BLOCK CONTROLLED BY MORE THAN ONE LAYER

[Anonymous]

I am using Autocad 16 and have run into an issue, and am curious if anyone else has run into it.

I have a library of blocks that are used in typical drawings.  When brought into a drawing through the Tool Palette, I will place them on one of two layers either called Notes or Dim.  When I check them in properties they correctly will show the layer I have them on.  What is weird is that another layer called Symbol will turn these blocks on and off even though they are not on that layer? The blocks were made during the process of dragging the original CAD file from Windows Explorer into the Tool Palette.  When you drag and drop the item from the tool palette onto model space it is now a block reference.

This symbol layer is not any kind of special layer.  None of the other layers will effect these blocks the way symbols does.  Any ideas?

Thanks

[beyoungjr]

Were the original drawing objects located on a "symbol" layer in the original dwg file?  The original drawing basically becomes a block via the toll palette insertion process and brings layer and property data with the entities belonging to that drawing... no matter what layer you are dropping them on in the current drawing.

For example... if all objects were created on the "0" layer in the original drawing, freezing or turning off the "0" layer in the current drawing would make the objects invisible even though you located them on notes or dim layer.  It is due to the properties of the elements that make up the block objects.

[Anonymous]

Thanks for the response. They may have be made on the symbol layer originally. That pre-dates my employment here. Is there any way to remove that influence on the block? Thanks

[TheCADnoob]

you can edit the block to see if there are elements in the layers in question. If there is nothing standing out You can re create the block to change the behavior. 

[beyoungjr]

Very simple fix...

Select the block then right click and open in block editor.  While in the block editor you should select all objects that make up the block and open the properties dialog.  Make sure that there are no "blocks within blocks" then place all of the objects selected on the zero layer.  You can also take an opportunity to make any color or other changes but I typically make sure all objects are following "Bylayer" for color, linetype, etc.

Close the block and save.

Your block should now follow all normal behavior of the layer it belongs to.