Calculating custom scale

[ct_studio]

Hi,

This is partially a Revit question but also involves general knowledge about scale drawings.

I have a drawing with custom scale 1:10,000.

The linework shown in the drawing has been scaled down by a factor of 1,000.

The drawing is working as intended, as 1310.5' * 1000 / 5280 = 248 miles.

I am expecting something in the ballpark of 1" = 150 miles but I am just not sure how to get there.

I assumed that Revit's 1 unit : 10,000 units converts to 1 unit : 100,000 actual units but I can't produce a correct scale value with these numbers.

Thanks for any help with this head scratcher.

[azad.Nanva]

I think the mistake comes from using Imperial system with Metric Scale in revit ! i am not familier with imperial system

[ct_studio]

Both the revit model and linked drawing are using imperial / feet. I thought the custom scale was unit-agnostic and I'm not sure where a conversion factor needs to be introduced..

[azad.Nanva]

I generally use millimeters as the unit, and when the project area is large, I divide it into different phases. Then, I link those phases into a main file and work on each phase separately so that the workflow is easier and Revit can handle it without any issues.

[azad.Nanva]

When you set a View Scale (like 1:100, 1:10,000, etc.), Revit only understands it as a ratio, not as “feet vs. meters.”
1:100 means “1 drawing unit equals 100 model units,” regardless of whether those units are millimeters or feet.

[HVAC-Novice]

I don't know your intent. But Revit is a Building design tool, not some mapping tool. 

And scales should be standardized and use the correct system. Metric scales will be decimal. IP scales will be fractional. 

i don't know who your audience is. But anyone using a scale, will expect a standard scale, not some arbitrary scale where 1.235" will equal 12.478 miles. How would you use that to get the true dimension? Imagine someone using a ruler to measure on your map and then easily converting to actual miles. 

[ct_studio]

I understand your point. I am doing urban mapping and analyzing transit station programs with 3D geometry but I am also showing the overall regional routes.

[ct_studio]

To frame the question differently, is it accurate that a 1:10,000 view of a drawing that has been scaled down by a factor of 1000 has a scale of 1:100,000?

[mhiserZFHXS]

No. If you have a 1:10,000 drawings, and you scale it another 1,000, then you need to multiple the numbers... So it'd be 1:10,000,000. 

[HVAC-Novice]

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@ct_studio wrote:

To frame the question differently, is it accurate that a 1:10,000 view of a drawing that has been scaled down by a factor of 1000 has a scale of 1:100,000?

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Just so you don't mix this up:

- in Revit the actual model is in actual size (1:1). I don't know if Revit has a limitation for your 280 miles....  this is outside the scope of a building design software. But if you model this correctly, it will be 280 miles in size. 

- A view is just an arbitrary slice (or 3d view) of that model. And you decide what shows and in what scale. that scale is what the view will be and everything in that view will have the same scale. So, a view doesn't get scaled up or down, it is just the "scale" you show. 

- You can make a hundred different vies of the same thing and all in a different scale.

- urban mapping or not, I'm sure there are standard scales for mapping and a normal user will expect one of those. That is how they would use your map. If IP, it would be something like 1'= 10 miles or so. Not some arbitrary number. Due to the extreme scale (extreme for buildings) you need here, there may be some practical limitations in Revit. I don't know the limits, the buildings I design usually are less than 280 miles long 🙂