SketchUp for mechanical work?
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Can you use SketchUp for mechanical work?
I am in a aircraft club and wish to have a CAD program our club can use and share ideas with.
Can we save drawings in a comnon place like our web site?
Is Sketch up suited to collaboration by members of varying levels of CAD skill?
Will it cost much? Our club runs on dues, so we have very limited financial resources.
Please suggest Sketch up features, or tutorials related to each of the above question?
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I am probably not the best to answer this but i'll give it a shot:
@gmyhilo said:
Can you use SketchUp for mechanical work?
I have seen very detailed piping and duct drawings done in sketchup. What sort of mechanical drawings are you looking to do?I am in a aircraft club and wish to have a CAD program our club can use and share ideas with.
Can we save drawings in a comnon place like our web site?
The .SKP files can be saved easily, Need more information on how you would be saving them Some drawings can get quite large.
@unknownuser said:
Is Sketch up suited to collaboration by members of varying levels of CAD skill?
Sketchup is not really CAD, but it is very easy to learn and your group could catch on quickly I am sure. Getting together in a group for sharing skills is more or less what this forum is all about so I am sure your members could do the same
@unknownuser said:
Will it cost much? Our club runs on dues, so we have very limited financial resources.
Google sketchup is a free program. For what you seem to be doing, it should be adequate especially for beginners. Post some of your ideas and what sort of things you intend to draw and you will get plenty of help, hints opinions from the members of this group
@unknownuser said:
Please suggest Sketch up features, or tutorials related to each of the above question?
The tutorials are on line at google and take a look at the link on the home page of sketchucation for the various forum subjects, tutorials. Check out the new user forum. Lots of your questionswill be answered there. The foirum has a search feature so you can probably find some answers easily. If not - just ask.
Good luck and have fun -
and show us what you are up to!! -
Jim has answered your questions but there are some things you need to understand: 1) The free version SU8 and probably up does not have the capability to import /export cad type models. If you can find a download for SU7 there is a plugin that will allow you to do that and there are some free programs that will accept SU models and allow you to export dfx etc. Google does allow you to download the PRO ( paid version) and use for a short time for evaluation. They also will allow pro users to download older version so maybe you can get 7 that way ; 2) As stated it is a sketch type of program but the level of detail of models can be amazing. However it is not to the level of allowing you to do FEMA although I have seem some discussions of organization using it for theremal analysis but have not checked the level of detail.
With that said I think it would be quite useful for your use.
Good Luck -
I found these video tutorials to be most helpful:
http://sketchup.google.com/intl/en/training/videos.html
http://www.aidanchopra.com/ -
No. Try Alibre or VariCAD. Here are very talented and helpful guys, but mostly working in architectural and design fields.
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@gmyhilo said:
Can you use SketchUp for mechanical work?
Yes, as far as modeling goes. You need SketchUp Pro for presentation (production) drawings.
@unknownuser said:
I am in a aircraft club and wish to have a CAD program our club can use and share ideas with.
Can we save drawings in a comnon place like our web site?
This is a function of your OS and networking setup.
@unknownuser said:
Is Sketch up suited to collaboration by members of varying levels of CAD skill?
Sketchup is not a true multi-user platform. It can be used by those with varying levels of CAD skills.
@unknownuser said:
Will it cost much? Our club runs on dues, so we have very limited financial resources.
Sketchup Free is free.
@unknownuser said:
Please suggest Sketch up features, or tutorials related to each of the above question?
Youtube is a excellent source of tutorials. The problem isn't getting help, it is in understanding, and using it.
There is no single CAD application that can do everything WELL. There are many other considerations then posted above for building a comprehensive, multi-user Cad system. There are few CAD programs can provide all functions in one application. If your budget is restrictive, IMO Sketchup is a good place to start.
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