Author Topic: Drawing software for simple engine builds. (Read 6866 times)

Gas_mantle · « **on:** May 28, 2018, 01:32:51 PM »

I'm looking at trying learn how to make fairly basic drawings / 3d images to assist in basic engine design on my computer and wondered what others use ?

I'm not a complete beginner with computers but I'm not an expert either so I'd like something that is reasonably straightforward to learn. My hope was to be able to perhaps draw something in 2d and 3d to experiment with the look etc then possibly make a building plan from the image - is that a realistic option ?

In the past I've made engines from online plans without any problems but when I come to make from scratch it's becoming problematic without a drawing

Peter.

stevehuckss396 · « **Reply #1 on:** May 28, 2018, 02:03:52 PM »

I think most people have started using Fusion 360. Its free and very good. I don't believe there is a reasonably straight forward to learn program out there. There will be some time spent trying to figure out how to use them.

Gas_mantle · « **Reply #2 on:** May 28, 2018, 02:36:27 PM »

Thanks, I've just downloaded 360 so that should keep me occupied for a while.

It seems I may be entitled to free use as a hobbyist, that sounds a bit too good to be true but lets see what happens :-)

crueby · « **Reply #3 on:** May 28, 2018, 02:57:04 PM »

Quote from: Gas_mantle on May 28, 2018, 02:36:27 PM

Thanks, I've just downloaded 360so that should keep me occupied for a while.

It seems I may be entitled to free use as a hobbyist, that sounds a bit too good to be true but lets see what happens :-)

The hobbyist free use is true, I've been using it for a couple years, they still support it. I highly recommend their online video tutorials for modelling and general use.

Gas_mantle · « **Reply #4 on:** May 28, 2018, 03:32:25 PM »

Thanks, I've had a play around on it and can see it is sophisticated but is going to take quite a while to get used to it.

fumopuc · « **Reply #5 on:** May 28, 2018, 05:20:34 PM »

Hi Peter,
If you like, try this Tutorial.
https://youtu.be/A5bc9c3S12g
and the follwing part #2 and #3.
In my opinion a very good start to understand the program.

Gas_mantle · « **Reply #6 on:** May 28, 2018, 05:32:39 PM »

Cheers Achim, I'm working through it

I think with time I'd be able to design a simple engine on it, not sure yet if the software is capable of drafting building plans from an object. If it can then it could be just the kinda thing I need.

fumopuc · « **Reply #7 on:** May 28, 2018, 06:16:52 PM »

Peter, I do not take care of the drawing anymore until the very last moment before the making of the part.
All construction work will be done in 3D only.
A drawing can be made in a couple of minutes.

JC54 · « **Reply #8 on:** May 28, 2018, 06:23:41 PM »

As a newbie and "Silver Surfer"

I have been looking for an easy to get started with CAD prog.

I have tried DraftSight that was recommended on another forum but couldn't understand it at all. I am using a very simple prog (emachineshop) supplied by a company that will make your part from your design on their software. I have found this a very simple prog to get started with but very limited. You can export in DXF format from it. I will give Fusion 360 a try and see how I get on.

crueby · « **Reply #9 on:** May 28, 2018, 07:05:39 PM »

Quote from: Gas_mantle on May 28, 2018, 05:32:39 PM

Cheers Achim, I'm working through it

I think with time I'd be able to design a simple engine on it, not sure yet if the software is capable of drafting building plans from an object. If it can then it could be just the kinda thing I need.

Fusion can generate 2d plans from the 3d objects very easily, there is a Create Drawing From Design option in the file menu when you have the project open. The drawing can be exported as pdf for viewing, other options too... So far I have learned 10 or 15% of what fusion can do, which is plenty for what we need.

JC54 · « **Reply #10 on:** May 28, 2018, 07:17:54 PM »

I have just had a quick look at Fusion 360 and it is of no use to me.

It appears to be an internet "Cloud"

based system. Where I am internet connection is still, very slow, erratic, and expensive so I need a computer based standalone prog.

