QCAD - getting started guides.

Hi,

I've been following Adrain's excellent tutorials and learning along the way, mainly thanks to the Guvs thread. I'm stuck though on repeating the brick pattern. Any ideas how I can do the verticals in the brick pattern below easily? I can do the horizontals ok by using the parallel lines function but can't work out how to repeat vertical lines vertically...

For the vertical brick pattern I would come at it the other way. I would suggest drawing one single line from the bottom line all the way to the top line.

You can then use the "break out segment" option



This will allow you to click on the bit you want to remove to get an alternating line. The line of the left is done and I've nearly finished the second line.


Then once you have the two verticals sorted you can select just those lines and repeat horizontally


Which gives me the following pattern.

Len Cattley said:

Hi chaps, how do I put an angle of 1:50 on my drawing as I need to show the angle of the cylinders?

Click to expand...

In addition to Jim's suggestion I would suggest looking at the works drawing and find a reference point to start your line. You might find that the centre line of your cylinder intersects the centre of the driving axle. In which case I would simply draw a straight line, the first point on the centre of the wheel. If you then hit the space bar it allows you to enter the co-ordinates of the end point, in the example below I used "@-50,1" which effectively skips the horizontal and vertical construction lines suggested by Jim and does it in one operation.



Also note that there is a line and angle drawing option, in your example you effectively had a gradient, 1:50. If instead you had the inclination quoted as an angle then there is a line and angle drawing option.




To complete the circle you can also use the built in calculator if you can remember your trigonometry, to convert 1:50 into an angle use arctan, as shown below using atan(1/50) will give you a line at the correct angle.


I hope that helps.

Hi Phil - I've done that in TurboCAD many a time.

I created two layers for the actual mortar courses (green on your example), one for the headers and one for the stretchers and two additional "placement" layers (choose two different colours), again, one for the headers and one for the stretchers.

On these "placement" layers, I drew parallel lines corresponding with the positions of the vertical header or stretcher mortar courses. At the centre point of these two placement lines, draw a horizontal line at their centre points, spanning the length of the building.

Next, on the actual mortar course layers, draw in just one column for the headers and one column for the stretchers. It's then a simple matter if, as in TurboCAD, you have a "rubber stamp" (or equivalent), command, to select, for example, the column of stretchers and plonk them down on the appropriate "placement" line, by hovering the cursor over the intersection point of the vertical and horizontal lines. If you're doing the stretchers, you should be able to turn off the "placement" layer for the headers to avoid confusion and vice versa.

You may also be able to use a shortcut key ("C" in TurboCAD), to hold the cursor anywhere over the "placement" line and "CENTRE" your selection on the "placement" line, rather than hovering over the vertical/horizontal intersections.

Hope that makes sense!


Regards

Dan

Edit - I took so long typing my reply, Adrian beat me to it! That looks like an elegant solution though and I'll see if TurboCAD has a similar function next time I fire it up.

adrian said:

You can then use the "break out segment" option

Click to expand...

Adrian, that works perfectly and is very quick.

adrian said:

In addition to Jim's suggestion I would suggest looking at the works drawing and find a reference point to start your line. You might find that the centre line of your cylinder intersects the centre of the driving axle. In which case I would simply draw a straight line, the first point on the centre of the wheel. If you then hit the space bar it allows you to enter the co-ordinates of the end point, in the example below I used "@-50,1" which effectively skips the horizontal and vertical construction lines suggested by Jim and does it in one operation.

View attachment 33871

Also note that there is a line and angle drawing option, in your example you effectively had a gradient, 1:50. If instead you had the inclination quoted as an angle then there is a line and angle drawing option.

View attachment 33872


To complete the circle you can also use the built in calculator if you can remember your trigonometry, to convert 1:50 into an angle use arctan, as shown below using atan(1/50) will give you a line at the correct angle.

View attachment 33875
I hope that helps.

Click to expand...

Thanks Adrian, I thought you could adjust the angle using that key but didn't know how.

Len

No problem - I think the most important thing for the cylinder inclination is finding a suitable reference point to start drawing the line. As mentioned whether it's an intersection with an axle centre or footplate corner etc.

Is there a way of making it vertical and starting from right to left as I need to make the angle of the front motion bracket?

Len

Is the motion bracket not perpendicular to the cylinder centre line? I'd draw in the cylinder centre line first and then draw a line perpendicular to this for the motion bracket.

If you haven't got the cylinder centre line then just swop the numbers around, "@1,50" says move 1 unit in the x-direction and 50 units up in the y-direction. This should give you an almost vertical line, canted over slightly.

I tried that and it worked
Thanks

Len

Adrain,

Have you had any experience of creating a brick arch? I'm struggling a bit but might have worked it out for myself before the day is out.

BrushType4 said:

Adrain,
Have you had any experience of creating a brick arch? I'm struggling a bit but might have worked it out for myself before the day is out.

Click to expand...

Sorry I haven't done any architectural stuff. I seem to remember a fair while ago a thread on something similar but I can't find it.

As a quick rough and ready go you could use the copy and rotate tool. First draw one brick out and then select it.


I then experimented with the number of copies and the angles to generate the arch.



Hopefully this will get you going - note it will only work on a constant radius arch. I did think about trying it on an elliptical arch but didn't get very far.

With the professional edition of QCAD you get another tool "number of points on a line". One method might be to select the ellipse and split it into lots of little segments, then insert a rectangle(for the brick) to be perpendicular on each segment.

Regards

Adrian

Thanks Adrian, I had a look today at arches but went on to easier tasks. I've have the pro version now as I was getting fedup with having to restart to access the good functions.

I need to get myself a laptop as SWMBO isn't too keen me disappearing off to the study all evening!

BrushType4 said:

I need to get myself a laptop as SWMBO isn't too keen me disappearing off to the study all evening!

Click to expand...

Having a laptop makes no difference after a while - "Why aren't you talking to me?" "You're not on that bloody computer again, are you?" (Strange question that when in the same room). "Did you reply or was that just a grunt?"

By the way, I actually am a miserable old s-d.

B

Ha, the one I get is 'can't you wait for the adverts to use your whizzy thingy' (Dremel).

So I do, and I can't hear a word of the programme above the noise of the sewing machine

Richard

Thanks Adrian,

I've tried a different method that has allowed me to produce the attached. I don't think its exactly right though.

My first tutorial on how I make the brickwork for arches QCAD. Turn the volume up....


I might redo this later....

Hi Phil, can you make rivet details like that on the side of tanks?

Len

Len Cattley said:

Hi Phil, can you make rivet details like that on the side of tanks?

Len

Click to expand...

I think I could do something. What exactly do you have in mind?

I have the Wild Swan book of the Fowler tanks, I want to do the side tanks that have the rivet detail on them. There are a lot of them down the side so I was wandering if there was a way to do them in Qcad?

Len