GoEngineer Blog

Cosmetic Threads in SOLIDWORKS describe the attributes of a specific hole so you don’t need to add real/feature threads to a model. A cosmetic thread represents the minor (inner) diameter of a thread on a boss or the major (outer) diameter of a thread on a hole and can include a hole callout in drawings.

It is possible to copy every Custom Property in a SOLIDWORKS file to another document. If you are familiar with Microsoft Excel, it will be just like copying and pasting a range of cells. To Copy SOLIDWORKS Custom Properties to other files, follow these steps.

Want to add emphasis on your SOLIDWORKS drawing with custom colors and create a unique drawing by controlling more than just the title block or annotations? SOLIDWORKS lets you specify the color of paper, borders, lines, and sketches as well as allowing you to customize the colors of sketch lines in a part file.

By default, SOLIDWORKS creates two configurations of any weldment part. It names these configurations “As Welded” and “As Machined,” with “As Welded” being a derived configuration. The reason behind this is simple: so you can model the part before and after the machining process!

A common question I receive is, "How do I get SOLIDWORKS to call out holes the way the shop floor wants them?" Let’s begin by clearly defining how SOLIDWORKS hole callouts work. When you click on the Hole Callout button in a SOLIDWORKS drawing, it does a lookup to the file location in tools, options, document properties Hole Callout Format File. SOLIDWORKS is hardcoded to look for a file named calloutformat.txt in this location.

There are a few methods that you can use to better navigate/locate an item in the SOLIDWORKS FeatureManager. Often, when working with someone else's design, tracking down progress can be painful. In this article, we'll discuss tools that will help speed up this process.

Expanded metal is a type of sheet metal that has been cut and stretched to form a regular pattern to look like a mesh. It is commonly used for fences, walkways, grates, and as metallic lath to support plaster or stucco. While the part itself is nothing more than a plate with holes in it and is not much to sketch and pattern - this geometry in CAD is a monster!

Did you know that you can change the language in SOLIDWORKS without needing to change the language of your system? It's possible and relatively simple. The easiest way to change the language in an existing SOLIDWORKS installation is by tricking SOLIDWORKS into thinking the new language is English. There must be a full installation file set for the wanted language.

The goal of this article is to clarify any confusion and to break down the difference between drawing templates vs sheet formats in SOLIDWORKS; a question we often receive in our tech support line.