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CAD software for newbie?

FlyGuy65

Well Known Member
Making a bracket and decided to not use my usual TLAR method. Ruler, pencil and eraser worked OK, but got my interest in CAD software to make a good drawing (with dimensions, not an artistic drawing) for future use.

Looking for something that is relatively cheap (or free), easy to learn, etc. OpenSCAD and LibreCad seem to come up a lot in searches, but wondering what might be popular in RV world.


Thanks!
 
Solidworks

Solidworks is FREE for EAA members. And it works amazingly well. That’s the way I have waded into CAD, and I am very happy with it. There is a learning curve - like all of these programs. Start simple and look for help on YouTube. There are tons of instructional videos. Also EAA has some guided parts designs at their Solidworks University section.
 
Tinkercad

I just started using Tinkercad. Perfect for quickly and easily designing and 3D printing little brackets and doodads. My first project was a missing bushing for the paddle on an electric ice cream maker. Only took 20 minutes to watch the tutorials, measure, design and export an .stl file for the printer. Three subsequent edits using TLAR engineering only took two minutes and the new one fits better than the old one which was why it was lost in the first place. Currently working on a wedge spacer for a wing mounted camera on the RV-10. I tried Solidworks but it was overkill for what I needed. Tinkercad allows me to print a rough draft and then do things like visually resize or move a hole just a bit with the mouse.
 
Howdy. I have used Emachineshop over the years from time to time. It is free and serves my purposes well. I use it mostly to make full size, accurate templates that I can print, cut and trace on to cardboard. Then build up the cardboard pieces into a full scale 3D item. If the card board item fits into my plane correctly, (imagine a custom center console) then I break it down and make the individual pieces from wood, aluminum, etc.

You can also make 3D models in the software as well, but I am yet to get that advanced.

https://www.emachineshop.com/front-page/
 
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As someone pointed out above, Solidworks is free with your EAA subscription. The files you make will all be branded as coming from the "Educational version" though.

FreeCAD is a completely free, cross-platform option that many have used. I think Steve (see the 3D printed parts thread) uses it. Based on what he's accomplished with it, i'd say it has capabilities on par with Solidworks. From personal experience trying it a few times, I don't find it user-friendly, but I have used Solidworks for 20 years...
 
Unfortunately Solidworks requires more PC than I have (at least going by what is listed - 3.3GHZ or better?), and TinkerCad doesn't seem to have a way to print (on a piece of paper) a drawing with dimensions.

Maybe I was wrong it assuming it was a CAD program that I wanted. What I want to do is take my hand written drawings and make a drawing similar to what Van's produces, showing a part with dimensions labeled so it can be reproduced later. Something that could fill in measurements would be a plus. Probably overkill....
 
TurboCAD

I use TurboCAD for 2D drawings, it does scaling and dimensioning etc. and can import an AutoCAD file. It's not free, but it's not very expensive either, and it is quite easy to use.
 
We're an Autodesk Fusion 360 shop with paid licenses at CMW. I think it is still mostly free until you make $100k. I couldn't comply with the Solidworks license or it's limitations when they entered the EAA agreement for our hobby segment. Anything you choose is an investment in an ecosystem, whether it be for a fun hobby or your business.
I just wrote Autodesk a check last week for $125K in another segment, and I'm ok with that.
 
Unfortunately Solidworks requires more PC than I have (at least going by what is listed - 3.3GHZ or better?), and TinkerCad doesn't seem to have a way to print (on a piece of paper) a drawing with dimensions.
FreeCad will work in low-powered systems, it's lower overhead to start with (https://www.freecadweb.org/). It definitely has the drawing capability, but it is designed primarily to be a 3D modeller that you make drawings from, not something you start off making drawings in.

Maybe I was wrong it assuming it was a CAD program that I wanted. What I want to do is take my hand written drawings and make a drawing similar to what Van's produces, showing a part with dimensions labeled so it can be reproduced later. Something that could fill in measurements would be a plus. Probably overkill....
Another option, if it's still available, is DraftSight... It used to be included free with Solidworks, but I haven't needed it it in ages. It was a very good clone of AutoCAD for 2D drawing. Ah, I just googled it, looks like it's $99/yr for a basic individual seat.
 
Howdy. I have used Emachineshop over the years from time to time. It is free and serves my purposes well. I use it mostly to make full size, accurate templates that I can print, cut and trace on to cardboard. Then build up the cardboard pieces into a full scale 3D item. If the card board item fits into my plane correctly, (imagine a custom center console) then I break it down and make the individual pieces from wood, aluminum, etc.

You can also make 3D models in the software as well, but I am yet to get that advanced.

https://www.emachineshop.com/front-page/

I use the emachineshop SW regularly as well. I also use solidworks, but for simple items, the emachine shop is just easier and faster. But the export functionality is limited to stl.
 
The OP may be realizing that starting down the rabbit hole of CAD can be a limitation in its own way to quick design and sketching, at least until you have devoted enough time to master the software you've chosen to utilize.

I've learned and used AutoCad enough in past years to work as a detail drawing draftsman during lean times, but the skills left me after a couple of years of non use.

CAD is amazing, especially the 3D packages like Solid Works... no substitute if you need the capability.

Consider the commitment you're interested in making and whether or not it adds value to your efforts... or is just a hobby skill you would like to pursue. Nothing wrong with the latter, but make sure it adds value. :rolleyes:

... and your paper and pencil work with no batteries
 
I did my panel design using the free version of fusion 360 and I think it turned out OK. It was a bit of a learning curve, and a few things surprised me that it couldn’t do but overall, it was not too difficult for a rank amateur like myself.
 
For now I just want to convert my electrical scribbles to cad. I’ve got free Solidworks thru the EAA but decided the learning curve was to steep and it was way overkill. So I downloaded Draftsight Standard ($140 Cdn) and am educating myself in it.

Paper & pencil would work but I like the challenge of learning simple 2D CAD. Maybe cause I missed out on board time and later CAD in my engineering career. Retired now but not to tired to learn yet.
 
Onshape

Have a look at onshape.com. It's as powerful as Solidworks but it's cloud based and needs no downloads or installation. It's free as long as you keep your drawings/designs public.
I used Solidworks for a few years but the yearly renewal of the license takes hours of downloads and registration. I also find onshape more intuitive.
If you are just doing 2D drawings, the steps would be to create a sketch, then insert that sketch into your assembly and then generate a drawing from it.
 
I used FreeCAD for 3D (subpanel) and LibreCAD for 2D panel layout.
Both open source and continuously updated.
 
LibreCAD

Try LibreCAD. Package is small. It does 2D stuff well. Learning curve is similar to any other 2D CAD.
 
Since this thread was revived I thought i'd add:

I mentioned the difficulty I had learning FreeCAD on one of the Slack channels i'm on, and someone there gave me a pointer to some excellent introductory videos on using it.
https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLxa9m2nC6N924jFUOYRECQUMm9xl4_jUI

The first four videos in this list will get you set up with a FreeCAD installation, and teach you the basics of modelling solids. They are targeted towards people who ultimately want to 3-D print things, but that's just one application. Most of these videos is how to use FreeCAD's tools to draw/model the parts you want.

FreeCAD doesn't have *all* the tools that Solidworks does, but it does have most of the important ones... Having followed the training videos I now understand how FreeCAD works, and I plan to start using it more regularly. I highly recommend it as a starting point.
 
Thanks for all the replies folks. Ended up using pen and paper - it was just a simple drawing and I felt guilty spending too much time in front of the computer vs in front of some aluminum.
 
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