slickporsche

How to convert a scale 3-view from jpeg,pdf etc into DWG? It almost always ends up disintigrating or looking very rough for sure. Sometimes it is so bad you cannot tell what it is and then sometimes not so bad. I would like to be able to load a 3-view into Draftsight for instance and design it into a workable plan to build from. I have been reasonably successful so far, but it is tons of work to get it to look like anything close to the original. I have tried several downloadable programs that are supposed to do just that, but the results are pathetic, to say the least.

limeybob

My Feedback: (6)

The only way I know is to redraw the whole three view.
Same with any plan that has to be converted to vector format.
you will find that even if you managed to convert it you will end up drawing the three view anyway.
Post the three view, so we can look at it.
Bob

LesUyeda

I don't know about draftsight, but in AutoCAD, I trace at 1:1, then scale up the tracing to whatever size I want.

Les

All Day Dan

My Feedback: (5)

Slick, I do what Les does. I bring the drawing into AuotCAD with the Image command, enlarge it with the Scale command and then trace around it with a polyline. Dan.

slickporsche

That is mostly what I found, and have had to redraw the entire 3-view. I just discovered another way that is easier, and more accurate. I do not need to guess where the lines might go.I printed the 3-view out on clear plastic made for that purpose, and then I lay it on my flat screen moniter, and hold it in place with tape. I then proceeded to trace it with the cad program, which seems to work fairly well. I then scale the drawing to what ever % I decided on and proceed to design the internal structure. I just did a Cap 232 that way, and it worked ok, only thing is I hope the 3-view was accurate. It looks good so far.

Incidently I do everything in inches except for this drawing. I hate the metric system. LOL I can measure more accuratly, and convert fractions to decimals and work from there. I don't like working in tens, unless it is the opposite sex, and then I like the tens. Oh Well! Just joking of course.

slickporsche

That is what I wanted to do, but Icannot find a way to import it intoDraftsight. I like Draftsight, because it is userfriendly, and of course FREE!I have ZW cad downloaded, but never thought to check it to see about importing. That would really be easy for sure. What version ofAutocad do you use? When you import it, does it have clean lines, or are they all broken and ragged?

slickporsche

Wow, I feel stupid as dirt. lol I just tried to import a raster file of a Cessna 177 Cardinal into ZW Cad, and it worked really good. I traced out some bulkheads, and then used copy to remove them from the raster file. Maybe there is an easier way to do that. At any rate it beats the crap out of the way I was doing it. ZW is more or less a AutoCad clone from what I understand, but much cheaper.

ARUP

I sure envy you folks that can draw with computers! Trying to learn that stuff drives me insane and I quit! Guess it's a mental scar from the old keypunch days of yore I was forced to learn....

limeybob

My Feedback: (6)

Hey, don't give up, I used to punch IBM computer cards.
Bob

Avaiojet

Certainly you can scale any drawing larger with drafting tools. Does take a bit of time, but if you enjoy drafting plans, it's great!

Obviously, working with a PC drawing program is easier, but you do have to have accuracy if the parts are to fit properly.

Then again, you can enjoy the best of both worlds like I do. But, I still redraw some parts before I cut, or make card stock templates to make sure they fit.

Just as mentioned, my Mac drawings over a scanned 3-view.

All Day Dan

My Feedback: (5)

slick, I am using AutoCAD 14, a real old version that's fine for R/C work. Later versions would probably have the same capability. If someone watching this knows any more, they can certainly contribute. The drawing in Autocad is identical to the original. I have printed both and over layed them on a light table and can not see any differences.

limeybob, I started out my computer experiences with the yellow ticker tape and Basic and Fortran. If you wanted to run a program, you had to write it. There was no software available.

Dan.

All Day Dan

My Feedback: (5)

slick, Here is an example of the image that came in to AutoCAD with the red polyline I traced. If you don't mind looking at me here's the final product a few months later prior to its maiden. Dan.

Roguedog

I started a thread in the Classic Pattern Plane forum on just this subject.

Your welcome to start at the beginning of the thread if you want but the meat and potatos of the thread really starts here

http://www.rcuniverse.com/forum/m_10396589/mpage_3/key_/tm.htm#10424372

Draftsight in fact is a autocad clone, it evenuses the sames commands as autocad.
Peruse the thread. Several people contributed to show how to get your plan or three view in this case into a cad application. Lotsa great info on how to do this.

Bryan

LesUyeda

"Slick, I do what Les does. I bring the drawing into AuotCAD with the Image command, enlarge it with the Scale "

Almost; I trace first, then Scale. I found that if I "scale" first, the lines get too fat, and difficult to find the center of.

Les

limeybob

My Feedback: (6)

that's "insert" "raster image reference" on Acad 2010
Bob