Create VW Hatch from DXF Hatch

[Kevin]

I have a CD called StoneCad. It has DXF stone hatches on it. It also has Archicad and Autocad and Revit formats.

How can I turn that DXF hatch into a VW hatch which is useable in the program?

[jfmarch]

have you tried the import DWG command yet? you can also do a batch import DWG which works really well...

[Kevin]

Thanks Jim, I imported the hatch just fine. But what do I do with it now. It exists on a layer which I saved to a separate file. But I do not know how to take this image and make a hatch resource out of it.

[jfmarch]

i tries the same thing, and all the 'hatch.dxfs' came in as individual drawings. there must be a trick out there...

[jan15]

I'm not sure what you mean by "imported the hatch". The procedure I've always used is to import a DWG file which includes an object hatched with the hatch pattern I'm interested in. It comes into VW as a polygon with edge "None" and fill "Hatch", and so of course its hatch definition is automatically added to the list of hatches in the VW file's Attributes palette, and I can use it to hatch anything I want.

VW stores hatch definitions in the drawing file, but AC stores them in a separate file called "acad.pat", which is kept in the program folder. It may be that in order for VW to import the hatch definition it has to be able to find the acad.pat file. I don't know. The above method has always worked for me, and I don't know offhand whether I've always had the acad.pat file available at the time.

[Kevin]

I must be missing something here. All that I want to do is show a flagstone on my exterior elevation. I see no such hatch included with VW.

When I go to the Vectordepot site, there is no such hatch available. Yes there is a hatch available that says flagstone, but it is a rectilinear pattern.

How do others show various types of stone, such as ledgestone, river rock, etc?

As for the StoneCad CD, I find that the DXF files on it have imported into VW as a group and not a hatch.

[Ray Libby]

The DXF file would probably need to be opened in autocad, an object would have to be created with the hatch, then that file imported to Vectorworks (just guessing here). If you don't have autocad send the file(s) to me and I will send you a VW file.

cad(at)raylibby.net

[oldguy]

A DXF file is genrally a ASCII Text file of the drawing (AutoCAD Hatch files are .pat file) These DXF files are most likley detail drawings of the Stone finish

See http://www.culturedstone.com/ - for other clues (an associated links) - Part of Owens Corning

Oldguy

[jan15]

.pat files are also text files. They're the only way of defining a hatch pattern in Autocad, by typing in a coded description of the hatch pattern. People who think Vectorworks hatches are difficult to define should try the Autocad method.

[mike m oz]

Kevin - In the Vector Depot market site there is a collection of 20 hatches based on Owens Corning Cultured Stone available for purchase at US$20. http://vectordepot.com/vm-020.shtml

[Kevin]

Thanks Mike, I will take a look. And thank you to eveyone one else who contributed here.

As much as I like VW, it is troublesome to not have basic hatches like stone as part of the package. Renderworks has a wonderful selection of textures, some of which I will most likely never use. I would think that the inclusion of basic building hatches would be a standard item.