Sorry if I have jumped on your thread Gas_Mantle

Gas_mantle · « **Reply #11 on:** May 28, 2018, 07:26:06 PM »

That's no problem JC54, I'm happy for anyone to chip in.

I've managed to draw a simple component but not sure how to upload direct to the forum.

zeeprogrammer · « **Reply #12 on:** May 28, 2018, 08:03:01 PM »

I'm not sure this would help in your case...but it may be helpful for other things...

I use "Snipping Tool". It's free.

It allows you to create a rectangle on the screen around the image you want to capture. Saves as a PNG file which can be attached to a post.

Jasonb · « **Reply #13 on:** May 28, 2018, 08:04:20 PM »

May just be easier to snip it or take a screen shot, this is your bearing cap imported into F360 and rendered

Gas_mantle · « **Reply #14 on:** May 28, 2018, 08:07:55 PM »

Thanks I'll have a go at making them tomorrow.

It looks like 360 has a lot of potential for anyone prepared to spend some time learning it properly.

pgp001 · « **Reply #15 on:** May 28, 2018, 09:22:54 PM »

Reading this makes me realise just how lucky I am to have the use of Solidworks 3D CAD

Phil

Art K · « **Reply #16 on:** May 29, 2018, 02:33:31 AM »

G-M
I took some tech school classes with Master Cam then tried to apply that to Alibre. That was the software that came with my Tormach mill. They have moved on to Iron cad and I not wanting to learn a new software have stuck with the different iterations of Alibre. I have heard good things about Fusion 360. Stick with it, ask ?'s they probably have a forum of some sort where you can post questions to help figure out things. It might be helpful to work on a part that you are familiar with just to learn the ropes. I found that doing carburetors with all the different intersecting holes ect. was more useful in cad because I could visualize the holes and all the alignment I couldn't see in the blue prints.
Art

Jasonb · « **Reply #17 on:** May 29, 2018, 06:40:49 PM »

I also stuck with Alibre but was close to going over to F360, luckily they are now supporting it once again so I decided to carry on with the latest Alibre as I had a lot of drawings done with it and had got used to using it.

Did play with F360 a bit earlier and it should be fine for drawing up steam engines, these two almost came out better finished than my actual metal ones!

bent · « **Reply #18 on:** May 29, 2018, 06:45:53 PM »

"I found that doing carburetors with all the different intersecting holes ect. was more useful in cad because I could visualize the holes and all the alignment I couldn't see in the blue prints."

I learnt to draw manually, with a pair of triangles and some lead holders (and an eraser shield, which got a lot of use

back in Jr. College. Years later I had the "pleasure", as a fresh grad, of working with designers of rocket engines, one of whom had me check his work - all done as manual drawings. I had to do several projected views (using a sketched onionskin overlay from his print) to figure out a complex multi-hole intersection and verify some of his numbers... When reviewing it with him, I asked how he'd constructed the views to get his numbers, and showed him my work, and he replied that he'd done it in his head.

Felt quite wooly (sheepish in fact). Took me a day and a half to get to something he just "knew" - probably from years of experience. Humbling, that.

Years later I was wowing the young IronCad "drafters" at another company with my constructed views for some fairly complex parts that I'd done in AutoCad. Seems they don't teach the old way no more

.

Sorry, none of that helps in picking a software package. I've used IronCad, Solidworks, Acad and Autodesk Inventor (the last one is fairly similar to Fusion from what I've seen and read). They all work, and they can all create standard 2D drawings. In my business, 2D drawings still rule, as you can point to the dimensions, tolerances, and drawing notes to argue with a vendor who has attempted to sell you a non-conforming part. Tougher to do that with a model, even one with dimensioning and tolerancing applied per latest ANSI/ISO MBD standards (these have come a long way, but still fall short IMO). I'd lean towards any program from a name-brand company, with a downloadable file that didn't have a restrictive user license, for fear that the terms will change and I'll lose the work I had done to that point. I've looked at and rejected a lot of freeware, because the user support was limited, and the learning curve too steep for my taste (alibre was one of those). D'no what I'll do if/when I retire, as I've not found a fully satisfying home cad program, yet. But I've still got those triangles, somewhere...

