I have just got back to drawing in auto cad after 20 years.  Picking back up on it fairly well but am having a problem printing to scale on 8.5 x 11.  Ive watched several you tube videos but not helping.  After setup page setup manager the preview is always too small.  Probably not something easy to explain but really could use someones help.

Hello Joe, what are your print settings ?You should set your settings ( and save them in the file for the next times ) before printing.
philippe JOSEPH2017-06-20 07:25:12

Are you printing from model space or from a paper space layout?Did you draw everything in model space at full size or did you draw everything "to scale" as one might do manually on a drafting board?What type of drawing is this?  Architectural. mechanical, civil, other?Can you attach a copy of the drawing (.dwg file) to your next post so we can have a look at it?

As far as I know I drew on 1/1 scale in model space. The annotation scale is set that way. Its an architectural drawing about 40' by 40'. In paper space when i click on the viewport and set the standard scale to 1/4" = 1' the drawing shrinks too small. 

uploads/732421/6061_meridian_2nd_flr_new.dwg

Why are you using imperial units for the drawing scale yet plotting to a metric paper size AND using a metric scale of 1mm = 1 unit?You are mixing apples and oranges and expecting it to work?

Well like I said its been nearly 20 years since using auto cad.  I started drawing without any thought to the settings until i got further into the project.  I was drawing in decimal feet which i figured was fine.  The page set up settings have been confusing to me although becoming more and more clear.  Are you able to tell me how to fix it? 

I wasnt aware that I was drawing in imperial units or printing in millimeters.  It shows inches from what I see.

So can we assume you started with the default template file named acad.dwt and not the metric version named acadiso.dwt?If you want to print the drawing out at a scale of 1/4"=1'-0" then shouldn't you also be printing to a 8.5x11 sheet of paper?Please attach a copy of the .dwg file to your next post so we can have a look see.  That should end all doubt.
John Connor2017-06-20 17:59:42

Hello Jsouth and John, Jsouth your file is set on feet as units ( command UNIT and take a look at what is shown as 20 years ago this didn't exist ).Your print problems should be fixed with little things.Eventually draw a rectangular viewport of 8.5 x 11 and play with the printing parameters.------------Jsouth, I took a look at your file and it seems that the "problem" is the scale of 1/4" to 1'.On a 8.5 x 11 paper size I would have set 1'-1/2" to 1" ( or ZOOM 1/8 XP ).

philippe JOSEPH2017-06-21 14:32:15

Actually it is the insertion scale that is set to Feet and NOT the drawing units.  Your drawing units are set to decimal inches which can be easily verified using the -DWGUNITS command (note the presence of the dash).The reason why everything looks so small in your viewport when you assign the scale of 1/4"=1'-0" is that AutoCAD assumed every dimension you entered was in inches and not feet (or feet/inches).  I would have set the units to Architectural and accepted the default precision of 0'-0 1/16".By the way, I don't think you will be able to get the floor plan plotted out at the scale that you want and have it fit on an 8.5x11 piece of paper.  The floor plan measures 34'-11" side to side and 33'-9" front to back.  Your paper size, if you drew right to the very edge in both directions will only accommodate 34'x44'.  And that's only if you don't include a border.  I would either change the scale to 1/8"=1'-0" or plot to an 11x17 size thus allowing you to retain the original scale you had in mind.One last thing.  Try making use of layers.  Your drawing should probably have different layers, with different colors, for such things as...-Walls-Text-Dimensions-Viewports-Title block & borderAdditional layers you might also consider are...-Windows-Doors-Furniture-Fixtures (plumbing)Drawing everything on layer 0, color white, is really not the way to go. Keep in mind that once you have changed your units to architectural you should also edited your dimension style > Primary Units tab > Dimension style to Architectural as well.

John Connor2017-06-21 15:18:29

A screen shot of your floor plan using a viewport scale of 1/8"=1'-0".  Note that the text and dimensions are on different layers which is readily discernable because I have assigned those layers a different color.  This also means I can turn those layers on/off or freeze/thaw them if I wish.The magenta lines are my viewport which I put on layer VPorts.The floor plan itself is on a layer called Walls.Note the dimensions (feet / inches / fractions of an inch).

For reference purposes.  Drawing was saved to 2007 file format.uploads/165260/Second_floor_plan.dwg

I got it figured out. My drawing was drawn in inches instead of feet. All I had to do was scale it up by 12. Problem solved. Thanks for everyone's input. Really appreciate it.