What software are you guy's using?

[NormS]

Check this site out: http://www.freecad.com/
I'm not a CAD user (yet) but some of these sound pretty good to me. Maybe someone with some CAD experience could look things over and provide some recommendations?
NormS

[esc]

Hello Norm,

Some of the programs you provide the link to may be very good, however it's not a quick job to assess a piece of solid modelling software.

Sure the basics have to be there in all these programs but it is my experience that to know a piece of CAD software well enough to be able to compare it with some degree of authority you need in the region of 3 months to a year.

Rightly or wrongly most CAD pro's will stick with the market leaders, and there are many sound reasons why they do this.

A beginner should ask themselves what they want the software to do, how easy is it to use and how intuitive is it to find things when required. How big is the user base? How much help can I get? Are training manuals and videos available?

When you try a piece of CAD software don't just play around with it, have something in mind that you want to achieve and go for it. It is only then that you will discover what the program is really like to use, and most importantly how easy it is to modify models/assemblies and correct problems.

I can offer advice, but what suits me may not suit you. Personally I would feel to be cheating you if I did not really know a program before commenting on it.

There is no doubt that word of mouth is the best recommendation you can get, so my advice would be to trawl the internet for existing users/forums of the particular software you have taken a shine to and see what is being said about it. If the support is poor leave well alone.

I have waffled on a bit but I hope what I have said helps.

Regards,

Dave

[Mithrandir]

And keep in mind... other then an engine cowl or a wing fillet... a canopy is not an easy thing to surface.... it is a 3 boundary surface.... there are some tricks... simple ones, that will give good quality.... but just plugging away on your own, you aren't likely stumble onto these techniques.....

http://www.mcadcentral.com/ has some good resources if you use one of the Big 3 and little 1

I have about 10,000 hours of using Pro/Engineer (now called WildFire 4)..... and it is fairly capable.... suprisingly enuff.. the past few upgrades have actually been improvements!!! lol
If you just want to get a canopy surface, the best/fastest way is to define the boundaries and a few cross section curves (in 3D space... or like um..... station lines, butt lines, water lines) and let someone surface it for you......

Make sure everyone is on the right page for units.... he he he he

[NormS]

	Quote: Originally Posted by esc
	Hello Norm, Some of the programs you provide the link to may be very good, however it's not a quick job to assess a piece of solid modelling software. . . (body deleted) . There is no doubt that word of mouth is the best recommendation you can get, so my advice would be to trawl the internet for existing users/forums of the particular software you have taken a shine to and see what is being said about it. If the support is poor leave well alone. I have waffled on a bit but I hope what I have said helps. Regards, Dave

Dave, thanks for the advice.
I think what I'm probably looking for is a 2D drawing package rather then a 3D modeling package, as all I really want is to be able to draw plans for foamies that I want to try to design.
Thanks a lot
NormS

[rcpilot82]

Norm, if 2d is all you want check out freecad.com for basic 2d programs. or find a buddy who has a copy of Autocad and you'll be set. I am biased towards AutoCAD so I recommend that.

[NormS]

	Quote: Originally Posted by rcpilot82
	Norm, if 2d is all you want check out freecad.com for basic 2d programs. or find a buddy who has a copy of Autocad and you'll be set. I am biased towards AutoCAD so I recommend that.

Yes, that's the plan. I'll probably rely on the reviews on the website to choose a package, and then play around with it to see if I like it.
Thanks a lot.
NormS

[esc]

Hi Norm,

2-D is much easier to recommend - the world leader without a doubt is AutoCAD. Nothing else comes close. In fact it says it all when you know that the accepted de-facto file standard is AutoCAD ".dwg" and ".dxf"

I have used AutoCAD for over 30 years and it is a truly excellent program. In it's as supplied form it can be used for a multitude of disciplines, yet with a little work can be fine tuned to just the way you want to work. There are many good books and "how to" videos available. It's easy and intuitive to use and the user base is massive.

AutoCAD 2010 now incorporates a form of parametrics - not quite the full blown version you would find in a true solid modeller, but it is getting there. This allows you to drive your design with dimensions and equations. In truth the program is moving nearer and nearer to being a true solid modeller and I am informed that it will contiue to do so.

AutoCAD can produce solid models in it's own right and it has an advantage over it's bigger, younger brother, Inventor - you can free form solid model in it - drag surfaces about. I know of experienced designers that create free form models in AutoCAD and transfrer them into Inventor.

