A good CAD program??

[boneschop6]

I was wondering what would be a good CAD program to design parts for a bike and even beable to create a whole bike. What about AutoCad 2010???

[redintn]

viewtopic.php?f=3&t=6371&p=60837#p60837

[ampster]

a "good" CAD program will be one that you understand and know how to use.

Jeff (redintn) recommended or provided a link where you'll find BigJim has posted (Thanks BTW!) another link where you can get a free, legal copy of SolidWorks 2009. However you'll only have 90 days to model (and learn the software?) your bike until the "free" trial runs out.

90 days is the best you are going to find with "free" "legal" software.

Autodesk (AutoCAD, Inventor, etc) provides 30 day trials with most of their software.

I'm not aware if any other CAD software companies provide free trials, but there are alot of choices out there. If you have the patience, there are "freeware" type CAD apps out there, but the learning curve might hinder you.

Do you have any experience with any CAD Software?

Steve

[boneschop6]

Well I actually just got the AutoCad 2010 program. However, no I never have worked with a cad program. So the few hours I have been playing around with it, are just mind blowing. It is very in depth difficult if you don't know what you are doing. There are no books out for it yet either. I saw in forum that one guy created a whole bike out of Solidworks I believe it was. I was wondering if that is possible on this Autocad 2010 as from what I found I have no idea how you could. Maybe I could get some tips or something.

[ampster]

Acad 2010 should have some tutorials that would get you started, where you can get access to them I'm not 100% sure. I've got Acad 2009 and one of the first things I did was to turn off the "ribbon" interface. The "ribbon" interface looks alot like how MS Office 2007 looks.

Without the ribbon, I could tell you how to access the tutorials but I'll have to look those up first, I suspect you should be able to access them thru the Help menu. I'll also see if I can find them using the ribbon interface.

From what it sounds like, old Acad users (ok, people who have been using Acad along time and are not necessarily old!) have found it's easier for them to switch to what is known as the "AutoCAD Classic" interface with "toolbars". People who are new to Acad might benefit from using the ribbon interface (which is without "toolbars") - or so they say.

I'll also search around for any free on-line tutorials or training guides and post some links.

One way to get around the ribbon interface is to actually type out the commands. Try typing "line" or "circle" (without the quotes) to start with. One tidbit I can give you right now with Acad, is always pay attention to what the command line states. Alot of times, people don't know what the next step is in a process, and the command line usually will give you a clue as to what Acad is expecting as input from you.

With Acad, you should be able to draw up some simple 2d side view plans. I realize "simple" is another thing when it comes to not knowing the software!

You could also model up a frame in 3d, but that isn't the easiest thing to do when you are not familiar with the software.

Tomorrow I'll try and see what I can dig up in the lines of some simple, how to get started with Acad tutorials. There is alot of info out there, the trick is finding what works for you and is geared towards your skill level.

Steve

[indian Mark]

Learning CAD is a long and frustrating process. Especially if you're learning the machining (CAM) aspect at the same time. I use Mastercam and remember seeing a video tutorial online. The idea was that you run the tutorial, then minimize it and repeat the process on your own. Then do the next tutorial and so on. Taking classes is a good idea as well, but then of course you have an added expense as well as a time commitment. It's a good idea to know someone that uses the same software as you. Sometimes a phone call can save your sanity.
BTW, I don't know where I saw the tutorial, but you could probably Google it and find something worthwhile.

[Vambo]

ANY Cad program is capable, IF you know how to use it! AutoCad is a widely used program, so finding instruction shouldn't be all that difficult. Check with your local community college or vocational schools to see if they offer classes. Should be reasonably priced.

[ampster]

Here are some of the training links I've got bookmarked at work just for these types of requests when clients are looking for something their dept won't get charged for;

http://www.caddigest.com/subjects/autoc ... /index.htm
http://www.we-r-here.com/cad/tutorials/index.htm
http://www.autocadcentral.com/Tutorials ... _index.htm
http://www.cadtutor.net/
http://usa.autodesk.com/adsk/servlet/au ... ID=9240615
http://www.docnmail.com/learn/AutoCAD.htm
http://www.we-r-here.com/cad_05/tutorials/index.htm

most of those offer some sort of free training as well as $ training. The file attached shows you where you might find "additional resources" in Acad 2010 with the "AutoCAD Classic" interface (aka "toolbars"). The screenshot was taken from Acad 2009. Again, I haven't seen 2010 yet so I have no idea if 2010 is close to 2009 in regards to appearance.

As others have stated, searching the net you might find other web pages which suit you just fine.

HTH
Steve

[boneschop6]

Steve, THanks for posting those links. It seems that there should be several different tutorials to go from and learn how to do this without taking a class. Im going to start going through these in the next couple days and see what happens. Ill post my feedback.

[krymis]

I actually use Bobcad version 21.5. I use it b/c its easy to learn there a few tutorials and it was inexpensive. I have MastercamX autocad and turbocad to work with also. I think it boils down to what do you need the program to do and how much money and time will you put into it.

[rudog]

Has anyone checked out "open source" CAD programs? It's all free.

One of my customers uses open source for all his software from flash programmers to autocad clones.

[ampster]

yeah rudog, I've seen a few over the years. One of them that I would like to learn is BRL-CAD. That's a 3d modeling package that the U.S. military released into opensource some yrs back.

http://brlcad.org/d/about

However, take about 20 yrs off my 45 yr old rear end and I might be tempted to learn yet another CAD program!

I know I'm probably still considered a young person to some here, but it seems in the last few years I've gotten an attitude towards learning anything new when it comes to different CAD packages. I'm pretty good with Inventor, know a little from my first 3d package I ever learned which was SW 2000, know even less when it comes to NX. AutoCAD I can get around in but since I've been focused on Inventor for the last 6 yrs or so I really haven't kept up on what's all in Acad these days.

There are many open source CAD apps available and even some of the non open source programs out there that are very reasonably priced when it comes to a individual purchasing it. To me, reasonable is something like $100 to $300 when compared to the thousands of dollars you might pay for Adesk products, Solidworks, etc. Then you got the big guns, Pro-E (Wildfire) and NX which if I understand right they go for over $10,000 a seat - I could be way off because it's been years since I even paid attention to their pricing.

[rudog]

Thanx for the link ampster. Your post could have been written by me. I've been using ACAD since v10(DOS). I really hated how they screwed up 2D by trying to gain market share from guys like Solidworks. They just messed up the interface. I do all my work in 2d and would like to learn 3D, but for the cost.

The last time I did 3D, I hired a student to opperate the interface and used him like a StarTrek voice interface. "Give me a line from here to here." "Now curve it with this formula."

When we got done, all he could say was "Ooooooh, now I see it"

[PCW]

http://www.a9tech.com/

i use this one for 2d cad work, is free and works well
pascal