Best way to use same drawing for different parts (similar geometry)

snipped-for-privacy@spamgourmet.com (SW Monkey) wrote in news: snipped-for-privacy@posting.google.com:

Open drawing of original (A.slddrw). Click Save As, and rename drawing to (B.slddrw). Before clicking save, click references. Slow double click file reference and rename (B.sldprt or B.sldasm). Click OK and then click Save.

Solidworks will duplicate the referenced part with a new name and save a new drawing that references that part. All internal IDs will remain the same and so you will not have dangling dimensions. I've never had this method fail.

MHill

The best way is to plan ahead and make the similar parts as copies of eachother then edit the copies. Then when you make a drawing of the first part. Make a copy of the drawing and before you open it change the refs and most of the dims will come through.

Corey

You can insert design tables into drawings. Thus, make you parts driven by a design table, then insert that design table into the drawing.

Often requires some formatting tricks to get the table looking nice, though.