Simple CAD Software Produces Professional Plans
Affordable consumer simple CAD software is easy to learn
Until quite recently, there were no practical simple CAD (computer aided design) software programs available for home plane designers to draw up a set of model airplane plans. Since the beginning of aero modeling, airplane construction plans were drawn by hand. Model airplane plans are oftentimes complex, with numerous curves and unique shapes that need to be precisely drafted to allow the modeler to build your own RC aircraft finished design. Hand drafting was the quickest method, and indeed the only route, to prepare a set of model airplane plans.
I used TurboCAD to draw the Blackburn plan - not difficult with video training and some practice
Since the introduction of practical home computers, it quickly became the goal of software programmers to devise some sort of simple CAD software program that could be used by the serious hobbyist to draw of set of model airplane plans. However, any simple CAD program really needed to be able to take on the very challenging tasks of replicating complex hand drawn model airplane plans through the evolving computer - human interface. In short, the early home computers just did not have the computational power or graphical user interface to properly run a truly effective simple CAD software program. Once you get your plan drawing skills complete, consider having one of your model airplane plans published.
Detail of Yard Ace fuselage plan
CAD programs and computers
During this same time, commercial users of CAD programs developed early versions of powerhouse drafting programs like AutoCAD. These early computer CAD programs were cumbersome to use and required a great deal of specialized training in order to obtain any level of proficiency. The cost, both in terms of purchasing and learning these commercial CAD programs, essentially precluded their use by the home model airplane designer. The good news is that the commercial CAD pioneers showed what could be done for a simple CAD computer software package, and set clear goals that could be met once the personal computer developed a proper user interface and additional computational power.
Yard Ace fuselage built from plans
There were a variety of early CAD programs for home use with varying degrees of utility. Some examples of these consumer simple CAD software packages included DrawingBoard, AutoCAD LT and QuickCAD. Fortunately, the capabilities needed for any consumer CAD program were laid out early on with the powerful commercial drafting programs. These requirements replicated tasks done when drawing model airplane plans by hand, and used the inherent power of the computer to speed up tedious work that had previously been accomplished manually. Examples include measuring and scaling lines and dimensions, finding the center of circles and using construction lines to accurately draw interior sections of an aircraft.
CAD computer programs draw in full size
An important point, when drafting a model airplane plan by hand, is that the entire plan has to be drawn full size. This requirement necessitates use of a large drawing board and wide sheets of paper that would be impractical for the home designer. One of the huge advantages of any simple CAD software suite is the fact that the model airplane plan can be created on the computer screen in any convenient size as required by the designer, and “zoomed” (screen view enlarged or shrunk) as needed to see project detail. The computer keeps track of the desired full scale size of the model airplane design, and instructs the printer or plotter to create the final plans at any size desired. Thus, a model airplane design can be completed on the screen of your home computer, and printed out at full size when complete. There is no need for a large drafting table to draw out the full size model airplane plan.
Detail of TurboCAD and the Blackburn fuselage
Blackburn fuselage front from above plans
CAD and graphical user interface
The early simple CAD software programs were not capable of any sort of complex model airplane designs due to the limits of the personal computers they were hosted on. As home computers became more powerful, and permitted the use of improved graphics, the inherent visual nature of the model airplane plan drafting process lent itself nicely to this much more user friendly visual environment. Today, with such advanced operating systems such as Windows XP, Vista or Windows 7 - and of course any Macintosh computer - the widespread use of truly affordable, easy to learn CAD software programs has arrived.
But do not be mislead by the term simple CAD software. Today’s CAD programs for the home model airplane designer are every bit as powerful and capable as those used by professional CAD users, especially for two dimensional line airplane plans. The advantages with the more powerful (and expensive) professional CAD programs lie with animation and advanced 3D graphics implementation.
TurboCAD great for model plane plans
There are a variety of consumer CAD software programs available which can be used for model airplane design. I have been using TurboCAD for all my model airplane designs since my one and only hand drafted plan (drawn in 1998 for the Yankee Mike). I since used TurboCAD to draw the Electro Aviator, Yard Ace, Chickadee and Blackburn plans. I could not be any more pleased with this affordable, easy to learn, simple yet extremely powerful consumer CAD program.
Simple CAD Software