POLL: What is the best 3D modeller?

  • Thread starter Thread starter GarethW
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What is the best 3D modeller?

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    150
GarethW

GarethW

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Simple question. What's the best one and why? Please let me know if I forgot any socftware packages and I'll add them to the poll.
 
I'm going with SolidWorks myself, although it's a close call with Inventor. The great thing about Inventor is that it isn't full of bugs like SW, but SolidWorks is way more verstile (when it works)
 
Thanks. Just added it. That used to be HP "Solid Designer". I used this package once many years ago. Bit of a strange one... no model tree. What's the deal with that? Does anyone actually use it anymore?
 
I personally think that proe is king. Not actually tried this new-fangles solid works thing yet
 
The Best is always a relative choice, depending on the particulars of a situation. Solidworks had a lot of catching up to do when it entered a market dominated by Pro/E. They did a pretty good job of capturing new users because of the far better user interface. Pro/E always had its defenders but primarily those who invested so much time in acquiring the skills that made them very productive naturally wanted to be recognized for that. Unfortunately for them, the much easier ramp up for Solidworks made users just as productive in a much shorter time and possibly more productive (how many hours I lost trying to find why a certain command made a model collapse!).
Now, on this poll, who can be really objective? My early experience with Pro/E was very frustrating, but if you get past the poor interface you can feel like it's a great tool. People did that by creating macros. By the way, CATIA beats Pro/E in managing large assemblies (some say SW has limitations) and is as easy to learn as Solidworks. It is used by large auto and aerospace companies and is much more expensive. In many ways it could have been my choice... although I voted SW because it is more accessible for small companies. UG used to be the choice at Apple but lost that advantage. The client spoke. The same with Solid Designer and HP.
 
I prefer to use pro/e, though I am also using the solid works. The solid works might easy to learn, but if you can use both the pro/e and solid works, the pro/e should be you first choice.
 
We use a combination of CAD software depending on the requirements of the project. We use predominantly SolidWorks but we also use Rhinoceros 3D. It's a surface modeller and although not particularly good for mechanics once you get used to it it's very fast at producing some pretty complicated surfaces.
If you produce RP's then 3 Matic from Materialise is also worth a look as it is in essence a mechanical mesh modeller which will allow you to make changes to the CAD directly on the STL file rather than having to go back to the original CAD, this can save loads of time! You can also reverse engineer an STL back to a solid (mesh back to surface) if you only have the STL file (Mesh to NURBS).

Fripp Design + Research - Solving Problems Through Design

http://www.frippdesign.co.uk
 
My vote is for Solid Edge. It is exceptionally good for sheet metal and for anyone who has to deal with assembling or modifying stuff from disparate sources - the ST version is currently unrivalled.

Adrian
 
If pro-e wasn't so darn difficult to use I would vote for it, but SW is the best IMO
 
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