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SolidWorks Electrical Routing – Part 1
After talking about it for quite some time here on the site, today marks the first installment on a series of posts on SolidWorks Electrical Routing. In this first example I guide you halfway through the creation of an Electrical Harness using what I call the “on the fly” method. This particular method is often…
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SolidWorks Video Tip: Roll View
I’m sure all of us have had this happen before. You stroll around through the UI of your favorite software package and find a button that somehow you have missed seeing before. I have never claimed to know everything there is to know about SolidWorks, but I do know my way around a bit. After…
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SolidWorks Tip: Heli-Coil Tap Drills
Here’s a GREAT SolidWorks Tip that was brought to my attention on the latest project I am working on. When you work in the commercial design world, you don’t often run across the need for the use of Heli-Coil inserts. As I have learned recently, they are used quite a bit in military and space…
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SolidWorks Video Tip: Working with ProE files
Yes…you read the title correctly. For those of you who just fell out of your chair after seeing me mention another CAD system on this site, welcome back! I work on a wide variety of projects and interface with a wide variety of CAD systems. I am a CAD Junkie, so yes, I do dabble…
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BIG NEWS on Renaming Configurations!
Well, it looks like SolidWorks slipped a little “enhancement” in on us. While I’m not completely sure when this new feature was added, all indications point to SolidWorks 2009 Service Pack 2.0. So what is this enhancement and WHY is it BIG NEWS? I’ll be MORE than happy to answer that for you! We will…
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SolidWorks World 2009 Presentation: Custom PCB Design with SolidWorks
This year at SolidWorks World I gave a presentation on Custom PCB Design with SolidWorks. It covers not only useful features in SolidWorks that can help make the Printed Circuit Board (PCB) design process faster, but also recommendations on the process itself. The presentation along with all the model files is available for download HERE.…
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SolidWorks Video Tip: Using Mates for Animation
Recently I have had a few questions about ways to create animations with assembly motion. These questions brought to mind this great tip on using Mates to generate assembly motion. Using Mates to create motion in Assemblies is often overlooked so I have prepared this video that includes a simple example of how to do…
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The SolidWorks Secret Weapon: The Wrap Tool
Have you ever wanted to place a logo on a SolidWorks model? There are of course a number of ways to do this. If you want the logo to be embossed or cut you probably would first think of the Extrude tool. But then again what if the surface is curved? Hmm…well what if you…
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Unique Model Download
Late last week I was asked to verify a mounting pattern for a Printed Circuit Board (PCB) connector that was being placed on a custom PCB that we are developing. This project was a bit unique in that I hadn’t really been involved in it much. Normally I am right in the middle of any…
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The S Key Experiment – Part 2
It has been a little over a week since I turned off ALL my Toolbars AND the CommandManager and so far I can say with certainty I have not DECREASED my efficiency by just using the S Key command. It still takes a little getting used to but so far I REALLY like it. Over…
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The “S” Key Experiment Part 1
Ever since the “S” key shortcut command was added in SolidWorks 2008, I’ve heard some users comment that they use it quite often. This lead me to question whether or not you could function inside of SolidWorks in an efficient manner by JUST using the “S” key shortcut menu. NO CommandManager. NO Toolbars. Just in…
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SolidWorks Video Tip: Layout Sketches and Planes
This SolidWorks Video Tip shows off a few tricks in the utilization of layout sketches in parts and how to create planes that can change with the sketch. As I talk to different users from across the world, one of the options that seems to be forgotten in the Plane creation dialog box is the…
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SolidWorks Video Tip: Surface Extraction with ScanTo3D
Today’s SolidWorks Video Tip shows an example of how you can use ScanTo3D to extract surface data from mesh files. This example was inspired by a file I recently helped fellow Blogger Mike Puckett with. ScanTo3D is part of SolidWorks Premium. It allows users to open Point Cloud and Mesh data in various formats with…
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SolidWorks Video Tip: Using Multiple Split Features
This SolidWorks Video Tip shows the use of multiple trim tool features in the Split command. The example shows the creation of a simplified polyurethane tool using the Combine and Split commands found inside the SolidWorks Part environment. I have finally solved the audio lag issue that you might have noticed in previous videos that…