Cad case design

[toby]

I know a lot of people design cases on cad and send the designs over to places who will laser cut their designs out of metal / acrylic etc, and i would love to do this, but i dont know how, i would appreciated any tips on which programs are best and websites to get me started etc.thanks

[Starbuck3733T]

QCad rox for 2D design. learning curve isn't too bad at all, and the older versions are free. The 2.0 demo runs for 10 minutes and isn't crippled in any other way. I Just bought it a few days ago, damn good proggy for $26. WAY easier than autocad, but it still writes DXF files.

Sketchup seems to be popular for 3D - you'd have to get dutchcedar in here to show you his MAD sketchup skills.

[dutchcedar]

You know, sometimes doing a CAD drawing for a machine shop or water cutter is a waste of time. You draw the whole bugger out in AutoCAD 2004 and bring it over to the machine shop all wet and proud, just to find out he's such a cheap bass turd, he only has release 14 or something like that. :rant:

My suggestion is talk to whomever is gonna do the work for ya and make sure its in the same format that they like. I tend to draw parts in CorelDraw ('cause I like it) and let them figure it out for themselves... or... my favorite... I go to the shop and draw it right on their 'puter, then get them to let me mount the material in the machine, etc., etc. That way I learn a little while the chips start to fly... :D

Here's an example of something drawn in CorelDraw:

http://www.pcperspective.com/images/reviews/41/updateddigidocbracketdrawin.jpg

And the finished part:

http://www.pcperspective.com/images/reviews/41/done1.jpg

http://www.pcperspective.com/images/reviews/41/done2.jpg

Aye, toby... I never knew you cared... B) Thanks for the kind words...

So here's a 'puter design in SketchUp, which by the way, will let you download a free trial for eight hours of actual user time... but be warned, its addicting.

http://www.hardwarehelix.com/forums/attachment.php?attachmentid=924

[furious trout]

Damn, dutch when i win the lottery (that's when not if :p )you'll be getting the call to design my new machine.

That rocks!

(sorry for the threadjack just wanted to show my appreciation ^_^ )

[toby]

looks like i have a few proggies to try out, sketchup looks very interesting although i cant help but think i would be a complete failiure using it

[Darv]

Sketchup is a must if your a beginner. Its just so easy to use and you'll be making great models in next to no time.

Pitty about the time limit though ;)

[dutchcedar]

Damn, dutch when i win the lottery (that's when not if :p )you'll be getting the call to design my new machine.

That rocks!

(sorry for the threadjack just wanted to show my appreciation ^_^ )I'll go ahead and put a down payment on that new Harley then... :unsure:

[toby]

i will definetly give sketchup a try then but i dont think i will be making models like dutch for a long time!

[toby]

i tried sketchup today and its really good and i should be able to get to grips with it, i have downloaded all the tutorials to watch at a later date

[iduktech]

I got the demo last night of sketch up and with 1-2 hours found my self designing away it's very easey to do basic thing with and I cant wait to learn it more!


this is what I designed in 1-2 hours of messing

http://www.wizdforums.co.uk/showthread.php?t=399


cheers dutchcedar for the inspration!;)

[dutchcedar]

You're welcome. <_<

I use it for all kinds of things. Here's a great example... a design competition for a rather large home where we were each given a certain number of billable hours to work with. I spanked the competition... it was my first project on BaDassII and spit out these results in less than the forty hours alloted each of us.

Without SketchUp it would have been a struggle to convey my ideas to the clients in that amount of time.

http://www.hardwarehelix.com/forums/attachment.php?attachmentid=858

http://www.hardwarehelix.com/forums/attachment.php?attachmentid=857

The original design was only intended to show our ideas for the property. Since the contract award for the design work, we've "grown things" a bit. We're still massaging the design, but so far it has a theater with an electric swinging bookcase for a door, a conveyor in the laundry, a Living Room the size of my house, stained glass domes in the central hallway ceilings... just a lot of really nifty stuff.

http://www.hardwarehelix.com/forums/attachment.php?attachmentid=1348

Sooo... it turns out that within a couple weeks of hitting the power button, BadAssII not only paid for herself (I love them sel-supporting beetches :rolleyes: ), but she made it fun and kinda paid for these new flat panels too... kinda... :rant:

[kazuo]

WOW, don't wanna know who's gonna pay this ^_^

[fillip]

I wanna know who's gonna be having that house! :blink:



That is friggin' sweet

Dutch, you wanna design me a house and i'll start paying you in installments for the rest of my life, next week?! :D

[iduktech]

WO, can I have one please?


true art!


