AutoCAD® 2009 & AutoCAD LT® 2009 All-in-One Desk Reference for Dummies®

Chapter 5. Working with Solids

In the previous chapter, I covered many of the commands that allow you to take the knowledge that you already have about 2D drafting and apply it to 3D modeling. In this chapter, you discover many of the 3D commands that allow you to create and edit 3D objects. AutoCAD allows you to create 3D objects known as primitives. Primitives are basic objects such as boxes, cones, and spheres that you can use to create complex objects. You also find out about additional modifying commands that are used to manipulate 3D solids.

Creating Solid Primitives

AutoCAD offers a pretty good variety of primitive 3D objects that you can use to create complex models. The primitive objects help to form the foundation of 3D modeling in AutoCAD: You can combine primitives together or even manipulate a primitive so that its edges are filleted, to shell or hollow out the inside of a 3D solid, and much more. Table 5-1 lists the commands that are used to create solid primitives.

Table 5.1. AutoCAD's Solid Primitives Commands

Icon	Ribbon	Toolbar	Menu	Command Name (Alias)	Function
	Home	Modeling, Polysolid	Draw	POLYSOLID (PSOLID)	Creates a 3D solid that is similar to a 2D polyline with a height
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