Bill_Emery

Mark: I explored the plan you posted and am impressed by your clever method to get a raised cabinet bottom. I also liked your clever solution to produce an ogee curve in an island or peninsula cabinet that you posted back in October.

Here's a slightly different way to handle it with reasonable accuracy. molding for cornice.plan

You'll not find much in the Chief library. There is perhaps something appropriate in the Sketchup library. The way that I create domes is using roof planes. If you create a round structure using walls, you can generate a roof with triangular segments, and curve them to create interesting dome shapes. Domes can also be created using molding polyline drawn in circular segments. These molding polylines can be converted to symbols. Below is an interesting take on using roof planes and ridge caps to create a geodesic dome.

Here it is as a 12/12 pitch with a 24" overhang. I've adjusted the eave sub fascia to 4 15/16". I tried keeping the eave sub fascia at 5 1/2" but when I raised the roof to accommodate it, I lost the cantilever.

You can use any overhang, and any pitch: the formula works.

It appears that it is a simple adjustment for the eave sub fascia. It should be adjusted to the vertical structure depth in the roof>general DBX.

The formula above will always generate a cantilever truss. slight differences in roof height may result in a cantilever truss not generating. The formula locates the truss where it needs to be. I think that what you are seeing is that it does not line up with the soffit that Chief generates based on the height of the eave sub fascia. The truss is correct by the formula, but the eave sub fascia height must be adjusted to bring it into alignment with the bottom chord of the truss. eave fascia height is related to the pitch of the roof, and must be adjusted independently of the truss. My guess is that a formula can be developed for this factor, but I've not explored that option

They have some nice ones in the Sketchup Warehouse.

There is an exceptionally easy formula for this. Baseline - fascia top ht = amount to raise roof planes. This should work for any pitch or overhang because it raises the bottom tip of the top chord to plate height, or the bottom of the bottom chord. This formula assumes that you have specified trusses; no birdsmouth.

I use it to bring odd bits of information into the label, as it is the only column in the component dialog box that can be accessed with a macro, and displayed in the label. I've always wondered while this is the only column accessible by macro.

I appreciate the cosmetic improvements we got in X8, but stairs still need a functional overhaul. Johnny: I wanted to avoid a major work around when I suggested dragging the stairs over the wall, but if you must have the stringer visible on the inside; you can copy and paste the stairway in place, and drag the copy out over the wall. Using this method your stairway width can remain accurate. Using a double stairway, or partial double stairs is a fairly common way to get around some of Chief's limitations.

Hi Johnny, Can you elaborate on what you want to do with the upper section. Does it want to look like the lower section? I also want to make sure that you know that you can edit each section independently.

I don't think there is any way to control the stringer width; but you can control the height so that you can hide the stringer in the wall when the stringer height is set for zero.

Here's another take on the subject. There's no need to go to a work around, when a Chief Stair will work here nicely. I've simply used a closed stairway that has been extended over the outside wall, centering the railing on the wall. I've copied the outside wall to the basement below and edited it to cover the notch that chief cuts in the outside stringer. I've also added a molding polyline to cap the rake wall. stairs (2).plan

Here is a plan with a trim similar to what you've shown above. These windows can be saved to the library, copied and resized. The width and window type can be easily adjusted, but if height values change, the "curtain" treatment must be adjusted in the DBX. extended rosette window trim.plan

Here is a different take on the subject that can give you a great deal of flexibility, with a fair amount of automation. I tend to use native Chief windows (not custom symbols), but I can gain flexibility in design by using the treatment tab, and in particular curtains. I make custom symbols for the rosettes, and sometimes the casings. This allows the corner blocks to rise above the casing, and it allows for almost any ornate trim or casing. Even tapered casings are possible. The windows with these special casings can be placed in the library and placed in the plan. They will resize in width automatically, and will resize in height with a little adjustment of the treatment DBX. For the doors, I tend to use a doorway symbol that will resize, and take on different configurations. The reason that I tend to use symbols for the doors is that the doors have no treatment tab. The exterior doors I've included in this plan are simply Chief doors with plant on rosettes and plinth, but the interior doors are custom doorway symbols. Attached is a plan for anyone who wants to experiment with this Rosette Curtain treatment.plan

Adjusting the wall thickness to the post thickness will allow you to center the railing.

As Michael says above, checking energy heel will prevent the cantilever, but the top chord will still extend as the rafter tail. Editing the truss envelop as Jere suggested will prevent the cantilever, and also kill the tail.

Here is the plan in X5.cant truss x5.plan

Attached is a plan with cantilever trusses. Michael mentioned some important information. In addition to what he said, there are some settings that are interrelated, and determine how the truss will work: The bottom tip of the top chord must not be above the top of the bottom truss, or the cantilever will not generate. Boxed eaves are generally used with the cantilever truss. The eave sub fascia determines the position on the eave closure panel, so the height of the roof plane must be adjusted with this in mind. The extent of the eave overhang is another factor that must be considered The pitch of the roof is another variable to consider. And as Michael mentioned the roof baseline height above the wall top plate is another important factor. I've included the plan so that you can play with these interrelationships. All of this can be worked out mathematically, or simply by trial and error. cantelever truss.plan

It's possible to manipulate the frame width and depth to represent the structural mull. It won't automatically show framing, but could be edited to do so, or just shown with cad. The "bucking window may be more applicable than you think, as a thinner wall set into an opening can give you better control of how the framing looks, and a more accurate representation of the window.

You'll also have to set the distance between windows to zero. You may have to adjust your frame width to get the look that you want. For more control over inset windows in a deep wall see D Scott Hall's "bucking window" thread.

Try this. I've not looked at the plan, but this should help. Just looked at the plan. I see you have your frame depth at 3", but have not unchecked "fit frame to wall"

This is a little convoluted, and probably worse than referenced macros, but you can have the callout, and the macro display by copying each window in place, and telling the copy that it is not included in the schedule. Ultimately this could result in a mess, but just fun to play with.

Brian, Is this what you want to show. This can be accomplished with filed roof planes that can be manipulated with annotation sets. It can also be accomplished with filled cad polylines.