Looking for a good free CAD?

Chris Railey

Well-Known Member
I have to give a shout out to the free version of Q-CAD. I have zero experience with any CAD but in short order I can now design any knife or handle and glue it straight to wood for quick template making. It has saved me much money in pencil erasers and dykem alone. I needed to make a coffin handle template yesterday and in like 10 minutes I was ready to print.D8A0C128-91C6-485F-840B-ECFDF52D8F26.jpeg
 
I've been down that road. IMO, the words "Good", "Free", and "CAD" are mutually exclusive..... meaning they just don't go together.

I'll be real honest with you. I rarely use a CAD program, but I do have one.....and will leave you with this....... SolidWorks...... torrent files. ;)
 
I've been down that road. IMO, the words "Good", "Free", and "CAD" are mutually exclusive..... meaning they just don't go together.

I'll be real honest with you. I rarely use a CAD program, but I do have one.....and will leave you with this....... SolidWorks...... torrent files. ;)
I was against using CAD I was more of a wing it guy but when you are designing templates it rules. I tried a few others including fusion360 but I think what sets Q-CAD apart is that it is a 2-D program. Ditching that extra D makes it more simple to use. I never draw anything 3-D so it makes sense.
 
CAD can definitely be a game changer, especially when getting into folders. You might want to check out Fusion 360, which is free for hobbyists and students. There's a bit of a learning curve, but there's also more than enough resources (most of which are free as well) all over youtube and various forums.
 
I was against using CAD I was more of a wing it guy but when you are designing templates it rules. I tried a few others including fusion360 but I think what sets Q-CAD apart is that it is a 2-D program. Ditching that extra D makes it more simple to use. I never draw anything 3-D so it makes sense.

The 3D aspect turned me off of Fusion for the longest time as well. I used Draftsight for years until it was no longer free, and I used to have an older version of AutoCAD as well, but lost the software, and then the program when I upgraded computers. Fusion can still be used as a 2D program, though it's optimized for 3D obviously. I've recently been getting back into Fusion, however, because I've built a CNC router and need it for CAM, so 3D is essential to that.
 
The 3D aspect turned me off of Fusion for the longest time as well. I used Draftsight for years until it was no longer free, and I used to have an older version of AutoCAD as well, but lost the software, and then the program when I upgraded computers. Fusion can still be used as a 2D program, though it's optimized for 3D obviously. I've recently been getting back into Fusion, however, because I've built a CNC router and need it for CAM, so 3D is essential to that.
I am not sure if the Q-CAD paid program has a CAM option. I thought about buying the paid version because you can utilize the print on two pages option for large designs.
 
I've been using Inkscape which is an open source program. While my use is pretty rudimentary I've seen some amazing stuff done with it.
 
I've used probably 6-7 cad programs over the years. My favorite is Rhino 3D...did not enjoy the learning curve! Any CAD program that is free is probably better than hand for most of us. A CAD program gives you control over your design history...doesn't turn you into a good designer...you either are or aren't. I like using them because as an employee of a design firm I had to learn CAD...But I enjoy sketching too. I like CAD because I can analyze and tweak a bit at a time. Here's a knife I started after I got out of the hospital. The sketch gives me the "vibe" and then I bust it into components to work on details...working on the handle now....I'm much slower than usual due to recuperation...lol!
So some guys design better with their hands in 3d reality...for them a CAD program would be counter productive...perhaps even a creative block....we all create differently...if you know you're "hands on" maybe don't waste too much time on CAD....received_665155204224760.pngreceived_591228285065474.jpeg
 
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