RE: Tips And Tricks for CAD Programs.  
View related threads: (in this forum | in all forums)

Tower Hobbies
Enter up to 4 keywords or Tower stock numbers
Logged in as Guest



Users viewing this topic: none
  Printable Version
       



All Forums >> RC Airplanes >> Scratch Building, Aircraft Design, 3D/CAD >> RE: Tips And Tricks for CAD Programs. Page: <<   < prev  1 2 [3] 4   next >   >>  

Login
Message << Older Topic   Newer Topic >>
RE: Tips And Tricks for CAD Programs. - 1/28/2007 9:39:24 AM   
vintageflyer


 

Posts: 406
Joined: 8/6/2005
From: kaneohe, HI, USA
Status: offline 		Hey Ace...

How's the drawing comming along.
I have no experience in any Cad programs. I do own a couple but don't have the time to go through the learning curve. I have been designing model planes since I was eight and did my drawings on my Vemco drafting table. I'm starting to feel a little less, and I say "little", intimidated by it reading your thread. It is nice to have pros like Syd helping. That Yak drawing is inspiring to say the nery least. I guess beginers just have to remember, everyone has to start somewhere, and even the pros started out a beginer at one time.



DM

(in reply to kevin pelletier)
       Post #: 51

RE: Tips And Tricks for CAD Programs. - 2/10/2007 9:50:41 PM   
Skinny Bob



Posts: 494
Joined: 10/19/2002
From: Auburn, KY, USA
Status: offline 		Mike, I have AutoCAD, Solid Works etc, but find the learning curve a bit much. I have Corel Draw and can work with the vector .cdr format very well, but you don't have 3D. I have just purchased TurboCAD 11.2. I have tried their trial version and like the UI and think I can learn to use it much easer than the others. I would appreciate your as well as anyone else's opinion of TurboCAD.

Regards


_____________________________

Skinny Bob - AMA 713081
WACO Brotherhood #10

(in reply to Mike James)
       Post #: 52

RE: Tips And Tricks for CAD Programs. - 2/10/2007 10:28:07 PM   
dreadnaut



Posts: 634
Joined: 3/13/2004
From: Vista, CA, USA
Status: offline
quote:

ORIGINAL: Skinny Bob

Mike, I have AutoCAD, Solid Works etc, but find the learning curve a bit much. ...



SolidWorks has one of the best included tutorials I have seen. A lot of people swear at AutoCAD. I swear by it. The key to learning ACAD is to keep an eye on the command prompt at the bottom of the screen. Drag it up so that 3 lines are displayed above the command:

''OH NO!!! I have to learn COMMANDS!?!?!?!?!?''

Not a problem. If you want to draw a line, type ''LINE''. Want to draw a circle? Type ''CIRCLE''. I have heard it said, here in RCU, and elsewhere, that ACAD is not intuitive. I can only scratch my head at that.

Here is a key to understanding some command line notation. If ,for example, you type line, you will be prompted to enter points after you have done a couple of segments, you will get OPTIONS after the prompt; [Close/Undo]. The square brackets denote options. Pay attention to the capitalization. You can invoke the option by pressing the capitalized letter, then enter. Pay attention because some of the more advanced commands have lots of options, and the shortcut is often a letter (or letters) capitalized in the middle of a word.

Here is an example
Command: cs
UCS
Current ucs name: *WORLD*
Enter an option [New/Move/orthoGraphic/Prev/Restore/Save/Del/Apply/?/World]

Another convention is angle brackets <>. Some commands requre you to input a numerical value, like the radius of a circle. If you draw another circle you wil be shown a DEFAULT in angle brackets after you enter the center. In the case of a circle, the last value for radius that you entered will be displayed like this; <3.0000>. If you want to repeat this, simply press enter to accept the default. This can be very useful for drawing a set of motor mounting holes. You only need to type the radius once.

