Drafting in decimal feet / inches units

[gdgdad]

I have been laying out a property plot and the measurement tape is in decimal feet / inches. So… when I measure 10.25’ (10’ 3”) I want to enter as such in Autocad 2018 and when I dimension that line I want dimension to read the same way, i.e. 10.25’.  I’ve tried every variation of units setting and dimstyle I know of, but cannot get Autocad to take my measurements in decimal feet entries, let alone display a 10’3” length as 10.25’. I've followed all the suggestions/instructions on this forum and more (via google) with no luck. Is this just not possible?

[f700es]

What about just using 10.25 and no ' or " mark?

[tombu]

As Land Surveying and Civil work in the US is done in feet that's always been my base unit.  For dimensioning structures in feet' - inches" I have an Architectural dimension style with the [Primary Units] Measurement scale Scale factor: set to 12 which would display as (10’-3”).  All other dimension styles are set with the [Primary Units] Measurement scale Scale factor: set to 1 with the foot mark as a Suffix to display to decimal feet (10.25').  The child annotation style for Angular units has the foot mark Suffix removed.

Edited September 16, 2019 by tombu
Added info

[gdgdad]

49 minutes ago, f700es said:

What about just using 10.25 and no ' or " mark?

OK – this is VERY confusing and probably something incredibly stupid on my part. I got the Decimal feet to work, i.e. entering 10.25 and getting a 10’ 3” line. And annotating shows up as well @ 10.25’ which is what I wanted. In the drawing that’s working as I desired, the settings are:

Via Drawing utilities,  Type is: Decimal, Insertion scale: Feet

Then via DIMSTYLE, Unit format: Decimal, Precision 0.00, Decimal separator “.” , Scale Factor 1/12

However, I started a new drawing to verify my settings work, and though I replicate every drawing utility setting and dimstyle setting, when I type in a line length of 10.25 – I get a 10 and ¼ inch line. I have to be missing something obvious.  Thank you for all your help

37 minutes ago, tombu said:

As Land Surveying and Civil work in the US is done in feet that's always been my base unit.  For dimensioning structures in feet' - inches" I have an Architectural dimension style with the [Primary Units] Measurement scale Scale factor: set to 12.  All other dimension styles are set with the [Primary Units] Measurement scale Scale factor: set to 1 to display to decimal feet.

OK – this is VERY confusing and probably something incredibly stupid on my part. I got the Decimal feet to work, i.e. entering 10.25 and getting a 10’ 3” line. And annotating shows up as well @ 10.25’ which is what I wanted. In the drawing that’s working as I desired, the settings are:

Via Drawing utilities,  Type is: Decimal, Insertion scale: Feet

Then via DIMSTYLE, Unit format: Decimal, Precision 0.00, Decimal separator “.” , Scale Factor 1/12

However, I started a new drawing to verify my settings work, and though I replicate every drawing utility setting and dimstyle setting, when I type in a line length of 10.25 – I get a 10 and ¼ inch line. I have to be missing something obvious.  Thank you for all your help

[tombu]

1 hour ago, gdgdad said:

OK – this is VERY confusing and probably something incredibly stupid on my part. I got the Decimal feet to work, i.e. entering 10.25 and getting a 10’ 3” line. And annotating shows up as well @ 10.25’ which is what I wanted. In the drawing that’s working as I desired, the settings are:

 

Via Drawing utilities,  Type is: Decimal, Insertion scale: Feet

 

Then via DIMSTYLE, Unit format: Decimal, Precision 0.00, Decimal separator “.” , Scale Factor 1/12

 

However, I started a new drawing to verify my settings work, and though I replicate every drawing utility setting and dimstyle setting, when I type in a line length of 10.25 – I get a 10 and ¼ inch line. I have to be missing something obvious.  Thank you for all your help

 

It's because you set Scale Factor to 1/12 instead of 1.  Take another look at my post. I've attached Anno 0.1 Dimensions.dwg with the two Annotative styles I use for almost everything

Anno 0.1 Dimensions.dwg

Edited September 16, 2019 by tombu
Attached Anno 0.1 Dimensions.dwg

[Dana W]

Drawing UNITS live in the individual drawing.  Set up a template (*.dwt) drawing file and use it to start a new drawing from.  Otherwise you will have to change all the units parameters for every new drawing.

 

DEFAULT drawing templates = acad.dwt is imperial.  acadiso.dwt is metric (millimeters)  I named my surveyors template FEET.dwt, lol.

 

And look into the command -DWGUNITS.  Note the leading hyphen.  It will convert the units for any dwg to any other unit.  It can also re-scale your modelspace objects to fit any measurement unit all at once.

 

This saves people who start a drawing in imperial (U.S.A.) units and discover only when trying to scale a viewport or set up a dimstyle, that the drawing is actually in millimeters.   This can happen if  -DWGUNITS and UNITS don't match up.

 

The UNITS command (Drawing utilities) DOES NOT change the drawing units, only the Display Units, as in MEASURE > DISTANCE.

 

The unit in the dimstyles simply renames whatever units the drawing units are.

Edited September 16, 2019 by Dana W
more info needed

[gdgdad]

Tombu, thanks so much. I can get Decimal feet to work both in how I enter dimensions and how they're annotated. However, it seems odd that within that same drawing (see attached revision of yours) I can have a line that is annotated as 1.02' that's clearly longer than a line annotated 10.25'.  Per Dana's suggestion I've saved both your drawing and the first one I got to work as templates. I know I'm missing something basic but though I've been using AutoCad for more than 10 years, I can count on one hand the number of property / land drawings I've done. Thanks again

Anno 0.1 Dimensions revised.dwg

[tombu]

1 hour ago, gdgdad said:

Tombu, thanks so much. I can get Decimal feet to work both in how I enter dimensions and how they're annotated. However, it seems odd that within that same drawing (see attached revision of yours) I can have a line that is annotated as 1.02' that's clearly longer than a line annotated 10.25'.  Per Dana's suggestion I've saved both your drawing and the first one I got to work as templates. I know I'm missing something basic but though I've been using AutoCad for more than 10 years, I can count on one hand the number of property / land drawings I've done. Thanks again.

Only after you set Scale Factor to 1/12 instead of 1.  Why did you even add a Linear Child dimension style? You couldn't get the wrong dimension in what I sent you.  As long as you keep making the same mistake you will keep getting the same results.  Setting the Annotation Scale to 1" = 30" produces the same text and arrow size as your other dimension style in case you're unfamiliar with Annotative dimensions.

Edited September 16, 2019 by tombu