bhendrix Posted October 23, 2005 Share Posted October 23, 2005 Can anyone recommend a simple, inexpensive CAD program to use for cabinet (CornScala) design and layout? I use 3D Home Architect 4 for room and building layout, so something like that would be terrific. Thanks, friends! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jheis Posted October 23, 2005 Share Posted October 23, 2005 Howzabout a free (that's pretty inexpensive) open source cad program - QCad. http://www.ribbonsoft.com/qcad.html Oops, looks like they're charging for it now - but its only $28 and you can demo it for free. The Linux version I've got was free.... James Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Marvel Posted October 24, 2005 Share Posted October 24, 2005 I recently downloaded JustCAD, which is free. I haven't had a chance to try it though. You can see the complexity of a drawing and download it here: http://justcad.com/I tried a couple of programs, and they were just too flaky (can't remember the names, sorry).Bruce Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JJkizak Posted October 24, 2005 Share Posted October 24, 2005 Most industrial CAD programs start at $15,000.00 and end at $100,000.00 +. And some of them use the IBM OS. The end points are "computed" and you want to hope that they are correct as the machine will be a bit out of sorts if not. Turbocad probably has one of the better low priced programs. Well about 5 years ago, don't know about now. JJK Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jay481985 Posted October 25, 2005 Share Posted October 25, 2005 autocad is one of the best programs out there and if your a "student" wink its like 200 dollars. It retails 5k I believe or you can cough download it from places. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
endover Posted October 25, 2005 Share Posted October 25, 2005 If you can live with 2D drawings which most people who are looking for low-cost or free software usually can, I highly recommend that you find an older version of AutoCAD LT. I bought my version new back in 1997 for around $350 and it has paid for itself many times over in projects at my house. You can make your drawings as engineeringly perfect as you want and then make a materials list and go buy what you need. It is a fully capable and very intuitive CAD program. Type "l" for line and "e" for erase and "c" for circle and so on. Use the "snaps" to make sure your lines meet EXACTLY at intersections or centers of circles (unlike trying to draw in Powerpoint where you guess at exact intersections). You can calibrate your printer so your prints are scaled to a true 1 to 1. When I was in college, I did purchase a student version of ProE for $25 and it's excellent software IF, IF, IF, you use it all the time. Although it's incredibly powerful (usually more powerful than what you need at the house), it is not intuitive in the least. If you don't regularly use it (like I do at my job), you'll forget how to even start a drawing in a very short time! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
formica Posted October 25, 2005 Share Posted October 25, 2005 If you can live with 2D drawings which most people who are looking for low-cost or free software usually can, I highly recommend that you find an older version of AutoCAD LT. And given that AutoCAD has become somewhat the standard in 2D, it's drawings are easy to share with others. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
D-MAN Posted October 27, 2005 Share Posted October 27, 2005 I use Cadstd (from John Apperson). Free download, I found that I could be productive right away with no prior experience with cad programs. After trying it out, I bought the full version for a whopping $25! http://www.cadstd.com So there's my vote. DM Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Marvel Posted October 28, 2005 Share Posted October 28, 2005 DM, I had trouble with cadstandard. When I would save a drawing then open it back up the dimensions would have changed. Pretty wierd. I just dowloaded allycad, the free one they offer. http://www.allycad.com Bruce Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
D-MAN Posted October 28, 2005 Share Posted October 28, 2005 What?! That's wierd. Never seen that problem. Set your scale value to 1"=12" or something. Seems like it might be unset. Well, I like it - I used it to do the patent drawings. Like I said, this was one that while it has a learning curve, is pretty intuitive, and I could use it right away. I'm still learning stuff, though. Too bad it don't do hatching, I could have used that feature. DM Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Petrol Posted October 28, 2005 Share Posted October 28, 2005 I use AutoCad LT and love it . . . cost about $600 though now. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BS Button Posted October 28, 2005 Share Posted October 28, 2005 Can anyone recommend a simple, inexpensive CAD program to use for cabinet (CornScala) design and layout? I use 3D Home Architect 4 for room and building layout, so something like that would be terrific. Thanks, friends! Popbumper can make the motorboards for you, he's got access to all the equipment. BS Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Marvel Posted October 29, 2005 Share Posted October 29, 2005 What?! That's wierd. Never seen that problem. Set your scale value to 1"=12" or something. Seems like it might be unset. Well, I like it - I used it to do the patent drawings. Like I said, this was one that while it has a learning curve, is pretty intuitive, and I could use it right away. I'm still learning stuff, though. DM Could be the problem. They all work differently than drawing programs though. I just haven't had the time to get back to it. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Nklipsch Posted October 31, 2005 Share Posted October 31, 2005 I use Qcad 1.5(old free version) for 2D stuff. Works well for somethings but not others. I found it extremely intuitive unlike autocad. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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