What is a good beginner CAD design program?
03-26-2021, 05:24 AM
#2
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I'm actually wondering the same thing. I used ModelCAD years ago. I looked that up and its much more expensive than when I was doing it,(maybe 17 years ago). I'll keep an eye on this thread as well to see what people are using.
03-26-2021, 03:35 PM
#3
I doubt there is a really easy to use/learn cad program out there for real design. They all have a steepish curve...
I primarily use DesignCAD, which a long time ago was the company that also sold "ModelCAD" specifically for model planes. But besides similarity in the interface, all the plane specific stuff is gone from the current versions. It can still be used very well to design, just no handy libraries of airfoils, etc.
Currently owned/sold by: https://www.imsidesign.com/
They also own/sell TurboCAD, which has had its own long history of availability and use.
Basic 2D versions of both are about $59. I have the 3D version, but have never really used any of the 3D features for anything.
There does seem to be a trial version of ModelCAD 3000 available for free out there. Says it was published in 2007 by UppperSpace, who owned it and DesignCAD before IMSI bought it all. No idea if the trial version will expire after a bit, and there appears to be no way to buy a license. Might still run in Windows.......heck, some of the object libraries/sample files might be useable in DesignCAD, but I haven't tried.
I primarily use DesignCAD, which a long time ago was the company that also sold "ModelCAD" specifically for model planes. But besides similarity in the interface, all the plane specific stuff is gone from the current versions. It can still be used very well to design, just no handy libraries of airfoils, etc.
Currently owned/sold by: https://www.imsidesign.com/
They also own/sell TurboCAD, which has had its own long history of availability and use.
Basic 2D versions of both are about $59. I have the 3D version, but have never really used any of the 3D features for anything.
There does seem to be a trial version of ModelCAD 3000 available for free out there. Says it was published in 2007 by UppperSpace, who owned it and DesignCAD before IMSI bought it all. No idea if the trial version will expire after a bit, and there appears to be no way to buy a license. Might still run in Windows.......heck, some of the object libraries/sample files might be useable in DesignCAD, but I haven't tried.
04-07-2021, 06:59 AM
#5
The best cad program for the $$ is Solidworks with an Eaa.org membership. The membership is $30/yr and solidworks education version is included for free.
solidworks is a very strong cad program and has a steep learning cliff to climb, but is limitless in what you can achieve in it.
solidworks is a very strong cad program and has a steep learning cliff to climb, but is limitless in what you can achieve in it.
04-07-2021, 07:32 AM
#6
I've seen very impressive work in Rhino, especially for complex surfaces. It is a surfacing tool, not a solids program so has its applications. Not cheap but they have a 30 day free trial.
https://www.rhino3d.com/
https://www.rhino3d.com/
