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Entry level, inexpensive CAD/CAM software for home use

Fastrip

Plastic
Joined
Aug 16, 2012
Location
Wisconsin
Good morning to all of you digital and cyber gurus,
I would like to know what was availible in adequate yet inexpensive CAD/CAM software for home use. I am an occasional user of GibbsCAM but would not call myself proficient. I would like a system from which my 16 year old son and I can develop a better understanding of such software. I currently program in the old school fashion, I do the math and write the lines of G and M code. If it were availible I would like to procure such software. Any ideas?

Fastrip
 
If you go to emastercam.com you can get tutorial books that come with a home software copy of mastercam. I think it does everything, you just can't post G-code.
 
CAD or CAM ? They have different logic and layout.

As for CAD I could recommend Solid Edge, after using it about 1000 hours I guess one can do the drawings without thinking about workflow and CAD becomes invisible. Which is good. I guess SolidWorks does the trick too, I just dont have exp. with it.

All the cheap CADs are IMHO actually useless for real work. You can get Solid Edge trial and education versions for free or cheap, check it out.

About CAM - we use GibbsCAM and it has A LOT of features which are used daily - so if there was a "simpler" software I'm afraid it will be harder to use.
 
Yea I guess inexpensive to Donald Trump and inexpensive to some refugee somehere are radically different definitions.
I don't know, a couple maybe $500. I have no idea what going prices are. I just can't do 2-3 grand for a learning tool, for that we'll find another avenue.
I guess being machine adaptable and /or Gcode or simulation would be nice but I would really like something to get my son going in the right direction. I work on equipment that reads G code right now, I have Mazatrol experiance too...I would think Gcode to give him a little better line by line understanding of the process.
I spoke with his tech ed teacher and he was quite a..................shall I say, prick, about the subject. You know the one person that might help in giving such direction........that's why I am here. Egotistical prick I might add.
I would think 3 axis a good start, 4 axis in the future. That's it, I would like to get him started, he can worry about 5 axis simulations some time down the road. That's not to mention the education I can get.......old dog new tricks??????
 
I've never used it myself, but I read about Alibre a while back:

Alibre - Alibre Design, the world's most affordable, professional 3D CAD solution

I guess download the demo and try it? It's worth the shot ain't it? Also, there is alibre cam i fyou want to try it but this isn't as cheap as the cad side of it.

On the other hand, I think a couple weeks ago somebody posted a link to an ebay ad for an old version of Bobcad that was selling really cheap.

HTH
 
Auction for BoBCAD V23 going on right now.If it doesn't go up in price much more,it would be a good deal.Note:there is a $100 transfer fee.Nice package with everything you need.I am thinking $500 tops is what I would pay.That is because it comes with the training videos.Free post processors is a big plus too.This is the basic mill package,not the pro.Which means some of the more advanced tool paths on the CAM side of things are not included.
bobcad | eBay
 
CAD you could easily go with Alibre, I use it every day, not the hardest to learn, it's parametric and if you stick with the Personal edition you can get it for $200 and occasionally $100 on sale. Be warned, it has input format limitations and will only export STL for 3D models... higher level version are needed for more universal file sharing.

CAM is a bit harder.... I use a cheap (like $180) program called Sheetcam for 2D stuff. You can also use their free download forever for up to about 300 lines of code, so check it out for free. I currently use something called Freemill from Mecsoft, a real stripped down version of their VisualMill for 3D, it's very limited in usage, but for the occasional 3D part it works, and it is free. I have heard decent things about Meshcam, I think it is called, priced about $250 and again, has a free trial.

Given your son is a student, he should qualify for student versions... I thought you could get a one year student license of Solidworks for $100 or so, same with Mastercam.... both of which are fairly industry standard. So if he can get the student discount, go that route.
 
Get the educational version of Mastercam. if its just for learning, you can get that for free. Can't post however you can still create and save files.
Otherwise BobCad is a cheaper alternative as someone mentioned already.
 
So, I knew this would be the place to ask.
Thank you all, I will note and investigate your input.
I would like him to understand CAD and CAM and how they interconnect. I need an education in that area myself. There is "ALWAYS" something new to learn.
My son can turn the cranks on a Bridgeport, he understands the dials and pretty much the backlash thing. He has done some manual lathe work, you know enough to have burned up come carbide and maybe even warmed a drill to something other than its original color. He has tig welded (but much prefers mig at this point). His imagination is just starting to awaken. He comes up with some of the strangest ideas, well I guess strange today normal tomorrow is the age we are in. He wants to rework a mini bike we have, he wants it to be electrically driven, so off we go. If he could get a handle on even a simple CAD system who knows what we'll be building next.
I will check with the manufacturers, that's a good lead. I would think they would be interested in up and coming potential users.
Thanks again.
I will keep an eye on this thread.
I don't care what anybody says, you people are ALL RIGHT....

Fastrip
 
I think there are more than a few options for you to try and decide which one you like. I would recommend the BobCAD CAM system ( I work for BobCAD ) as I feel it's a great all around solution for many shops and is affordable.

What this video to learn about some of it's features.


 
for home use...
I use Creo elements/Direct modelling express for CAD, it's completely free, and I'm yet to find something that I can't do that on a home basis I would need to.

I guess that a limitation of it is that it saves in STL or VRML

To generate G-code, the only CAM tool I have is a 3d printer, and I use a piece of software called Skeinforge which again is free, and develops tool paths based on STL files. there is options in the program to do winding, drilling and milling options (though without the tools I haven't really investigated them). but this might make programs that export in STL a more useful option knowing that there are programs that will generate tool paths from STL files.
 
Another vote for Bob Cad

Ill throw in another vote for Bob Cad. I am on my third version and have not experienced any issues. I had no other training with programing than the videos provided. I have done everything from simple 2d parts to fairly complicated 3d stuff. Alot of complainers about it but for the price I havent seen a comparison.
 
I would recommend the Solid Works. This seems to be the industry standard for most manufacturing companies in the design aspect. For the CAM I recommend Mastercam, again another what seems to be industry standard.

Good Luck!
 
GibbsCAM is good keep using that, instead of buying a new one try to get easy tutorials for gibbscam, that would be nice for you. This can help you better but keep my advice in mind too
 








 
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