Stretch Zones


ericepv
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I am trying to lower a pendant so that it is 30" above the counter. I know that this can be done by adjusting the stretch zone but after watching the video, reading the help section & going through various Chief Talk posts, I still cannot figure out how the values are calculated. Can anyone give me a simple explanation of how to do this?

 

Pendant.JPG

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Open the Symbol Specification dbx and change the Z-value in the Sizing>Height tab (I used Joe's -9" value). This will restrict the symbol to stretching only the pendant stem when you change the height in the Object Specification dbx (remember to turn off Maintain Aspect Ratio).

 

zvalue.PNG

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21 minutes ago, rlackore said:

Open the Symbol Specification dbx and change the Z-value in the Sizing>Height tab (I used Joe's -9" value). This will restrict the symbol to stretching only the pendant stem when you change the height in the Object Specification dbx (remember to turn off Maintain Aspect Ratio).

 

zvalue.PNG

I entered the values exactly as shown but I still do not get the result you show. The stem lengthens as needed but the fixture is also elongated (as shown in my original image).

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OK, I'm still not getting it (my brain must be on vacation). What I ultimately want to end up with is a pendant that is 10" in diameter and 30" above the countertop. Even when I resize the object first, it ends up being elongated when I follow the steps you outlined.

 

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I had an awful time learning this. I kept prints of the pages from the reference manual on my desk. Then just kept at it. I'd make several copies of something and see what happened.

The key to what Robert is telling you -he saved as a new symbol, then resized the length of the NEW symbol. If you do EXACTLY what he suggests, in the order he gives, you will get the same result.

 

That idea, making a new symbol, was a big aha for me in learning how this works.

A symbol will ALWAYS relate to it's original properties.

That is if you change the size of the symbol (as you did to get the diameter you wanted) then go and change the planes or zones that will have an effect on your original change (diameter). This often creates unwanted results (as is the case for your symbol).

Making changes and adding to the library does NOT help, it is still the same symbol with the same original properties. You must convert the changed object to a new symbol for it to have new default properties.

 

 The new symbol will have the new size and start with default stretch planes not selected and listed as "0", the default origin will also be at 0,0,0 for the class of symbol, AND the bounding box dimensions will also have changed. Yes, sometimes you can just resize a symbol and get what you want, I find it easier to figure it out by saving after each change.

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OK, I've watched the videos and re-read the instructions but what I just don't get is where the values come from and where to apply them and why. Once I understand that part, the rest will make sense. Thanks to everyone for trying to explain this but I guess I'm just too thick to figure it out unless I can have it shown to me directly.

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