Gas_mantle · « **Reply #19 on:** May 29, 2018, 07:02:54 PM »

I've only tried F360 for 24hrs so I'm hardly an expert but my initial thoughts are it would allow hobbyists like myself to design relatively simple engines without too much effort. - I managed to draw a cylinder / valve chest assembly with ports etc in a few hours of watching tutorial videos.

My only concern is I'm still not sure it can draft building plans from a 3d design.

Jasonb · « **Reply #20 on:** May 29, 2018, 07:12:12 PM »

First time I've tried it but should do all you want, from the box top left that starts off "sculpt" select drawing at the bottom of the dropdown.

Gas_mantle · « **Reply #21 on:** May 29, 2018, 07:26:41 PM »

Thanks Jason,

That's pretty much what I'm after

I kinda thought it should be able to produce a blueprint but wasn't sure.

Now I know I can draft a plan it is much more interesting.

I've mentioned a few times in the forum that I'd like to design and build a fairly simple steam engine of a decent size (I already have most of the materials) but it is no good me building just from an idea in my head then expecting a biggun to look and perform ok, I need to draw and plan it properly

Roger B · « **Reply #22 on:** May 29, 2018, 07:44:51 PM »

This is quite interesting. I use Draftsight to produce 2D drawings for my engines but I don't generally use/need 3D to see how things fit together. I have just finished reading Temple Grandin's book 'Thinking in Pictures' (look it up) and being Aspergers myself I can easily see how everything fits together just like she can (Nikoli Tessla was apparently the same). What do others think/feel?

Jo · « **Reply #23 on:** May 29, 2018, 08:15:02 PM »

Quote from: Roger B on May 29, 2018, 07:44:51 PM

... and being Aspergers myself I can easily see how everything fits together just like she can (Nikoli Tessla was apparently the same). What do others think/feel?

Snap

I can visualise a lot of engineering problems including the individual parts I am making my head but I do find the ability to do an assembly useful.

For example: on our ABC Scorpion design the dimensions to get the correct positioning of the cam faces was derived from a lot of different items and their dimensions... Once they were assembled it was easy to measure the position where the two cam faces were going to sit and all the other dimensions

Jo

zeeprogrammer · « **Reply #24 on:** May 29, 2018, 08:37:31 PM »

I don't usually have a problem seeing a drawn part in 3D.
But being able to see it in 3D will sometimes point out a mistake in dimension.
Most helpful to me is when I assemble parts and can see how it works, look for interferences, or see opportunities for decorative features.

I don't know Fusion360 (yet) but I expect it does the same thing as my software (CubifyDesign)...

When assembling parts I sometimes see a part that needs adjustment or tweaking.
So I redraw the part and see the change in the assembly.
However, I have to close the assembly and reopen it for the drawing to take effect.
Sometimes a mating surface or alignment gets lost.

I draw in 3D and then create drawings. Same thing there. If I change the 3D then I have to close and reopen the drawing to see the change.

I enjoy animating the assembly. By which I mean, being able to select some surface or feature and, by moving the mouse, I can move parts about their pivot points.
I'm not sure how easy that is to do in Fusion360. I like the mouse action in my software and found it difficult to do in 360. But that may be more about getting used to the tool.
BTW CubifyDesign (not free) I believe was derived from Alibre. Both packages work very similar to SolidWorks.

One feature I would like to have is to create a cam and follower assembly, then turn the cam and see the follower do its thing.
In my software, the follower just sits at one radius of the cam. It doesn't follow.

It would also be helpful to have 2D animation to create linkages and have it automatically sketch some point of the linkage so you can see the path the point takes.
I've been playing with a program called "Linkage' that does that.

Something I'd really like to have is to draw an output path and have a program create the linkage for me.

Learning a CAD package is well worth the effort. It can be fun in itself to draw ideas or use it for other things.
I used it to plan out our home renovation, my shop, and various things T wanted for her garden.
It's a whole lot easier than ruining scads of paper with erasures.

