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Snapping and the grid

Snapping pulls the pointer to exact positions while you draw, move, measure, or edit: grid points, corners, midpoints, centres, and intersections. It applies to every click a command asks for, not just to drawing.

Snap modes

Section titled “Snap modes”

The snapping controls are in the top toolbar: one button turns snapping on or off ( Enable snapping / Disable snapping), and one button per mode turns that mode on or off. On a tablet the same controls are in the Snap settings popover.

Toolbar snap buttons with snapping, grid, point, line, midpoint, and center on and intersection and perpendicular off, and a Midpoint label at the pointer on a rectangle's top edge
A label next to the pointer names the snap that will be used.
Mode Snaps to On by default
Snap to grid The nearest multiple of the grid’s Snap increment. Yes
Snap to point Corners and end points of features, the stock, tabs, and clamps, and the origin. Yes
Snap to line The nearest point on any segment. Yes
Snap to midpoint The middle of segments. Yes
Snap to center The centre of circles and arcs. Yes
Snap to intersection Points where two segments cross, even where there is no corner. No
Snap perpendicular The point on a segment that makes a right angle with the previous point of the command. No

Snapping considers visible features, including construction geometry and regions, and visible tabs and clamps. When the pointer is within reach of several candidates, a point, midpoint, centre, or intersection wins over a perpendicular point, which wins over a point on a line, which wins over the grid. A small label next to the pointer names the snap that will be used, so you can check it before you click.

Your snap settings are a preference of the app on this device, not part of the project.

Grid

Section titled “Grid”

Select Grid in the feature tree to change the grid:

Setting Description Default (inch / mm)
Grid extent The size of the drawn grid. 8 in / 200 mm
Major lines The spacing of the heavier grid lines. 1 in / 10 mm
Minor lines The spacing of the lighter lines between them. 0.25 in / 2 mm
Snap increment The step that Snap to grid uses. It can be finer than the minor lines. 0.125 in / 1 mm
Visible Shows or hides the grid. Grid snapping still works while it is hidden. On

The Grid toggle in the status bar also shows or hides the grid. Grid settings are saved with the project.

Axis lock

Section titled “Axis lock”

The axis lock keeps a point on a horizontal or vertical line through the point you started from, while you draw, move, or drag points.

  • Press Alt (Option on macOS) to cycle the lock: first Lock X, then Lock Y, then off.
  • While a lock is on, a Lock X or Lock Y chip shows in the corner of the canvas, in that axis’s colour; click it to cycle.
  • On a tablet, use the Lock button.

The locked point follows the pointer along the locked direction only. The pointer can be well off that line, as below: the distance it has moved sideways is used, and the offset is ignored.

A polygon segment being drawn, held horizontal by Lock X while the pointer sits above and to the right of it, with a red Lock X chip in the bottom-left corner of the canvas
Lock X holds the next point on the horizontal through the previous one, wherever the pointer is.

The lock is released when the command ends.

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