How to Create Blocks in BricsCAD

Quick answer: BLOCK groups existing entities into a block via a dialog box, while WBLOCK saves a block or drawing content out to a separate drawing file entirely. Both let you choose what happens to the original entities afterward: kept, converted into an instance of the new block, or deleted.

The Block Commands

Creating a Block

1. Optionally select entities beforehand.
2. Launch BLOCK. The Create Block Definition dialog opens.
3. Type a name for the new block.
4. Specify the base point: tick Specify On-screen (you’ll be prompted after clicking OK), click Pick point (the dialog closes temporarily so you can click a point in the drawing), or type the X, Y, and Z coordinates directly.
5. Any entities preselected in step 1 show as a count. To select more: select them before launching the command, tick Specify On-screen (prompted after OK), or click Select entities (the dialog closes temporarily to let you select in the drawing).
6. Set the block’s properties: Annotative (creates an annotative block), Match block orientation to layout (preserves an annotative block’s orientation in a rotated viewport), Scale uniformly (locks X, Y, and Z scaling together), Allow exploding (unticking this prevents the block from being exploded), and Block unit (sets its insertion unit).
7. Choose what happens to the selected entities afterward: Convert to block (replaced by the new block instance), Don’t convert to block (left unchanged in the drawing), or Delete (removed entirely).
8. Click OK to create the block.

If you chose Delete, OOPS brings the erased entities back. And if you type the name of a block that already exists, you’ll be prompted to overwrite its definition, which also replaces every existing instance of that block in the drawing with the new definition.

Saving a Block to a Separate File

1. Optionally select entities beforehand.
2. Launch WBLOCK. The Write Block to File dialog opens.
3. Click the browse button beside the Name and path field. The Save Block dialog appears.
4. Choose a folder, type a filename, and click Save.
5. Set Insert units, which becomes the INSUNITS value for the block file; it defaults to the source drawing’s current INSUNITS value. Any preselected entities show as a count here too.
6. Choose what to save: click Block and pick an existing one from the dropdown, click Entire Drawing to include every entity in the current drawing’s model space, or click Entities and use Select Entities to choose them directly (right-click to stop selecting).
7. Define the base point of the new drawing, either with the Pick point button or by typing X, Y, and Z coordinates.
8. Choose what happens to the selected entities afterward: Retain (left unchanged in the drawing), Convert to block (replaced by the new block instance), or Delete (removed entirely).
9. Click OK to create the drawing file.

As with BLOCK, choosing Delete means OOPS can bring the erased entities back.

Frequently Asked Questions

What happens if I name a new block the same as one that already exists? You’re prompted to overwrite the existing definition, and every current instance of that block in the drawing gets replaced with the new definition too.

Can I recover entities I chose to delete when creating a block? Yes, run OOPS immediately afterward to restore them.

What’s the difference between BLOCK and WBLOCK? BLOCK creates a block definition within the current drawing. WBLOCK writes a block, or other drawing content, out to a completely separate drawing file.

Can I save my entire current drawing as a block file, not just a selection? Yes, choose the Entire Drawing option in the WBLOCK dialog to include every entity in the current drawing’s model space.