Jo · « **Reply #25 on:** May 29, 2018, 09:08:04 PM »

The joy of unsupported software

I have just discovered that Alibre software is in compatiable with the latest version of Windows and for some reason the text tool no longer works in 2D mode

Time to dust off that old Windows 7 machine

Jo

Tennessee Whiskey · « **Reply #26 on:** May 29, 2018, 09:15:16 PM »

Ha, that’s my problem: I’m still using hand tools

Cletus

Dave Otto · « **Reply #27 on:** May 29, 2018, 09:45:06 PM »

Quote from: Jo on May 29, 2018, 09:08:04 PM

The joy of unsupported software I have just discovered that Alibre software is in compatiable with the latest version of Windows and for some reason the text tool no longer works in 2D mode

Time to dust off that old Windows 7 machine

Jo

"Alibre Development has produced a fix for the Tables issue with Win10 1803 update. Support will be checking outstanding tickets and getting back to users with details of how to apply the fix to build 19033.

If you are suffering the problem with editing Tables in 2D drawings after updating to Win10 1803 - you'll need to raise a support ticket to get access to the fix."
https://www.alibreforum.com/forum/index.php?threads/broken-text-boxes.20330/

The software is supported, but if you are not current on maintenance maybe not: you could check with them. 3D Systems let the software flounder for a few years then finally sold it back to some of the original Alibre team. They are actively working on updates and bug fixes. They are also working on a hobby version that will be in the $200 range.

I have used the software for many years and have been happy with it, I have kept up on maintenance and have the latest version released last month. Using multiple CAD programs at work and Alibre at home I wasn't looking forward to learning yet another one. So I was pretty happy when the Alibe guys were able to take it back from 3D Systems.
Fusion is an impressive product and in some ways probably more capable than Alibre, but I have to wonder how long AutoDesk is going to just give it away.

Dave

dvbydt · « **Reply #28 on:** May 29, 2018, 10:28:45 PM »

Just a shout out for DesignCAD. I have used it for 2D drawings for a long time so can remember all the shortcut keystrokes! The 3D Max has just too many dropdown menus for me to remember them all (Need a younger uncluttered mind) but it will do lettering on a double curved surface, not perfectly but good enough. Also the latest version (2018) supports .STL files for 3D printing.

Ian

Brian Rupnow · « **Reply #29 on:** May 29, 2018, 10:38:34 PM »

Carl---were you able to open that .step file I sent you?

zeeprogrammer · « **Reply #30 on:** May 29, 2018, 10:56:32 PM »

Quote from: Brian Rupnow on May 29, 2018, 10:38:34 PM

Carl---were you able to open that .step file I sent you?

Sorry for not getting back to you.

Yes! I was quite surprised to be able to open it.
It started with a bunch of options to select from but I just went to default.

Thanks!

Jasonb · « **Reply #31 on:** May 30, 2018, 07:09:57 AM »

Quote from: Jo on May 29, 2018, 09:08:04 PM

The joy of unsupported software I have just discovered that Alibre software is in compatiable with the latest version of Windows and for some reason the text tool no longer works in 2D mode

Time to dust off that old Windows 7 machine

Jo

Have you had it running on W10 at any time? My original version which was a couple of years older than yours ran on W10 OK or was it just the latest windows update that has knocked it out. Also you need to get the license transfered to the old machine as you are a single user.

I got my old one transfered to the new W10 64bit from the old Vista 32 bit for free when you went and paid for Cubify

You could upgrade to Professional as they are still running Legacy upgrades at a reduced cost which is what I have now done but less than it currently costs). As said the new owners of Alibre are talking about a version similar to the old PE. Or convert everything to .STEP and open it up in F360 for free and learn that.

EDIT

Looks like it may become even more of a problem for you to use the old version shortly.

https://www.mintronics.co.uk/legacy-alibre

Jo · « **Reply #32 on:** May 30, 2018, 07:23:58 AM »

Its the latest Windows update knocked it out.

I would have transferred but I could not find the necessary paperwork to do the transfer.

I noticed you had professional... send me the link to the upgrades.

