Managing Dimension Styles

You can use the Dimension Style Manager to perform many dimension style management tasks:

• Create new dimension styles (see “Creating Dimension Styles”)
• Modify existing dimension styles
• Set the current style
• View a drawing’s dimension styles and dimension style properties
• Preview dimension styles
• Compare two dimension styles, or list all the properties for a style
• Rename dimension styles
• Delete dimension styles

To set the current dimension style

1. From the Dimension menu, choose Style.
2. In the Dimension Style Manager, select a style and choose Set Current. You can also double-click the style to make it current.

Command line DIMSTYLE

To modify a dimension style

1. From the Dimension menu, choose Style.
2. In the Dimension Style Manager, select the style you want to modify, and then choose Modify.
3. In the Modify Dimension Style dialog box, choose any of the following tabs to modify the style settings:
   • Lines and Arrows: Modifies the appearance and behavior of the dimension lines, extension lines, arrowheads, center marks, and centerlines (see “Formatting Dimension Lines and Arrows”).
   • Text: Modifies the dimension text appearance, placement, alignment, and movement (see “Formatting Dimension Text”).
   • Fit: Sets options governing where AutoCAD places dimension lines, extension lines, and text and defines the overall dimension scale (see “Fitting Dimension Text and Arrowheads”).
   • Primary Units: Sets the format and precision of linear and angular dimension units (see “Formatting Primary Dimension Units”).
   • Alternate Units: Modifies the alternate unit format and precision (see “Adding Alternate Dimension Units”).

Tolerances: Modifies lateral tolerance values and precision (see “Adding Tolerances to Dimensions”).

4. Choose OK, and then choose Close.

Command line DIMSTYLE

To compare dimension styles

1. From the Dimension menu, choose Style.
2. In the Dimension Style Manager, choose Compare.
3. In the Compare Dimension Styles dialog box, select the dimensions you want to compare.

AutoCAD displays the properties that differ between the two styles. If you select the same style, AutoCAD displays all the properties for that style.

4. After the comparison you can click the Copy to Clipboard button to copy the comparison to the Clipboard. You can then paste the comparison to another Microsoft® Windows® program for further formatting. For example, you can select a cell in a Microsoft Excel sheet and paste the style comparison information into a worksheet.
5. Choose Close to exit each dialog box.

Command line DIMSTYLE