I've been using Open SCAD to design and print simple adaptors and other useful parts (having failed dismally to get a grip of other popular 3D CAD programmes). I am very much a learner in this field but have found SCAD to be something I can learn in very small steps (which in my case is absolutely necessary).

However, this is clearly a very powerful design tool in the hands of others better qualified than myself. A new feature of Open SAD is the 'Customiser' feature that essentially lets a user enter parameters via an on-screen form. Someone clever has used this feature to write a 'Gear' generator which can produce a very wide range of gear types and sizes for 3D print. The equally clever folk at the G13DCircle spotted this on Thingiverse and highlighted it to it's subscribers.

I haven't quite fathomed out the Customiser myself yet (I'm still a White Belt in SCAD terms) but I thought it was such a useful idea that I would publicise it here for others to take a look at. Gear types currently supported include:

• Rack
• Spur gear¹
• Herringbone gear¹
• Rack and pinion¹
• Annular/Internal spur gear
• Annular/Internal herringbone gear
• Planetary gear
• Bevel gear
• Bevel gears (meshing pinion and idler)
• Herringbone bevel gear
• Herringbone bevel gears (meshing pinion and idler)
• Worm

You can find it here:

Open SCAD Gear Generator

IanT

Edited By IanT on 19/04/2020 10:28:38

A few examples…

Colin – one of the great advantages of Open SCAD to my mind, is that you can download an existing design and modify it to suit your own specific needs.

I've done this with several Thingiverse designs which were simple enough for me to understand (e.g. the variables that I needed to change) to get the end result I wanted. I don't think this 'portability' would be quite so easy with other 3D CAD programmes?

I am also learning about 3D Print as I go – and the ability to copy and modify an existing 3DP design is a big advantage. It let's me make useful 3DP items quickly. I was originally hesitant to get into 3DP because of all the new stuff I needed to understand (the steep earning curve) before I could actually be productive. I've plenty of other things to fill my time with.

Open SCAD has really helped me to get up and going quickly in 3D Printing (which is at the moment all I intend to use it for). I use 2D CAD for my engineering drawings and I'm happy with TurboCAD in that respect – although having happily used SCAD for a little while now – I might also look at Free CAD which has some useful associations with SCAD.

If the 'Customiser' feature starts getting routinely used by more advanced SCAD users for their 3DP designs, I think it will be tremendously useful to the less skilled user (such as myself) – allowing simple adaptation of their more complex drawings to meet specific needs.

Regards,

IanT