CGCADGuide.tools
Free CAD Drafting Tool

CAD CTB Plot Style Color & Pen Visualizer

Configure and analyze line weights, screening, and linetype styles for all 255 AutoCAD Index Colors (ACI). Simulate final printed blueprints dynamically on your browser.

Plot Style Sheet Blueprint Simulator

Visualizing lines mapping matching rule changes

MONOCHROME Active

Pen Properties Panel

1 Selected
Editing Color Target:
Color 1
Name: Red (Standard index 1)RGB: (255, 0, 0)

Select colors on the grid to change settings

Import backup JSON style:

AutoCAD Index Color (ACI 1-255) Grid Matrix

Currently modifying 0 style mapping rules from AutoCAD defaults

Quick Select:
ACI Selection Tip: You can hold Ctrl (or Cmd) to toggle multiple specific colors, or hold Shift to select color blocks ranges on the ACI matrix grid. Toggle Batch Select Mode for easy touch and click select.

Export Plot Rules Standard Table

Copy configured plot pen overrides directly as a markdown chart table for documentation

Troubleshooting CTB Plots & Pen Styles

1. How to use PCP/CTB configuration files in AutoCAD

Importing PCP mapping settings: When running plot outputs in AutoCAD, you can import our generated `.pcp` table structure by typing the command STYLEMANAGER.

Copy the downloaded PCP parameters file into the AutoCAD Plot Styles directory, or choose the Custom Import option inside the wizard config layout selector to apply the exact pen weights mapped from this visualizer.

Setting CTB globally: Ensure your drawing is set to use color-dependent plot styles (CTB) rather than named plot styles (STB). You can toggle this using the CONVERTPSTYLES command if your drawing properties are locked to STB formatting.

2. Industry standard pen thickness conventions

To maintain standard engineering and architectural layout styles (ISO/ANSI drafting guidelines), we recommend assigning the following line weights to standard color codes:

  • ACI 1 (Red): 0.18 mm — Center lines, grids, hatch contours.
  • ACI 2 (Yellow): 0.25 mm — Dimensions, annotation tags, leaders.
  • ACI 3 (Green): 0.35 mm — Standard structural walls, visible geometry.
  • ACI 4 (Cyan): 0.50 mm — Heavy cut-through lines, room boundaries.
  • ACI 5 (Blue): 0.70 mm — Extruded border margins, heavy structures.
  • ACI 8/9 (Greys): 0.13 - 0.15 mm — Hatch fills (screening at 50% density).