£1200 for the upgrade

I have two other machines that it is now up and running ok on but I prefer the big Windows 10 machine to work on.

Jo

P.S. I use a local license

Jasonb · « **Reply #33 on:** May 30, 2018, 07:55:17 AM »

Legacy upgrade is a lot less than that, you may only need to sell 1 or 2 casting sets to be able to afford it.

I assume it applies to Cubify as well as Alibre.

Let me know if you got the e-mail as I lost my connection just after I hit send.

J

Jo · « **Reply #34 on:** May 30, 2018, 08:04:03 AM »

It is still cheaper to roll back the latest Windows update, buy a new computer and leave this one as a dedicated Drawing machine

Jo

gerritv · « **Reply #35 on:** May 30, 2018, 12:01:57 PM »

Quote from: Jo on May 30, 2018, 08:04:03 AM

It is still cheaper to roll back the latest Windows update, buy a new computer and leave this one as a dedicated Drawing machine

Jo

I don't know what email JasonB sent you but I would go directly to the Alibre.com site for information. The mintronics link seems to be limiting your choice to a full upgrade. e.g. https://www.alibreforum.com/forum/index.php?threads/legacy-versions-losing-the-ability-to-generate-licenses.20341/ and https://www.alibre.com/flexera-deprecation/ indicates options not shown on the distributor site.

Gerrit

Jasonb · « **Reply #36 on:** May 30, 2018, 12:13:39 PM »

I sent Jo an e-mail from Mintronics which has the legacy upgrade at about 25% of the figure she quoted above.

Looks like Jo will get 2017 version but as that was issued before latest Windows upgrade may not solve her text problem, I'm assuming anything dating back in Alibre include s Cubify as well

Jo · « **Reply #37 on:** May 30, 2018, 12:17:48 PM »

Thanks Gerrit, Minitronics have always had a problem with understanding the difference between the home user market and commercial customers

This seems to be endemic with all software - you pay out lots then a few years later they

with the operating system and it doesn't work. I still have my Double Elephant drawing & rotoring A3 drawing boards and lots of paper if they try charging too much. I would prefer CAD but I do not need it enough to warrant paying anything like £100 a year for it

Jo

Jasonb · « **Reply #38 on:** May 30, 2018, 12:26:22 PM »

I've never had problems with John at Mintronics when I have spoken to him several times, quite happy to accept that when I said I was a hobby user and did not want to pay more for the amount I used it. Must have caught me on a good day the last time he phones as that is when he offered a good deal to upgrade.

If you don't want to pay then go over to F360 and hope they don't charge in the future.

Jo · « **Reply #39 on:** May 30, 2018, 12:40:26 PM »

Until the hardware fails

I have set up a dedicated, unconnected to the internet, XP machine with its own monitor to run Cubify. The software does notes boxes and all

The price is right

Jo

Gas_mantle · « **Reply #40 on:** May 30, 2018, 01:49:19 PM »

The Fusion 360 seems to be worth persevering with, and you can't complain about the zero price tag for hobbyists.

I've kinda set myself a goal of learning to use the software by designing and then drawing up the plans of a decent sized horizontal steam engine I'd like to start building later in the year.

My only worry is it is easy to get caught up spending so much time perfecting a drawing that there is no time left to build the real thing

zeeprogrammer · « **Reply #41 on:** May 30, 2018, 03:24:46 PM »

Very odd.

I have a Dell laptop 4700. It was originally an XP machine. Then installed Cubify.
Upgraded to Win10 and have had several update since then. I'm at 1803 now.
No issues.

I can see how moving to a new OS (i.e. XP to Win10) can cause issues but an upgrade within an OS should not.
Has anyone had other software quit working after an upgrade within the same OS?

Jo · « **Reply #42 on:** May 30, 2018, 04:14:31 PM »

Update: having reinstalled the old version of Cubify on my Windows 10 machine (no it still does not work

) I let it send off its error message.

I got back two Emails:

1. Its the operating system fault... The problem has most likely been triggered by a recent Windows 10 update - current versions of Alibre Design do not suffer from this issue. Your options to resolve this issue are to revert to an earlier operating system, or to update your software to the current version.

