Fabrication Software

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Do any of you use any CAD software or software to help with your fabrication?Do you find it more time consuming than just drawing it up on paper.
Reply:Hi RubenzI use a little of both, but mainly pencil and paper if I still cannot get my head around it I draw it full size in chalk on the ground or work bench.A lot of the Iron work we do there are no real plans just make it we go.Simonhttp://members.optusnet.com.au/~abba/index.html
Reply:Originally Posted by RubenZDo any of you use any CAD software or software to help with your fabrication?Do you find it more time consuming than just drawing it up on paper.
Reply:Yes they do.  Its really impressive.   You can see how something is going to look before you build it.  fabricating parts is also impressive. Its just expensive software and takes a while to master.
Reply:I use 3D rhyno, it isn't as featured as CAD, but it does enough for what I need, and it is simple to use. Owner of Welding Wiki,The free wiki based resource for weldor's around the world.http://www.weldingwiki.comWe have cookies!
Reply:I've used Autocad and I've started to play with finite element analysis tools.  FEA is cool in that it will allow you to model the stresses in a part and identify where failures may occur.  I've found that I can do simple 2D models for a lot of things to give me an idea of how to improve a design.  However, getting an accurate model takes a lot of effort and probably is only worthwhile if one is going to produce something in quantity.It's also useful to model stuff in a CAD program if you're going to have parts CNC cut with a waterjet or a plasma cutter.  Again, it's not all that difficult if you model something in 2D.  I've been playing around with designs for an extension to common (JD2, protools) bender arms for a hydraulic conversion.For other things, I use paper and pencil and my drafting skills.  I built a trailer last year and did top, side and perspective views to aid in construction.  I just built a wheelchair ramp for a friend and made a couple sketches with dimensions.  In both cases, the final product turned out just fine.-Heath
Reply:Look around here: - http://www.freecad.com - Windows/Mac/xNIX freeware collection - http://www.hobbycnc.hu/CNC/Free/Free.htm - another collection of freewaresI use Ubuntu opsys, which has a CAD prog. in pack.
Reply:I use cad for everything, from CNC to just designing a gate. Its so much easier for me to draw something, and then build it. Here is a fly thru of a circuit board I drew up for school last year.http://youtube.com/watch?v=p3rqmarT97g
Reply:I have autoCAD 2000 and 2006.  It's very useful for making complex drawings or generating views of the different sides when modelling in 3D.I made a bumper for my 4Runner.  I knew the outer dimension i wanted, where i wanted it to curve in and the angle at which it curved.  AutoCAD made it simple by plugging in these points and constructing from there.  When i was finished all i had to do was click on any facet/side to get the length and width of that piece.  These pieces were 1/4" checkerplate.  Pencil and paper is much simpler unless you are planning on going into production.  I know a guy who sells windows and as a side offering he also sells burglar bars.  When this happens he calls me with the rough window dimensions, how many bars, the spacing, material,...etc.  I can easily use cad to layout the pattern, rotate the views for the printout.  I then fax this to him with a quote and this basically becomes a contract and shop drawing for me. Attached Images