< Message edited by dreadnaut -- 2/10/2007 10:32:18 PM >

(in reply to Skinny Bob)
       Post #: 53

RE: Tips And Tricks for CAD Programs. - 2/11/2007 12:01:39 AM   
Skinny Bob



Posts: 494
Joined: 10/19/2002
From: Auburn, KY, USA
Status: offline 		dreadnaut, thanks for your input. A very good explanation of the commands. If you have time and would care to offer more, please do.

Best Regards


_____________________________

Skinny Bob - AMA 713081
WACO Brotherhood #10

(in reply to dreadnaut)
       Post #: 54

RE: Tips And Tricks for CAD Programs. - 2/11/2007 6:04:30 AM   
dreadnaut



Posts: 634
Joined: 3/13/2004
From: Vista, CA, USA
Status: offline 		OK, now it gets better. To draw a line, you do not actualy have to type out ''LINE''. L will do it.

Go to C:/program files/ACAD 200x/support/ACAD.pgp. It is a text file were you can see all the command short cuts.

(in reply to Skinny Bob)
       Post #: 55

RE: Tips And Tricks for CAD Programs. - 2/18/2007 10:03:27 AM   
The Dodger


 

Posts: 20
Joined: 2/6/2003
From: Hooksett, NH, USA
Status: offline 		Ok, I just had to put my two cents in here - haha - all in fun! I've used both AutoCAD and Solidworks and I think AutoCad is pretty archaic compared to Solidworks. I draw the entire airplane in Solidworks. Each componet is drawn separately - wing, fuse, tailfeathers, etc. I assemble them just for a visual check to see how they look together. What I do next might seem tedious but it actually works well.
I sketch the areas of the wing, lets say, where I want ribs and leading/ trailing edges on another plane (drawing plane) above the wing then just extrude cut away those spaces in between. Then I just do a cut-away view of each rib or just one if they are the same and save the view as a 2D drawing. Then I import that drawing into a parts drawing with other parts. Before it is imported, you can modify that part if unwanted views are included such as leading/ trailing edges and stringers. The entire extruded view can be saved as a 2D drawing and used as an assembly drawing.
I actually drew an OS engine to scale in Solidworks so I could see if it fit into the plane the way I wanted it . Ok, so I have too much time on my hands.
For those who have trouble lofting in Solidworks, just remember to have the same amout of points on one end as you have on the other and you shouldn't have any trouble. I've had to cut a radius into two parts in a sketch so I would have matching points from each end. It lofted perfectly!

The Dodger

(in reply to dreadnaut)
       Post #: 56

RE: Tips And Tricks for CAD Programs. - 3/14/2007 5:18:50 PM   
catspaw


 

Posts: 57
Joined: 12/31/2002
From: stoughton, WI,
Status: offline 		Just read this thread. I use Mastercam X2 at work, and a little bit of solidworks. I've never designed a plane in either.
I have TurboCad 9.x at home, and have used modelcad 99 before that. Don't think I have MC anymore though.

Anyways, I wasn't happy with TC with my mastercam experience. I loved MC's convience of just typing in coordinates or moving the mouse the point I wanted and having MC automatically giving me the type of snap I needed.
With turbo cad, I had to click on a command, click on the X coordinate box, type in the numbers, click on the Y, etc.

I still receive offers for turbocad upgrades, they're up to like what? 13.5 now? has it really improved?

I also have the corel suite, and have been using it off and on to make vecotrs of scanned images.

John

(in reply to The Dodger)
       Post #: 57

RE: Tips And Tricks for CAD Programs. - 3/27/2007 8:56:06 PM   
dreadnaut



Posts: 634
Joined: 3/13/2004
From: Vista, CA, USA
Status: offline 		This is an alert concerning polylines in ACAD

I work in flatland, and occasionaly have problems with drawings from third partys where the osnaps don't work right, or the line type scales seem to go crazy. The reason for these problems is due to the 2D drawings having 3D objects in them. I puzzled over this for a long time. When viewd from a lot of different angles, the drawings were obviously not intended to be 3D. Then it hit me.

There are a lot of people who set line weights by using polylines and altering the thickness. In AutoCAD, two properties of polylines are width and thickness. The Width setting lets you set plines to look ''thicker''. Thickness sets the ''height'' of the polyline in the z direction.