2, Alibre have recently re introduced popular Alibre Design Professional. This module allows our customers a very low cost of ownership and licences are perpetual so there are no ongoing monthly costs for cloud hosting or upgrades. We do offer maintenance but it is optional unlike other softwares, even if you miss a year of maintenance the penalty to renew is small.

They even had to stress the "Low cost of ownership"

I wouldn't have guessed looking at the price as it is more than I paid for the two previous licenses together

I'll let the professionals like JBWelder line their pockets and I am going to keep shovelling the coal in my old XP box

Jo

P.S. Surus has just mentioned the money I saved can go towards buying the last couple of castings for his Commander

gerritv · « **Reply #43 on:** May 30, 2018, 04:37:12 PM »

Quote from: zeeprogrammer on May 30, 2018, 03:24:46 PM

I can see how moving to a new OS (i.e. XP to Win10) can cause issues but an upgrade within an OS should not.
Has anyone had other software quit working after an upgrade within the same OS?

Yes, most recently with Apple's upgrade from Sierra to High Sierra. Changes, for whatever purpose, hosed ProTools audio software. Our church Checkin app usually stops working after IOS updates. Previous Apple upgrades forced updates to Adobe Lightroom and in one case a new Mac so Lightroom would stay working. Have had similar issues with Debian and Ubuntu, recompiling programs resulted in a never ending circle of conflicting dependencies. Windows Server 2021R2 no longer lets me delete Alerts for things on my attached PCs, such as disc getting full warnings.

Nothing is immune from the effects of progress ;-)

Vixen · « **Reply #44 on:** May 30, 2018, 04:38:23 PM »

Quote from: Jo on May 30, 2018, 04:14:31 PM

Update: having reinstalled the old version of Cubify on my Windows 10 machine (no it still does not work ) I let it send off its error message.

Jo, I thought I had been following this thread, but now you have me confused.

Did you mean you reinstalled the old version of Alibra or was it Cubify? The Emails appear to be from Alibra?

I am asking because I was thinking of putting Cubify on one of my old 32 bit XP machines.

Mike

Jo · « **Reply #45 on:** May 30, 2018, 04:52:54 PM »

Hi Mike,

In the good old days it was called Alibre… then Geomagic (3D printers company) brought it out and renamed it Cubify

. They then abandoned us who used it to do Technical drawings by dropping the cheap home version

Recently they have remarketed the updated software as Alibre again.... but it only comes in 64 bit flavour. There are promises of another home user version but don't hold your breath

Jo

Vixen · « **Reply #46 on:** May 30, 2018, 05:02:47 PM »

Jo,

Thanks for that explanation. It now makes a bit more sense.

Next question. Where can I get a 32 bit version (of either) that will run on my 32 bit XP machine?

Cheers

Mike

Jasonb · « **Reply #47 on:** May 30, 2018, 08:00:33 PM »

Quote from: Vixen on May 30, 2018, 05:02:47 PM

Next question. Where can I get a 32 bit version (of either) that will run on my 32 bit XP machine?

You can't unless its something dodgy. The other thing to watch is that an older version won't open newer Alibre files, Jo's was just about 1year newer than mine but I could not use her files. newer versions will open older files though and also can import and export a lot more file types.

I can't see them them getting many takers for a basic £200 version with F360 being free and doing far more who would buy in todays market?

Jo · « **Reply #48 on:** May 30, 2018, 08:26:59 PM »

The main problem with the older Alibre/cubify is that in about 20 days they are turning off the license server

So unless someone purchased a standalone local license the software will stop working shortly.

The concern is F360 could be Photosickit all over again... They will wait until you have a lot of time invested in work on line and then start charging you

Jo

Vixen · « **Reply #49 on:** May 30, 2018, 08:44:48 PM »

Thanks for pointing out the realities of Alibre/Cubify.

I guess I will need to wait until I have a modern PC to play with.

Mike

steam guy willy · « **Reply #50 on:** May 31, 2018, 12:02:42 AM »

I have been using PAD with varying degrees of success......Pencill/Pen aided design...

