Essential AutoCAD Express tools you should know

AutoCAD Express Tools is a collection of productivity tools that extend the power of AutoCAD.

These tools are provided as a courtesy to you but are unsupported.

Autodesk does not assume any responsibility for their successful operation.

You can install the Express Tools during the initial product installation or you can add them later using Add or Remove Programs in the Control Panel.

You can access most of the Autodesk Express Tools from the Express Tools tab on the ribbon.

You can also access Express Tools using corresponding commands.

Personally, I like using Express Tools so I thought I’d write about some of my favorites here.

Super Hatch

SUPERHATCH is similar to the hatch command but it allows you to use an image, block, Xref, or WIPEOUT as a hatch pattern. 

The SUPERHATCH dialog box provides several options:

Image – Opens the Attach Image dialog box for specifying the image for the superhatch pattern.

Block – Opens a dialog box for specifying the block for the superhatch pattern.

Xref Attach – Opens the Xref File Name dialog box for specifying an Xref file for the superhatch pattern.

Wipeout – Uses a wipeout object for the superhatch pattern.

Select Existing – Selects an existing image, block, Xref or wipeout object for the superhatch pattern.

Curve Error Tolerance – Specifies the error tolerance for the vector approximation of curved superhatch boundaries.

You can use the Block option to create hatch patterns on-the-fly, you can create blocks with different layers, colors and linetypes to create hatch patterns that react to layer states and plot with a variety of line weights.

You can use hatch images on surfaces to get a rendered effect.