DIY dinghy design

   Hello all,
What's the best package, or combo of packages? for the aspiring dinghy designer with big ideas, reasonable IT talent and no idea about the suitability of CAD packages made for design of other products?

Cheers!

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getafix Send Private Message Find Member's Posts Really should get out more Joined: 28 Mar 06 Location: United Kingdom Online Status: Offline Posts: 2143	Post Options Post Reply Quote getafix Report Post Quote Reply Topic: DIY dinghy design Posted: 28 Jun 13 at 7:34am
	Hello all, What's the best package, or combo of packages? for the aspiring dinghy designer with big ideas, reasonable IT talent and no idea about the suitability of CAD packages made for design of other products? Cheers!

Guests Send Private Message Find Member's Posts Guest Group	Post Options Post Reply Quote Guests Quote Reply Posted: 28 Jun 13 at 7:58am
	Excel, Freeship and Rhino will get you a long way. You probably have Excel already, Freeship (as the name suggests) is free (and quite neat for hull design). Rhino is a pretty decent 3d CAD package and you can get a demo version for free limited to 25 saves. The full version is only a grand, which is much less than high end CAD packages, but Rhino does everything needed for a dinghy.

Rupert Send Private Message Find Member's Posts Really should get out more Joined: 11 Aug 04 Location: Whitefriars sc Online Status: Offline Posts: 8956	Post Options Post Reply Quote Rupert Report Post Quote Reply Posted: 28 Jun 13 at 9:04am
	Back of an envelope or a page from a note pad? Just keep it, incase you ever need to sue the builders...
	Firefly 2324, Puffin 229, Minisail 3446 Mirror 70686

tgruitt Send Private Message Find Member's Posts Really should get out more Joined: 02 Dec 04 Online Status: Offline Posts: 2479	Post Options Post Reply Quote tgruitt Report Post Quote Reply Posted: 28 Jun 13 at 10:10am
	I've used a beer mat to design a National 12. You fold one side in half and tape it, the rest of the shape looks like a nice rounded chineless design.
	Needs to sail more...

JimC Send Private Message Find Member's Posts Visit Member's Homepage Really should get out more Joined: 17 May 04 Location: United Kingdom Online Status: Offline Posts: 6662	Post Options Post Reply Quote JimC Report Post Quote Reply Posted: 28 Jun 13 at 10:51am
	Joking aside, Tom's method, given a few darts taken out in appropriate places, is more or less how you build a tortured ply boat. Quite a few very good dinghies have been designed using hullform, which is no longer developed but available as a free download. There's an awful lot to be said for spending a lot of time with pencil and paper though, to my mind it gives you a better idea of how things like section shapes and waterlines interact...

gbr940 Send Private Message Find Member's Posts Visit Member's Homepage Posting king Joined: 04 Jan 06 Location: United Kingdom Online Status: Offline Posts: 198	Post Options Post Reply Quote gbr940 Report Post Quote Reply Posted: 28 Jun 13 at 10:54am
	take a leaf from a certain Laser or do I mean Torch...all good engineering documents are on the back of a fag packet!
	RS400 GBR1321

maxibuddah Send Private Message Find Member's Posts Really should get out more Joined: 06 Mar 09 Location: United Kingdom Online Status: Offline Posts: 1760	Post Options Post Reply Quote maxibuddah Report Post Quote Reply Posted: 28 Jun 13 at 12:02pm
	Fag packets are too expensive these days for design
	Everything I say is my opinion, honest

Guests Send Private Message Find Member's Posts Guest Group	Post Options Post Reply Quote Guests Quote Reply Posted: 28 Jun 13 at 12:25pm
	Hi Getafix, These are quick examples of output from Freeship/Rhino Fag packets are fine, but a pain to calculate hydrostatics on!

JimC Send Private Message Find Member's Posts Visit Member's Homepage Really should get out more Joined: 17 May 04 Location: United Kingdom Online Status: Offline Posts: 6662	Post Options Post Reply Quote JimC Report Post Quote Reply Posted: 28 Jun 13 at 12:26pm
	I recommend graph paper over fag packets anyway, at least until you really know what you are doing... Personally I've never advanced to the level of expertise where I can draw freehand sections that match my waterlines... [later] While not commenting on the actual shapes themselves (I don't think you can tell much from renderings anyway) the quality of the above renderings demonstrate one of the key problems with cad packages: you can get seduced by the beautiful output into thinking you've drawn a beautiful shape. Edited by JimC - 28 Jun 13 at 12:29pm

rb_stretch Send Private Message Find Member's Posts Really should get out more Joined: 23 Aug 10 Online Status: Offline Posts: 742	Post Options Post Reply Quote rb_stretch Report Post Quote Reply Posted: 28 Jun 13 at 1:09pm
	Back in the days when I designed and made windsurf boards I used to use freehand on graph paper as well. I then roughly translated the shape to the foam blank, but once the electric planer was in my hands everything was done by the eye. Much easier to get fair curves that way - well at least for me.