Why then do I prefer Inventor for solid modelling - apart from the above advantage AutoCAD is still primitive in this department and does not work the way I want it to for my purposes. It might however provide all that you require or want.

Norm, I am not sure how much model design experience you have but I can highly recommend a book I found a few months back that may help you considerably. It is not one of the "propellor heads" in depth aerodynamics books, which are fine if you have a degree in Aeronautics but make things way too complicated. It is "Designing Model Aircraft" by Peter Miller. Peter has published many first class designs in the U.K. modelling press over the years. This book is all you need and it is simple to understand.

When you get deeper into it another book might be "Basics of R/C Model Aircraft Design" by Andy Lennon. Now don't let the "Basics" in this title fool you, it is unnecessarily complicated for most, and the graphs alone give me a headache.

I can even think of a book specifically about flat foam R/C modelling - "Remote Control Flying Models Made From EPS Foam" by Hinrik Schulte - available from Traplet Publications. I cannot speak for it's contents though.

Go for it Norm and please come back and post your designs on this forum as it needs a lot more electric small plane designers. If you decide to go with AutoCAD you will have at the very least both Rob (rcpilot82) and myself to offer help & advice.

Dave

[Woodie]

Recently I asked this group about 3D CAD drawing and I appreciate the responses. I downloaded and have been using (trying) ViaCam with some success. I find it easy to use and understand. My biggest stumbling block has been understanding the jargon and what each function/tool does and why it is defferent that another tool. I am probably learning things that more experienced CAD users have already learned so I consider that normal.

Anyway, my first attempt at anything other than the tutorials and some general fiddling around was to attempt a canopy drawing to carve a plug for vacuum forming a plastic canopy. This is just a pretend canopy so I was not too concerned about a specific shape or size.

Anyway, attached is the drawing which I exported as a STL file, imported into CamBam, generated gcode and sent on to Mach3. Since my CNC machine is pretty small, I kept the size down to about 4 inches long. Long story, it worked and came out looking like the drawing. Size was what I set up in CamBam, so now on to making a drawing of what I really need.

Thanks for all you help guys.

Woodie

[esc]

Hi Woodie & welcome back,

You seem to be off to a good start. Please publish your finished drawing for us, and I at least would like to see the machined plug and the finished canopy.

CAD stuff I am happy to discuss with anyone but CAE/CNC is not my forte at all. Obviously I am well aware of STL (Stereo Lithography) for rapid prototyping and have seen it carried out in both resin and paper laminates, however when it comes to G code you have lost me entirely. Rob is the man for that.

Dave

[NormS]

	Quote: Originally Posted by esc
	Hi Norm, 2-D is much easier to recommend - the world leader without a doubt is AutoCAD. Nothing else comes close. In fact it says it all when you know that the accepted de-facto file standard is AutoCAD ".dwg" and ".dxf" . . . . Dave

I'm an engineer and I've actually played around a little with AutoCAD; the problem I've got with it is its cost. However, I understand that there's a free version of TruboCAD floating around, and there were also some other good sounding 2D programs on the freeCAD site.

I've got Andy Lennon's book and I've also read Martin Simons' book "Model Aircraft Aerodynamics" and "The Simple Science of Flight" by Henk Tennekes, which was interesting but not very useful. I really liked Simons' book didn't need to buy it because I can always get it at the library. I was thinking about buying Carlos Reyes' new book ( http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0982261322/ref=cm... )
based on the recommendation in MA, but I'll certainly check out the two you mentioned before I do anything.

A loooong time ago I designed a flying wing for schoolyard CL combat, but that doesn't really count much towards RC design experience where planes have three-axis maneuverability. I'm a long way from trying an RC design, but if I do one and it flies reasonably well I'll be sure to post it on FG.

Thanks a lot for the tips and insights.
-NormS

[rcpilot82]

Norm, if you are computer saavy, download a torrent program such as utorent and search there for acad. you will find many free copies In case you were wondering, no I didn't get mine there, but I have used it for other programs.

[esc]

Hi Norm,

There are two versions of both AutoCAD and Inventor - 32 bit (referred to as x86) and 64 bit (referred to as x64). Make sure you find the right one for your PC operating system. The 32 bit version will not run on a 64 bit operating system, it should but it won't!

The book you give a link to - "RCadvisor's Model Airplane Design Made Easy" - sounds as if it might be worth investing in.

Rob and I are engineers too. I have no doubt your first design will be a great success and I cannot wait to see it.

Dave