COREdevelopments
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| posted on 21/11/09 at 10:51 PM |
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CAD advice
Hi all. I am very keen on learning CAD and am thinking of doing an evening course at my local college next year hopefully. I am after some advice on
the subject as i know there are many of you that use it. How hard is it to learn and is there anywhere i can get a copy of somesort of cad to have a
play with. A mate of mine is doing motorcycle motorsport in swansea uni and is currently learning the basics on a software called UGS i think, and is
trying to get hold of a version for me to use.
I would greatly appreciate any info on the subject. I am currently a mechanic but would like to better myself a bit further.
Thanks in advance
Rob
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BenB
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| posted on 21/11/09 at 11:00 PM |
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Could be UGS NX4 he's using....
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rost
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| posted on 21/11/09 at 11:03 PM |
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With UGS he probably means Solid Edge, which is a good piece of kit. Alternatives could be Solidworks, which is pretty similar to Solid Edge.
Autodesk Inventor is gaining popularity too. I wasn't too fond of it for the short span I've used it, but that might be because I'm
too used to Solidworks. These tree are the biggest contenders iirc, if you want to go with lesser known software check out ProEngineer or Catia.
Whatever you pick, don't do AutoCAD 3D, unless you want to model like Barney Flinstone used to do 
Charlie don't surf!
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designer
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| posted on 22/11/09 at 07:36 AM |
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Sketchup is a free download, and might be suitable for an initial play.
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Daddylonglegs
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| posted on 22/11/09 at 09:27 AM |
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quote:
Originally posted by designer
Sketchup is a free download, and might be suitable for an initial play.
Second that, you can get it here
JB
It looks like the Midget is winning at the moment......
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loggyboy
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| posted on 22/11/09 at 12:44 PM |
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I did an evening course in cad (City&Guilds) and although it was only a basic 2d course, it helped me get my 1st job in architecture, and meant I
wasnt stuck with doin the usual 'office junior' admin jobs. Its a useful way to give u a small step up.
You can get student editions of AutoCAD for about £60, but choose your type of cad wisely, as although some of the priciples are the same, there are
also many differences, not only between different manufacturers, but also within autocad/autodesks range.
Sketchup is an excellent freebe and as incredibly simple to pickup, the UI is incredibly intuitive. I started using it about 2 years ago and im well
impressed with the results ive got from it.
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SeaBass
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| posted on 22/11/09 at 12:53 PM |
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I'm a registered teacher trainer for Pro/Engineer Schools edition. I've wasted a lot of time discussing the merits of various software
packages.
At the end of the day I'd say think of what your learning more as transferable skills set. Similar to getting trained up by a BMW garage and
getting the paperwork but you can/will work with other motors in the future.
It shouldn't matter what software your trained in as long as the training is well thought out.
[Edited on 22/11/09 by SeaBass]
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iank
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| posted on 22/11/09 at 01:23 PM |
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For some basic 2d CAD experience you can download a free version of QCad
http://www.ribbonsoft.com/qcad.html
As for how difficult, 2D is easy once you get past the fact that none (that I've seen) work like regular applications so you have to get used to
the interface.
Never got on with 3D myself for some reason, but some pick it up easily.
Sketchup is interesting and free.
--
Never argue with an idiot. They drag you down to their level, then beat you with experience.
Anonymous
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luke
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| posted on 22/11/09 at 01:24 PM |
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I'm currently in my second year of a cad degree using solidworks which I would highly recommend.
I would say it varies a lot on what you want to do. Simple modelling using extrudes, revolves etc is very easy to pick up and you can learn just by
doing the solidwork tutorials. Harder stuff like complicated surface modelling and motion analysis is harder to pick up on you own.
Everyone will recommend a software due to preference, the most useful skills are transferable from software to software. You need to always think
ahead, the way you make something can affect future steps. There is also many different ways of making things, like if your making a cylinder you can
either create the end profile and extrude it, or create a cross section and revolve it.
Biggest mistake I see is people forget the origin. Its the main refrence point and people just start drawing without thinking about possition relative
to the origin.
I would say choose a software that suites your needs, do any tutorials and then just play, be prepared for it to go wrong, you learn loads of new
techniques trying to fix problems!
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COREdevelopments
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| posted on 22/11/09 at 02:34 PM |
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thanks for the advice so far, i think i will download a free version and see how i get on. can anyone recommend me any books on the subject?
Thanks
Rob
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dhutch
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| posted on 22/11/09 at 05:05 PM |
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UGS (unigraphics) has now been bought out by seimans PLM.
- The flagship product is indeed NX (NX4/5/6/7 etc) which is a cracking system as used by a large number of companys such as JCB, GM, GE, etc.
They also have Solidedge which is a lighter package, not technical a cut down version of the same as it came from a totally diffrent heratage although
there has been a fair bit of interbreeding since.
Fairly common package used by smaller companys as its more cost effective in many ways.
Competitors to the are CATIA (used by ford) and ProENGINEER.
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loggyboy
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| posted on 23/11/09 at 08:10 PM |
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quote:
Originally posted by SeaBass
I'm a registered teacher trainer for Pro/Engineer Schools edition. I've wasted a lot of time discussing the merits of various software
packages.
At the end of the day I'd say think of what your learning more as transferable skills set. Similar to getting trained up by a BMW garage and
getting the paperwork but you can/will work with other motors in the future.
It shouldn't matter what software your trained in as long as the training is well thought out.
[Edited on 22/11/09 by SeaBass]
Fair point, but alot depends on the industry your aiming for. For example, id say 95% of architectural companies use AutoCAD for 80% of there work (ie
regular 2d drawings) so it makes sence to do any training in that software. Obviously if the industry your aiming for has a my diverse software base
then it may not be quite such an issue. Still, its worth doing your homework before setting out on a path that leads you only 'roughly' in
the right direction.
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dhutch
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| posted on 24/11/09 at 04:19 PM |
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quote:
Fair point, but alot depends on the industry your aiming for. For example, id say 95% of architectural companies use AutoCAD for 80% of there work (ie
regular 2d drawings) so it makes sence to do any training in that software. Obviously if the industry your aiming for has a my diverse software base
then it may not be quite such an issue. Still, its worth doing your homework before setting out on a path that leads you only 'roughly' in
the right direction.
Yeah, although that said, that is one of the few exceptions.
- Where 2D cad'ers spit from 3D cad'ers.
- But the bulk of the 3d packages are *relativly* simular such that skills are fairly transferable.
Im in my final year at uni, and we where taught how to draw with a pencil first. As the first years still do. becuase the skill are again very
transferable.
This is Loughborough uni, currently rated about 4th in the country for mechanical engineering.
Daniel
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