DRAWING, LAYOUT & CAD

BROCKWOOD

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How is it that DRAWING, LAYOUT & CAD is really only about CAD without the ability to participate with any input on the rest of our choices? (staying on topic precludes all other options period.)

I'm old school. My drawing preference is utilizing a Dietzgen Excello drafting set with 1 of the very last Mutoh of Germany drafting arms on a lighted street sign resting on a WW II desk. Why wouldn't discussions such as care of equipment or improvement thereof be encouraged? Fenner uses a program - not CAD: Where would discussions of that system best be posted? I dream of an automated pushbutton tilting table for my setup: where would that discussion best be posted? As is, I have this:

Img0467.JPG
 
How is it that DRAWING, LAYOUT & CAD is really only about CAD without the ability to participate with any input on the rest of our choices? (staying on topic precludes all other options period.)

I'm old school. My drawing preference is utilizing a Dietzgen Excello drafting set with 1 of the very last Mutoh of Germany drafting arms on a lighted street sign resting on a WW II desk. Why wouldn't discussions such as care of equipment or improvement thereof be encouraged? Fenner uses a program - not CAD: Where would discussions of that system best be posted? I dream of an automated pushbutton tilting table for my setup: where would that discussion best be posted? As is, I have this:

View attachment 284509
Well, you are bringing "drawing" back to the forum. I like your setup. I am just using my flat desk top with a cover and a 4' t-square. I still have all my drafting equipment and slide rule from the late 1960's and early 1970's, before CAD was prevalent. It all still works fine, no batteries or power cord required except for the light. I still remember how to use it, too. My studies back in the old days were with architecture, and the results were art, each draftsman had his own style and artistic nuances to dress up the prints. CAD drawings are very nice, and useful, but often soulless. I have never found the need for making them, though I have tried to force myself to do so multiple times. I also think the media can be limiting, with both drawing and with CAD. The drawing tools and standards influence the prototypes. I try to build my concept as completely as possible mentally before committing it to a drawing at all. I also like to make parts with no drawings at all, making changes and improvements on the fly as the project moves along, and only writing down a few dimensions as I determine and complete the details. It is much more difficult to use that freedom when following dimensions and angles staring at you from the drawings. Following an official print is no doubt best for most commercial work and employees. I have the luxury of not needing any of that in my shop...
 
I'm old school, too, but then again, at almost 70 years old, I'm old period. Our generation grew up with mechanical drawing in school so that has remained my default. I still use the old drawing tools, too, but most often it is a simple drawing on paper with dimensions and a list to guide my order of operations. Truth be told, most of my time is spent creating that order of operations. Then its easy to get started and go through the order to finish the part.
 
Good idea bringing this up. You might get some help in the CNC forum to figure out how to put stepper motors on your X and Y axis and turn your set-up into a plotter. (Kidding) I'm one of those guys that came up through design a couple of years before CAD really came on strong. So I fortunately learned to draft manually and then later using 2D, then 3D CAD. Not long ago I gave up my drafting table due to lack of space for it. It was either a band saw or a drafting table... I miss manual drafting though because I found it very relaxing. I don't much miss the erasing part though!
 
I agree with Reddiner, I enjoy the kinesthetic aspect of manual drafting. And while CAD is a major aspect of my design workflow, I do still use a straight edge and paper sometimes to doodle and help get a handle on a new design. But once I know where I am headed, I can move 10X faster in CAD than I can on Paper. Of course if you want to use CNC (my Lathe is Manual but my Mill is CNC) you have to use CAD. Still I read threads like this and it makes me miss the days when I used my drafting board and lead holders to draw things on paper. In fact I still have a few of my early velum drawings on the walls of my office as decoration and to remember the past. :)
 
I too like the board. It forces you to think as you work not depend on the computer. I find I have less mistakes on the board. Case in point who doesn't turn of the interference feature on cad?
 
I started out drafting manually and did so for more than thirty years. My turning point came when, as the manager of an engineering department in a medical device manufacturing company, I had to convey design ideas to our draftsman. I found that the amount of time required to communicate a complex design concept was an ineffective use of my time. At that time, we were using AutoCAD and I could make a drawing with sufficient detail that the draftsman could efficiently convert it to working drawings.

I started using SolidWorks fifteen years ago and for me, it works well to the point that I will use it to design all but the simplest of parts and assemblies. I particularly like the ability to quickly sketch out a rough design and then go back and tweak a few dimensions or relationships. An additional feature is the ability to create complex assemblies to check for form, fit, and function before any machining is started.

While CNC is possible without the need for CAD, it doesn't take too much complexity to make manually generating G code an odious chore if not impossible.

Finally, SolidWorks and other parametric CAD programs have extremely powerful mathematics engines which enable solving complex pr45oblems without ever turning on a calculator or opening trig tables. In some cases, the problem would not be solvable by any other means.
 
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