.

 

I'm fairly new at using paper space, and I've never used a plot scale that have underscores in them, so I don't even know what they're representing. Any explantions or help you guys can give me would be much appreciated.

[ReMark]

Could be duplicate scales brought into your drawing if you used xrefs.

 

Try this. Exit Plot and return to your drawing. At the command line type -SCALELISTEDIT then type "R" for RESET. Now go try a plot. What happens?

[Guest]

Well, that fixed part of the problem. One of the drawings apprently had 488 annotation scales, and the other had 468. Now I doesn't switch scales on me anymore, and will stay at 1:1, but I have still have a bunch of white space around my viewports when compared to the older printed versions I'm working off of.

[ReMark]

Why is Plot area set to "Extents"? It should be set to "Layout".

[Guest]

Whoops, I just forgot to switch it before I took my screenshot.

[designerstuart]

so if you measure something on your plot does it come out a different size to when you measure it in the drawing? are you using the same size paper etc?

[Guest]

are you using the same size paper etc?

 

Am I using the same paper size? What, does this guy think I'm idiot or somet--

 

OH MY GOD. DON'T ANSWER THAT.

 

We only ever plot at 36x48", so that's what I had the plotter set up for. Except the engineer's drawings I'm working off of are just smaller enough that I didn't notice it until I had the two different sized sheets next to each other.

 

Well, this was a shameful, shameful first question. Thanks for the help, you two.

[ReMark]

I wouldn't worry about your first question. We all have to start somewhere.

[Organic]

Why is Plot area set to "Extents"? It should be set to "Layout".

 

Extents works better in my experience.

 

Also, don't forget to 'center the plot'.

[qball]

I also notice that your paper size is imperial and the plot scale shows millimeters.

[Guest]

I also notice that your paper size is imperial and the plot scale shows millimeters.

 

That's the way the company works, I guess. Every drawing is a mishmash of metric and imperial. The engineer's drawings come to us in inches, on top of that we have to draw our HVAC systems in millimeters for the shop, the shop sends back revisions written in inches, AutoCAD and our templates are metric, but they get plotted off on imperial size sheets.

 

I dunno! I'm new here and just do what they tell me!