Cannot edit a stroke once expanded

[josila]

I am new to Illustrator and I created an ellipse with a dashed stroke.  I then ungrouped and expanded the stroke to remove some of the dashes from the circle (removed paths).  When I try to edit the stroke again, I cannot change anything except the weight of the stroke.  I understand that when a stroke is expanded it basically splits up the stroke.  Is there a way to edit the paths individually on the stroke menu at this point or is this not possible? I am trying to increase the gap of the stroke, but I think this is impossible as they now function as individual paths after I expanded the elipse. Thank you! 

[Monika Gause]

When you expand a stroke (Object > Path > Outline stroke or Object > Expand) thenit's no longer a stroke. It's a shape. 

[josila]

Thank you! 

[Jacob Bugge]

josila,

In addition to what Monika said, it can be crucial to make a backup of artwork before making irreversible changes, so you have that to fall back on.

[josila]

Thanks for the reply! 

[Jacob Bugge]

For my part you are welcome, josila.

From the description I believe it would be easy to start over with a new stroked ellipse/circle; otherwise its size can be determined by the filled paths.

Once you have that, you can keep it stroked and work with a(n Opacity) Mask, to mask out the unwanted dashes reversibly.