how can I organize assemblies and parts?

[fredJME3H]

Hello Everyone,

I am a single user of autocad who does drawings more or less as a hobby.

Can someone suggest  a way in which to organize my drawings so that they are easily

located and easily changed.

I cant really explain what i want to achieve - so I will give and example and anyone can

offer suggestions or critizms.

Lets aay I have an assembly made up of 50 parts.

Would it be a feasible way of organization if I had the main assembly on page 1 and all the

seperate components each on its own page and created as a block which will automatically

update the main drawing on page 1?

Otherwise how is a good way to go about this issue

best regards and thank you

Fred Evans

[pendean]

Read this from HELP inside the program, fully explore it, then come back with questions about what might work for you if you still have any of course https://knowledge.autodesk.com/support/autocad/getting-started/caas/CloudHelp/cloudhelp/2019/ENU/Aut...

Also explore this https://www.lynda.com/AutoCAD-tutorials/Creating-block-library-two-clicks/69089/79614-4.html
and

[gotphish001]

You could split the 50 parts up into 50 dwg files (or a few in each dwg). Then have just one file that you x-reference all of them into. You could work on all the parts in this main drawing file, but it really wouldn't have anything in it but x-refs. It would update the smaller drawings though. Is that what you are talking about?

Or... Are you talking about how to lay them out on layout sheets so the drawing makes sense to someone else? If this is the case just off the top of my head.... On a sheet in a smaller scale, you'd have the parts all together with one part highlighted a different color and then next to it the highlighted part in a bigger scale so you could see it. 

You can also do a blow out view with arrows and lines on one sheet. You'd number all the parts there. Then on separate sheets you'd have individual parts with matching numbers. Probably a few on each sheet.

Like this:

Capture.PNG

[fredJME3H]

Thank you all for the responses- I Much appreciate your time and effort in trying to help,

maybe one day I can also help some one!

The closest answer comes from Gotpish001. Thanks for your input

I think this is what I am looking for. The 50 parts and the 50 .dwg's is what I currently have.

So now the challenge I am facing is how to put then all together in one assembly drawing.

(I am afraid that you may have to coach me through a few sessions on this forum)

I read with interest and watched the videos recommended and now I have a better

understanding of the use of blocks but I am still unclear on xrefs( will read this tonight)

Your paragraph 1 suggests i use xrefs. I will compose an assembly drawing out of a combination

of all the xrefs. 

So just for simplicity sake say the assembly consists of a bolt  ,a nut and a washer

the relecant drawings will be bolt.dwg,nut.dwg and washer.dwg. the assembly is called fastener.dwg.

If I change geometry on fastener. dwg will autocad automatically update e.g. bolt.dwg ?. similaraly

if I change geometry on bolt.dwg will autocad automatically update fastner.dwg?

will the same apply if I am using blocks?

regards

fred