Using References
Reference geometry exists to be pointed at. A plane is somewhere to sketch, an axis is something to turn or sweep around, a point is a spot to mate to. Build them deliberately and the model stops depending on faces that move.
What takes a reference
- A sketch. Select a reference plane on its own and the toolbar offers a new sketch on it.
- A revolve, a sweep, a helical sweep. All three ask for an axis, and a reference axis is one of the three things their picker accepts.
- A mirror, a pattern, a clearance cut. Each wants a plane or a direction.
- A Transform step. Most of the positioning steps take a point, an axis or a plane, and a reference is always a valid answer.
Anchor to references, not to faces
This is the habit that separates a model you can edit from one you rebuild.
A face of the model exists because of the features before it. Change one of those and the face may move, tilt, split or stop existing, and everything pointed at it goes with it. A reference plane built from three vertices, or an axis built from a cylinder, is one step away from the same fate but usually survives what a face does not.
The practical version: when a feature asks for an axis or a plane and you find yourself hunting for a face that happens to be in the right place, make the reference instead. It costs one step now and saves the rebuild later.
Hiding, disabling, renaming
Visible is in each reference's panel. Off means not drawn and not clickable. Everything built on it keeps working.
Disable, from the timeline step's menu, is a different thing: the reference stops evaluating, and anything that used it fails with A referenced feature is suppressed. Use it to test whether something still depends on a reference.
Rename by clicking the title at the top of the panel. There is a Rename entry in the right-click menu that opens nothing, so use the panel.
Deleting one
Deleting a reference asks first, and lists what goes with it. That list covers sketches built on the plane, and their extrudes, and other references built from this one.
See also
- Reference Planes: making the one you will use most
- Reference Axes and Points: lines and spots to aim at
- Transform Basics: where most references end up being used