Simple, not simple, rethink my understanding?

[davidpratthk]

I am an engineer ( Marine Mechanical ) of 60 plus years and feel pretty confident in some design programs. Loved Sketchup, it took no brainpower to use it. So Ironcad has seemed to be just as simple from the outside, especially because I can manipulate sheet metal and have it produce to specs. That is until I started to try to do, what I consider, basic steps. The program is going to be used to vaildate ideas in steel flat bottomed canal vessels, commonly refered to as "Narrowboats" in the UK.  The steel spec information will give tremendous power to uderstand bouyancy and ballast needs. So ...................

1) If I take a  slab it defaults into the X axis. I can dimension it , NICE and thicken it NICE and even spec it to a bespoke parts list, TREMENDOUS, but bulkheads and sides are in the Y axis. How do you move it to the Y axis?  Do you neeed to or is it just a matter ( like Sketchup of pulling up an edge because everything should come from the X axis? When it comes to defining dimensions in a parts list can I define these changes as was ( for example ) L but now is W etc?  I can see nothing in the manual or in videos. It seems so simple that no one thinks it has to be explained?

2) I understand bending in both it's forms but what about setting a slab at an angle from the Y axis? Do you bend from an edge?  Again, nothing clear to a newbie like myself. 

I had expected from seeing the intro I could design a series of slabs as parts and then just assemble like a kit but it seems maybe I need to understand more. 

 

Thanks in advance

David

[Cary OConnor]

Hi David,

I'm not sure I fully understand your statements but are you mainly asking how to add bends to the Sheet Metal. In the Sheet Metal Catalog (or the Sheet Metal Group in the Starter Catalog) you will see the stock and bends. You drop the stock then select the desired thickness. Next, you drop the bends near the edge you want them attached. They will default to 90 deg. Then you can adjust the length and the angle of the bends by pulling or right-clicking on the handles. Here are some links to get started with sheet metal:

https://www.ironcad.academy/tutorial/sheet-metal-preview

https://www.ironcad.academy/tutorial/sheet-metal

Hopefully this helps. 

Cary

[SHORNBRO]

David,

If I understand what you are asking correctly, then you want to know how to rotate and manipulate the sheetmetal (slabs) for horizontal (in the X-Y plane) and vertical/angled (in the Z-X & Z-Y planes) pieces, more or less.  You also want to be able to align a bend off of a piece of sheetmetal to create a non-90 degree bend, correct?

In my office, we build a lot of sheetmetal models for industrial equipment.  I'm not sure how much of a help this will be, but I threw together a really quick and dirty video attached here showing how I would build a machine casing.

If you send some snips of more or less what you are trying to accomplish, I can put together something a bit more specific to what you're looking for.

Hope this helps.

Best regards,

Sam

[davidpratthk]

Thanks for the attempts to answer, but this has nothing to do with bends per sea. I understand how to make the different types of bends.

On a narrowboat the above hull structure (tumbledown) is not perpendicular. The structure lies at approx 7 deg from the vertical Y plane and I saw no way to position a part that way before welding. I am sure there is a way and will study the video you sent once my morning coffee kicks in. 

The basic premise of my whole question was about positioning slabs. To rotate the slab from the horizontal X plane to the vertical Y Pane and positions in between to degree accuracy. To be fair I do not find the IronCad manual guidance provided very good. Like most technical software it often assumes you must already know the basics and is explained in terms that are never easily understood with  videos becoming something like , " OOOOOOO look what I can do."  This is not me being disengenuous but, as ( a now in my retirement) teacher of English to ESL students just how I see the vocabulary. It's not what we used in my days of oily rags and steam.

[IronKevin]

Does this video address what you are trying to do?

[davidpratthk]

Thanks for that.  Just have to get rid of the original slab.

In any case, I think these videos from both of you give me a path forward. I surely need to understand the subtleties of the triball.