Template Title Block resizing

[Anonymous]

How to resize a Title Block template to fit to 11x17 page setup?

[Icemanau]

This can be done in several different ways...

The first way is technically cheating a bit and doesn't make any changes to the template.

In the Print dialog box, check the box to 'Fit to paper'. This is located in the Plot Scale section of the dialog.

NOTE - This will not change any text so if you are going from a extremely large dwg to the small size of 11x17, then the text will be proportionally smaller.

The second way is slightly more correct.

Open the template file and select everything on the page.

Now SCALE the title block to match the page size.

If need be, adjust the title block graphics and attributes to suit.

Do a 'Save As' and save the dwg as a NEW template.

The Third way is to print out a copy of the blank template.

Start a BLANK dwg and basically create a new title block to suit.

Start by changing to the Defpoints layer and placing a box sized to match the paper.

NOTE - The Defpoints layer is designed to allow placing build lines and other bits and pieces which will not be in the final dwg. Anything on this layer will not print out and once you have finished, you can swap back to the Defpoints layer and delete everything with no problems.

Now move to Layer 0 and create your title block inside the box.

Add any layers, text/table/dimension formats and other settings you want your template to hold.

When you have finished and are happy with the title block, do a 'Save As' and save the file as a template (DWT extension).

Regards Brad

[dougmcalexander]

Brad has provided great advice.  You did not mention the size of the title block you wish to resize, but I offer this additional advice, just in case this applies.  I recommend that my North American clients use an ANSI D-size drawing template and set the Page Setup to the plot-to-fit option (as Brad mentioned).  FYI...I also recommend setting the paper size to 11x17, plot extents, center the plot, set the default plotter to the AcadE - DWG to PDF option, and monochrome.ctb.  See the attached screen capture of the Print>Page Setup dialog I use for plotting D-size drawings to B-size paper.

Why use D-size?  The symbols supplied by Autodesk for North American design standards (i.e. the NFPA library) were originally developed to fit a D-size ANSI drawing environment.  That's fine.  You could use the Modify Symbol Library utility to scale an entire symbol library by a factor of 0.5.  Caution: Make a back up of the entire folder before you do this, in case you don't like the results. 

However, if you use a D-size drawing template, the symbols supplied by Autodesk will drop in at the proper size without the need for scaling.  The plot-to-fit setting will scale everything by approximately 0.5 when you plot from a D (34x22) drawing environment to a B (11x17) paper size.  There is a small bonus.  AutoCAD Electrical doesn't officially support the use of paper space*.  So we usually scale our border up around our full size panel layout.  You won't have to scale your border up as much if your template is already D-size.  And again, the plot-to-fit scales everything to plot to an 11x17 paper size.

*Some customers have had success placing the title block portion of the template in paper space.  But be sure that schematic symbols, footprints, etc. reside in model space though.  The software does not synchronize data between model and paper space.  But if only your title block, and it's associated attributes, resides in paper space, the title block update tool can update the attributes in the title block.  The title block update doesn't require access to schematic symbols and panel layout footprints.  I have never used this approach myself, since I teach the software and thus try to follow the officially supported workflow.