I'm trying (again) to move into the 21st century and learn a CAD program.
Objectives:
1) Turn an aircraft idea, with dimensions, into an external 2D sketch and eventually a 3D rendering.
2) Lay out an internal 4130 tube-frame or aluminum bulkhead-and-longeron fuselage structure for the aircraft
3) Get a cut list for the tubing or angle for the internal frame
4) Lay out panels (sheet metal, thin ply, or 2-D flat-formed composite panels with bend lines) to match the above fuselage frame
5) Be able to send the panel design to flat-bed CNC cutter to make the sheets.
6) Extra credit: Be able to export the external design to OpenVSP.
I'm looking for good,inexpensive CAD/CAM software that will let me do this with a low pain level. I'm new to this, and my previous experiences have not been pleasant--I have no problem "seeing" perspective drawings, but working in 3D from the start was pretty frustrating for me. I think it would be far more natural for me to start with a "pure" 2d sketch and then plump it up than to start with a bunch of solid shapes and modify them, working in 3D the whole time.
Options I know about:
Solidworks (through the the EAA program): It's very powerful--maybe too powerful. "Powerful," in my experience, often means a thicket of deep menus with opaque names or inscrutable icons. I don't anticipate needing/wanting to do FEA, stress analysis, etc. The hardware requirements are fairly extensive. I'd definitely need a new desktop computer to use it.
Sketch-up: Very popular. I have read that it is not easy to export files to do CNC work. I tried it a bit, didn't like the "you'll work in 3D only and like it!" approach, but I could very well be off base with this.
Fusion 360 (by Autodesk): Free to tinkerers, seems to do everything I need. From what I can see, starting with 2D sketches works fine with it, and is expected. Most of the computing is done "in the cloud," so my hardware requirements are modest (and I don't have total control of my data
). I have not tried to use it yet, but "Fusion 360 for Dummies" tutorials are out there.
I'm leaning toward Fusion 360 right now, but would welcome any input on:
1) Will Fusion 360 do what I'm expecting?
2) Is there other software that would be better (esp easier to learn)?
Thanks for any input
Objectives:
1) Turn an aircraft idea, with dimensions, into an external 2D sketch and eventually a 3D rendering.
2) Lay out an internal 4130 tube-frame or aluminum bulkhead-and-longeron fuselage structure for the aircraft
3) Get a cut list for the tubing or angle for the internal frame
4) Lay out panels (sheet metal, thin ply, or 2-D flat-formed composite panels with bend lines) to match the above fuselage frame
5) Be able to send the panel design to flat-bed CNC cutter to make the sheets.
6) Extra credit: Be able to export the external design to OpenVSP.
I'm looking for good,inexpensive CAD/CAM software that will let me do this with a low pain level. I'm new to this, and my previous experiences have not been pleasant--I have no problem "seeing" perspective drawings, but working in 3D from the start was pretty frustrating for me. I think it would be far more natural for me to start with a "pure" 2d sketch and then plump it up than to start with a bunch of solid shapes and modify them, working in 3D the whole time.
Options I know about:
Solidworks (through the the EAA program): It's very powerful--maybe too powerful. "Powerful," in my experience, often means a thicket of deep menus with opaque names or inscrutable icons. I don't anticipate needing/wanting to do FEA, stress analysis, etc. The hardware requirements are fairly extensive. I'd definitely need a new desktop computer to use it.
Sketch-up: Very popular. I have read that it is not easy to export files to do CNC work. I tried it a bit, didn't like the "you'll work in 3D only and like it!" approach, but I could very well be off base with this.
Fusion 360 (by Autodesk): Free to tinkerers, seems to do everything I need. From what I can see, starting with 2D sketches works fine with it, and is expected. Most of the computing is done "in the cloud," so my hardware requirements are modest (and I don't have total control of my data
). I have not tried to use it yet, but "Fusion 360 for Dummies" tutorials are out there.I'm leaning toward Fusion 360 right now, but would welcome any input on:
1) Will Fusion 360 do what I'm expecting?
2) Is there other software that would be better (esp easier to learn)?
Thanks for any input
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