I've used this very little, it seems ok to me.
I'd like to hear from people who use the program, have considered buying it (and know about it's features) or have used the trial version.
How does Bobcad compare to other CAD/CAM softwares?
Heres a few points I like:
1)lower price compared to others I've looked at 2)support for many CNC controllers, including OLD onesRich
I used bobcad about 6 years ago. I found it to be a royal PITA. Now, let me qualify that by saying I had 8 years Mastercam experience under my belt at the time, and was trying to use it to produce injection molds. For 2d simple work, it's probably worth the money. If you're trying to make a living, and have more complicated things to do, better get a more powerful system.
Yup, that seems about right, at least with respect to Ver 16.1, which is what I have. I did one surface where I had an arc that plunged down into a plane. I constructed the guide curves correctly, as far as I can tell, but it did not quite work right where the arc merged into the plane. I will say it showed exactly what it would cut, and I decided the part was good enough in this case. It was slightly funny looking, but that's all.
I had another case where I wanted to wrap an O-ring groove around a cylinder, and it just could not do it. I ended up redesigning the whole part, although it actually became easier to make that way.
It works fine for 2-D work, which I do a lot of. Simple stuff with rectangular cutouts in sheets I do with some of my own programs, and aviod the CAD/CAM completely. I have not used any mechanical CAD before Bobcad, so I wasn't spoiled.
Jon
From what I have found they are interested in sales only. Very little support once purchase has been made. Dick
I agree, they have a decent product for the price, but their pushy sales practices are a real pain. Ask your questions by e-mail- DO NOT give them your phone number!!
You can say that again...and about 20 more times which is still gunna be fewer than the number of sales calls you get telling you of this weeks" special discount" and pressuring you into spending "right now or you'll miss it" and "let me speak to my manager and see if I can cut a deal".
Koz
For 2.5d work, a solid program is
For 3d work on a budget, I ended up buying VisualMill 5.0 Basic. If you push for a discount you can get this for around $800., maybe a little better if you push harder (I wore out at $800). You can buy it either as a standalone program or with the same functionality as a Rhino plug-in, called RhinoCAM
1.0 Basic.You can get a demo version of VisualMill or RhinoCAM from
Rhino is not really a 3D CAD program, its more of a high level modeling tool, so it can be frustrating to use as a design entry tool, I'd take a look at the Alibre CAD program for 3D design entry, they have a "free" version available that may be enough for you to get started with.
Good luck-
Paul T.
PolyTech Forum website is not affiliated with any of the manufacturers or service providers discussed here. All logos and trade names are the property of their respective owners.