Learning CAD

Rebekah,

You might find it is easier to imagine making it - start with a stock (rectangular extrusion) and then "machine" the unwanted bits with cut extrude or what ever your command is. Things like fillets and chamfers "normally" go on last

Mark

Its the real thing, I drew out the steel frame parts and e-mailed them to the water jet cutters, welded & painted them up and veneered the top in macassar ebony. Doors to the left are by me as well.

J

Just PE which is now Cubify Design which was about £169, think its £185 + VAT now though possibly cheaper if you buy from the states rather than UK reseller.

Phil, I have been using Solidworks for around 15 years now, so I have had some practice. The software just gets better and better but there are some things it really should leave alone (automatic dimensioning of drawings for one thing).

Here is the motor in exploded **LINK** and if you don't have edrawings or don't want to install it, you can use the executable version that opens without the need for the viewer installed by using this instead **LINK**

John, thanks for pointing me in the right direction for sharing files etc.

Mark

Hi Rebekah

I had a look at David Jupp's Link. The tracks for excavators do look similar to your posted image. I selected one B114 for an exercise.

I screen grabbed the profile.

Then imported the image into AutoCAD as a background to trace on

Then traced over the image with a polyline (and closed it)
In order to be able to see the trace line I set the transparency of the imported image to 70%

Finally the image was extruded

You can then scale the object to the size you want it is better to trace first then reduce to increase the accuracy of the trace.

The track drive image would be a good contender for tracing

Regards
John

sweet, thats a very cool tool.

i have got a file now (i think)

is there a way to share it so you guys can check it. i thought i'd have a go with lazy cam and see what the tool path is like but think there is an issue and don't know what it could be

Just use a free file sharing site

I use Mediafire

I will PM my Email addy

Regards
John

Basically I don't think my part is solid. I ran it through lazy cam which didn't look right then tried it in the tool path of mach3 and definitely didn't look right

Hi Rebekah

**LINK**

Try opening this DXF file (I saved it as an ACAD 2000 format)

There's another "proper" 3D parametric modelling option that's free for non professional use called "Solid Edge" by Siemens. My daughter who's studying engineering asked me to have a look at a 3D modelling exercise she was stuck with. I downloaded the student version and was able to open her model and help her to bottom out the issue.

Although it's a student version, it's got pretty much everything you'd need if you were wanting to learn how to use 3D CAD. Compared to even the full version of Alibre / Geomagic / Cubify it seems pretty powerful. It's obviously similar in capability to Solidworks, ProE etc.

It says that it's for "students at high schools, colleges or universities or for those studying outside work", so as long as you aren't planning on using it for professional applications, you seem to be free to download and install it. It has the full set of import/export, sheet metal, assembly/part drawings etc. There are also tutorials, videos and various books to support you in learning how to use it. At some point obviously you'd need to go out and buy a CAD package but unlike some of the apps, with this you have a year or more to check it out before you are forced to decide if you want to cough up. 30 days is hardly enough time to make that judgement if this is a part time activity trying to fit in with everything else in your life.

**LINK**

Here's a video:

**LINK**

Muzzer

John,

Can't open this it has an error in it.

Seems like it's incorporating the hosting information in the dxf.

Tried it in a few programs and it barfed out in all.

Ironically the cheapest program, Deltacad gave what the error was,. All the other just said error and stopped working.

It opens as a good solid with page info in ViaCAD, but only as the drawing page outline in MoI and CamBam opens it as per MoI but with text in the lower right corner.

It looks like 3d DXF files aren't handled by some CAD programs correctly.

Martin.

Edited By blowlamp on 28/10/2013 09:03:53

Edited By blowlamp on 28/10/2013 09:04:54

Edited By blowlamp on 28/10/2013 09:18:59

Muzzer, I had no idea solidedge was available for free - if anyone wants to learn 3D this would probably be the best route short of going on a course. At one time there was little to chose between it and Solidworks but you had to buy it back then.

Mark

Rebekah.

It's just my opinion, but I think you can get a better CAD system than CorelCAD for the money and a far better CAM system than Lazycam for not much more than the price of Lazycam.

Muzzer & Mark.

I wonder if the free version of Solid Edge has all the necessary import/export options enabled?

Martin.

Yes - 2D DXF files are imported by many 2D and 3D CAD packages (with varying degrees of success), 3D DXF files are only recognised by some systems.

The strange results probably occur when importing system assumes DXF is 2D (all it knows), but it's actually a 3D file.

I have autocad 2013 and it opens in that ok.

When uploading into lazycam it just appears flat. when looking at the paths they seem to sun though raised areas of the part.

the amount of DXF file types is a lot. so what I will try is open it in AutoCad, then save it via that and then see what happens. I thought that the part would be displayed in lazycam as a 3d model.

I have it on my laptop and my PC. so I might bring that round to you John S when I can and set it up correctly.

at least I am making progress and have a part to work with.

Hi Rebekah Hi All

Lets hope there are more ways to skin a ........

The screen grab below shows other formats Acad can export to, Is ther one that might work? I will post if there is?

Check if you program can read any of these?

Regards
John

Hi Rebekah

If you have access to Acad 2013 you should be able to open it as a DWG file.

**LINK**

Regards
John