Confused?

If you are working strictly in 2D, I have a couple of suggestions. First learn to use object lineweights, or plot style tables, to set line weights, and don't use plines for this. Second, if the drawing is acting weird, use the ''properties'' bar to list the problem objects to see if any z's have crept in. The two lines in the illustration do not intersect. To make them intersect, select them both and set the z-values to 0.0000

Attachments
Click to see fullsize image.
Click for fullsize


< Message edited by dreadnaut -- 3/27/2007 8:57:37 PM >

(in reply to USAce777)
       Post #: 58

RE: Tips And Tricks for CAD Programs. - 3/28/2007 1:44:16 AM   
waross


 

Posts: 207
Joined: 8/26/2005
From: merrillville, IN, USA
Status: offline 		The only real trick is the more time you spend using the software the more profecient you become.....wait that's not a trick it's a fact

(in reply to USAce777)
       Post #: 59

RE: Tips And Tricks for CAD Programs. - 3/28/2007 2:33:28 AM   
N1EDM



Posts: 1860
Joined: 7/19/2002
From: Brockton, MA, USA
Status: offline 		Truer words were never spoken, waross..

Actually, once I start working in CAD, time just vaporizes. All of a sudden it's "two hours later"! Think of it as another toy!

Bob

_____________________________

An expert is someone who has been doing it for 15 minutes longer than you.

(in reply to waross)
       Post #: 60

RE: Tips And Tricks for CAD Programs. - 5/3/2007 12:19:17 PM   
longdan



Posts: 478
Joined: 10/18/2006
From: Auckland, NEW ZEALAND
Status: offline 		Saw this thread and thought I would throw in my 2 cents worth...
I use both ACAD and ACAD inventor, which is similar to solidworks. I find 3D useful for drawing complex assemblies, and producing 3- view workshop drawings, but I think ACAD is much better for drawing up and laying out a set of plans. With 2D ACAD, what you draw is what you get. This is not really the case with 3D, where the drawings that get printed are generated by the computer based on the 3d model you have drawn.
For people wanting to draw their own plans, rather than having to buy them, I think 2D CAD is a much better option.
Also, the majority of CNC work that someone would get done to produce parts for their model would be 2D cnc stuff like laser or waterjet cutting or hotwire foam cutting which only require 2D CAD files.

(in reply to N1EDM)
       Post #: 61

RE: Tips And Tricks for CAD Programs. - 8/3/2007 12:50:12 PM   
Yuu


 

Posts: 317
Joined: 9/4/2006
From: Shawano, WI, USA
Status: offline 		I've been using DeltaCad for three years or so.... all of a sudden it won't 'select' the part I want. I make the box around the part, and 'click'...but there is no 'outline' around that part, and when I click 'move'...the screen says, "No Item Selected". Did it just 'wear out', or did I press a button somewhere in EDIT or somewhere that removes 'select' from the machine??

(in reply to longdan)
       Post #: 62

RE: Tips And Tricks for CAD Programs. - 8/4/2007 2:09:12 AM   
N1EDM



Posts: 1860
Joined: 7/19/2002
From: Brockton, MA, USA
Status: offline 		Yuu,

I haven't used DeltaCAD but I use AutoCAD. Whenever something like that happens, it's because I have somehow changed some obscure setting somewhere (perhaps typing a command badly).

Can you go back to some of your earlier drawings, where this function worked, and see if it still works?

You shouldn't be able to 'wear out' a program, but I suspect that either a setting has changed, or you imported something that doesn't allow itself to be selected.

Bob

_____________________________

An expert is someone who has been doing it for 15 minutes longer than you.

(in reply to Yuu)
       Post #: 63

RE: Tips And Tricks for CAD Programs. - 8/4/2007 3:09:03 PM   
Yuu


 

Posts: 317
Joined: 9/4/2006
From: Shawano, WI, USA
Status: offline 		The last four 'imports' were plans off the web...or here. The last TWO imports I've had trouble...so I'll go back and see if I can find out what changed. There was a little rubber band