Design Software


IAHawk

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Sketchup is very good, but if I haven't used it for several months, I forget how to use it & have to go through the tutorials again. For basic 2D drawings, I've used DeltaCad for many years & have no problem remembering how. It is fun creating a Sketchup model, but it's overkill for the woodworking I do. I can whip up a 2D drawing in DeltaCad in way less time than it takes me to familiarize myself with Sketchup again.

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I have used SketchUp and Fusion 360.  Neither is easy to learn.  And neither is easy to remember.   I doubt any of these products are.  Between the two my personal choice for flatwork planning would be SketchUp....  Unless I could do the task with a pencil and graph paper.

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@IAHawkIf you've already got DeltaCad, I would encourage you to try again. At first I had to refer back to the help file lots, but after using it a bunch, it sunk in. The thing with Sketchup is that there are so many arcane things that you have to remember or your model will be screwed. With DeltaCad, you just need to retain a few basics to be able to generate a useful drawing. Then as you become more comfortable with it, you can add to your skills. 

Lots of times I will only do the most basic drawing, but DeltaCad is super useful for figuring out geometry and angles.

Back in the day I probably tried 6 or 8 2D CAD programs and DeltaCad was by far the best of the bunch for what I need.

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I'll toss out FreeCAD as another option, just because it is powerful, not a resource hog, and actually free. Sketchup probably has the shortest learning curve to get basic shapes made.

My money is on a sharp pencil and graph paper, but 3D models can really help communicate your ideas to others in ways that a 2D diagram can not.

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