Willy

Jasonb · « **Reply #51 on:** May 31, 2018, 07:03:30 AM »

Quote from: steam guy willy on May 31, 2018, 12:02:42 AM

I have been using PAD with varying degrees of success......Pencill/Pen aided design...
Willy

Does have the downside of needing all those bits of plastic to see if your linkages work when you could be sat in the warm on a winters evening fine tuning them on the screen

I still do a very rough sketch first particularly if working from a photo to get the general layout about right before going to the computer, it will get tweaked and detailed once drawn out properly but sketching gives you some basic sizes and shapes to start with.

Admiral_dk · « **Reply #52 on:** May 31, 2018, 11:29:15 AM »

Mike - you could download Fusion 360 and try as the cost is your time only and I wouldn't be surprised if it works nicely with an old PC (if you have enough RAM).

I bought Alibre Pro when I worked for the University and could afford the $1000 pricetag - but if I where starting now it would be a no brainer for me, as I would start with Fusion ...!... no question about Solidworks being the top dog, but the price ... auch.

Vixen · « **Reply #53 on:** May 31, 2018, 12:08:23 PM »

Per,

I will give F360 a try as you suggest but I understand it will only run on 64 bit machines with Win 7, Win 8 or Win 10. I will try it on 32 bit Win XP and let you know.

Mike

MJM460 · « **Reply #54 on:** May 31, 2018, 01:14:28 PM »

I am another who, like Willy, uses PAD. For some reason the powers that be at work decided that engineers did not need to draw, so did not buy software or facilitate training for them. It's is now a very steep learning curve. I have tried an early version of TurboCAD on the computer, and tried bicad on the iPad, but usually revert to PAD for anything I want to build.

The main problem I find with PAD is that the eraser tool does not work as well as I would like. Move line is even worse! Rotate object works well enough around one axis, but seems faulty on the other two.

MJM460

steam guy willy · « **Reply #55 on:** May 31, 2018, 01:27:45 PM »

Quote from: MJM460 on May 31, 2018, 01:14:28 PM

I am another who, like Willy, uses PAD. For some reason the powers that be at work decided that engineers did not need to draw, so did not buy software or facilitate training for them. It's is now a very steep learning curve. I have tried an early version of TurboCAD on the computer, and tried bicad on the iPad, but usually revert to PAD for anything I want to build.

The main problem I find with PAD is that the eraser tool does not work as well as I would like. Move line is even worse! Rotate object works well enough around one axis, but seems faulty on the other two.

MJM460

Hi MJM, I do a lot of my drawing in the cafe and they have a print copy/coffee shop attached so i am always disappearing to copy things!! modern photocopyers are quite sophisticated so at the touch of a button they can enlarge ..reverse ..black and white etc etc also after making a large accurate drawing i can reduce it in size to glue onto the metal to work from !! I find 3D is quite easy, you just screw the paper up

Vixen · « **Reply #56 on:** May 31, 2018, 02:20:08 PM »

Quote from: MJM460 on May 31, 2018, 01:14:28 PM

I find 3D is quite easy, you just screw the paper up

I am ahead of you. I have learned how to screw up the metal bits as well

Mike

Admiral_dk · « **Reply #57 on:** May 31, 2018, 04:49:22 PM »

Sorry Mike - but I didn't think it would require a 64 bit OS to run

ChuckKey · « **Reply #58 on:** May 31, 2018, 09:08:45 PM »

I am currently doing large (full size) and model projects in Onshape.

It all works in 'the cloud' - no software to download, no updates to worry about, use it on windows, linux, tablet and phone. There are loads of excellent video tutorials assuming different levels of prior knowledge, and a forum to go to when really stuck. It is developed by a crowd who left SolidWorks, and probably has a more modern interface and shallower learning curve that anything else.

If you don't want your files in the public domain it starts at $1500/year/user. If you don't mind, you get just the same functionality for nothing.

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Author Topic: Drawing software for simple engine builds. (Read 6866 times)

ChuckKey