Useful first: Turn a sketch into a solid · Draw and size a circle
Loft builds a solid through two to twelve ordered closed sections on distinct planes. Unlike Push/Pull, the cross-section can change along the body. Each source sketch stays linked to the resulting feature.
Try it in Cadivari
Draw the lower section
Start a separate project with a Top-plane sketch. Draw a rectangle and set X to 0, Y to 0, Width to 80 and Height to 60 mm in Properties. Return to 3D without extruding it.
Create the upper plane
Click Plane in the 3D rail, choose Offset and select Top as the reference plane. Enter an Offset of 60 mm and click Create plane.
Draw the upper section
Choose Sketch and select the new plane. Draw a circle and set CX to 40, CY to 30 and R to 24 mm. Return to 3D and keep both source sketches visible.
Pick the sections in order
Click Loft. Select the rectangular face first and the circular face second. The markers identify Start and End. Leave guide rails off and keep the default endpoint controls for this exercise.
Inspect and create the body
Inspect the correspondence lines and resolve any crossing or collapse warning. When the preview is valid, click Create Loft body. Reopen the upper sketch, change its circle radius to 20 mm and return to 3D to inspect the rebuilt body.
A small exercise
Create an 80 × 60 mm rectangular lower section and a centred 48 mm diameter circle 60 mm above it. Loft between them, then reduce the circle diameter to 40 mm through its source sketch.
What you should see
A single capped solid connects the two sections. Editing the circle changes the upper end and connecting surface while the lower rectangle and plane spacing remain unchanged.
Things to look out for
- Both profiles must be closed, visible and on distinct planes. Two outlines in one sketch do not define two Loft sections.
- Loft does not support Shell or general Join and Cut operations yet. Keep this practice body separate from the Shell exercise.
Check your understandingWhere should you edit the size of a Loft section
Edit its linked source sketch. The Loft rebuilds from the ordered profiles and plane references instead of storing an unrelated display shape.
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Go deeper in the knowledge base
Instructions checked against the Cadivari 0.3.0 source and knowledge base on 2026-09-16. Lesson revision 1.