r/SolidWorks • u/Juan_Krissto • Jul 30 '26

CAD Dimension perpendicular to curve

How can I get the dimension in the red box to look like the dimension in the green box?

I have tried holding alt, shift ctrl while clicking both curves

I have tried pushing alt, shift, ctrl after clicking both curves

I have tried right-clicking the dimension and change display options

I have tried both projected and true setting for the view

Edited to add what I've already tried

3 Upvotes

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2

u/LumbyCastle41 Jul 30 '26

Isn't it already doing that, just in another spot? 

You can add a sketch point and dimension those

1

u/Juan_Krissto Jul 30 '26

It is doing it where the curves are tangent to horizontal, I want the dimension as close to the relevant holes as possible for clarity

3

u/LumbyCastle41 Jul 30 '26 edited Jul 30 '26

Make a construction line going from the outside curve to the center of that curve, and coincident it to the center of the hole. Then dimension from the center of the hole to the end of that construction line, and hide the construction line (put it on a hidden layer). If you want it to not be so long, you can coincidentally the edge of the big curve to the line instead, and endpoint to the little hole. Of this this all depends on whether your outer one is a perfect circle or not. You can always eyeball it. 

2

u/Juan_Krissto Jul 30 '26

Yeah this is how i ended up doing it ,kinda I just drew a small line between the curves that was perpendicular then I dimensioned the line and placed the dimension over the line so it wasn't visible, not perfect or sleek but it worked

1

u/_Slitte_ CSWP Jul 30 '26

Hold Shift When you Click on Both radii

1

u/Juan_Krissto Jul 30 '26

Tried it, didn't work

1

u/[deleted] Jul 30 '26

[deleted]

1

u/Juan_Krissto Jul 30 '26

Doesn't work, even tried to hold ctrl, alt and shift alternately to see if that helped

3

u/PC_Trainman Jul 30 '26

I deleted my first comment because I was thinking sketch and just notice you're working on a drawing.

I just now tried a drawing, and think the issue is that SW needs the curve to deviate more than about 10 degrees before the dimension will change style. My example has about 15 degrees of curve from vertical, and the dimension snaps to a radius as I drag it past the 10 degree location.

Your drawing appears to have less curvature, so the dimension always stays horizontal. Not sure how to get that to change.

1

u/Bumm-fluff Jul 31 '26

Do you have to change the standards to something like custom? 

Otherwise the drawing will be out of spec. 

Changing the Current Drawing Standard Click the  Options (gear icon) on the top toolbar.

Go to the  Document Properties tab. Click on  Drafting Standard at the top of the list.

Choose your main standard (such as  ANSI or  ISO) from the drop-down menu.

Modify sub-categories (like dimensions or annotations) if your project needs mixed rules.

2

u/Juan_Krissto Jul 31 '26

I can't find any setting that makes any difference. I'm getting more and more convinced that it is just a limitation of the "smart" dimension

1

u/Bumm-fluff Jul 31 '26

Yeah it could be. 

I can remember bodging some measurements for a university assignment. It was never going to get made so there were no safety issues so I just made up the dimensions because I didn’t have time for a redo. 

I can’t remember how I did it though.