B)

[Starbuck3733T]

*poops in his pants*

Damn dude, that's fscking awesome!!!!!

[dutchcedar]

Aye... thanks for the kind words. <_<

It should turn out to be an awesome and fun job, so far so good. It really helps to have great clients with a bankroll they aren't afraid to tap.

I'm working on a virtual 3D model with the new floor plan... inside and out... in SketchUp. When its ready, I'll post some more pics.

[Nexxo]

http://www.hardwarehelix.com/forums/attachment.php?attachmentid=924
:blink: ...

*speechless*

[Da_Rude_Baboon]

OMG Dutch that garage is bigger than my house! :blink:

Give us a ball park figure of how much that house is going to cost?

[Starbuck3733T]

Dutch, I showed that to my GF last night to explain to her (this is after I showed her the pic of your triplehead workstation) that some people actually NEED this stuff ;)

I'm not one of them- yet. Although 3.6GHz+ is nice for coding too, I just need to get more screen realestate. programming on 1280x1204 feels like keyhole surgery after my 3200x1200 (1600x1200 x 2) at work.

S'sGF: "WOW!!"

[dutchcedar]

OMG Dutch that garage is bigger than my house! :blink:

Give us a ball park figure of how much that house is going to cost?For the main house and garage construction, $3.5M to $4M. The land was close to $1M. The pool, guest house, boat docks, landscaping and theater stuff are kinda up in the air for a budget.

[dutchcedar]

Dutch, I showed that to my GF last night to explain to her (this is after I showed her the pic of your triplehead workstation) that some people actually NEED this stuff ;)

I'm not one of them- yet. Although 3.6GHz+ is nice for coding too, I just need to get more screen realestate. programming on 1280x1204 feels like keyhole surgery after my 3200x1200 (1600x1200 x 2) at work.

S'sGF: "WOW!!"Well, I think a lot of people in the 'putering biz put too much emphasis on speed, storage, etc... not enough on screen real estate. I'm posting this on my wife's 'puter and its like taking a crap in a urinal... well, not that bad, but you get my point.

[fivecheebs]

Wow dutch. I never knew scetchup could be so good! Great design on the house also.

Just out of interest, which expanse of water is the plot next to?

[Starbuck3733T]

Well, I think a lot of people in the 'putering biz put too much emphasis on speed, storage, etc... not enough on screen real estate. I'm posting this on my wife's 'puter and its like taking a crap in a urinal... well, not that bad, but you get my point.

I think I may have to put that in my sig as a quote. Im laughing my ass off!

[fillip]

For the main house and garage construction, $3.5M to $4M. The land was close to $1M. The pool, guest house, boat docks, landscaping and theater stuff are kinda up in the air for a budget.
I'll start saving now then...

lets see, student loan = £4000 per year, Dutch's house = best part of £4million...



:blink: Ah, not sure i'll be able to appreciate it much by then!




:D

[Pug]

Bloody hell dutch... :blink:

And you said I was hiding my light under a bushel on this forum...

I'm sooo envious of your ability to walk into a machine shop and just pour ideas through your fingers to be turned into material objects there and then, before your very eyes. :sigh:

... but as I'm still on 56k, I haven't seen the house design yet fortunately*


* (I could only handle so much jealousy in one day :D )

[iduktech]

Bloody hell dutch... :blink:



... but as I'm still on 56k, I haven't seen the house design yet fortunately*



wot a year!:D



oh dial up :o

LMAO

[Edd]

Gotta show these 56k modems who's boss. I just slap mine around and threaten it with a screwdriver to get those few extra kbps out of it.