[Hobbiest]

Here is an easy little tool that you can make in a few minutes to find the center of any circle that fits within it...Damn these infernal machines!!!! I can't save it as any type of file that can be posted here!! Drew it in turboCAD. Any way...cut a right angle out of mdf...just mimic a framing square. Cut an equalateral right triangle. Screw them together so that the hyptenus (don't know if that is spelled right...been years) sits at 45 deg to the right angle. Mark a line through the center of your circle. Move the jig any number of deg, 90 reads easiest, and mark again. Wher they intersect is the center. For some people this may be a no brainer, but some my have never known an easy way to do this.

[Mr.Chips]

I assume you'r trying to find the center of a shaft or round flat object.

Here's a link for a center finder:
http://www.robotroom.com/CircleCenter.html

Sears and Home Depot sell plastic versions

Hager

[bb99]

Just an FYI...

To save an image of a TC file go to the File menu, select "Save AS..." At the bottom of the Save AS window, select the "Save as type..." pulldown. Select JPG and click the Save button.

For example...

[Hobbiest]

bb99, It doesn't give me the choice of jpeg. I'll check again, but I looked pretty well the first three times.
Mr. Chips, I know that it is a product that is available commercially, but even with all the fabricating I've been doing on hot rods for the last 7 yrs, I never knew that it existed until I read an old machine tool book a couple of months ago! Besides that, I hate to spend money on anything if I can make it! Just thought that there might be some other dummies out there like me who had been too busy looking for the lines on the road, that they ran into the car in front of them (strange mataphor, I know, but it just popped into my head).
Cheers!

[Mr.Chips]

I know where your coming from.

The journey in many instances is better than the destination.

Queue the song "Anticipation"

I'm using TurboCad 7.0 too, this is my first Cad program, and am learning it painfully, by the dropdown boxes. Being the inventive and frugal guy that you are have you seen any free training tips to it?

Hager

[bb99]

Mr.Chips,


I bought the 2D and 3D books. I figured my time was worth more then the cost of the books. I found them to be quite usefull. I've passed them on to someone else here at the Zone for the cost of shipping. So, if you look, you might find them cheap somewhere.

--Alan

[Hobbiest]

Chips,
I got the free evaluation version, it is just 2D. When I downloaded it, it came with a pretty thourough instructional video on how to do all the functions. If you have the same thing, then the video should be in the setup file somewhere. I just downloaded the evaluation version of rhino 3d, and it seems easier to use than the tubocad 2d! Check it out. Also I noticed that after horsing around with the rhino, it was easier for me to use the tcad

[Mr.Chips]

I baught the CD version, it was less than $10 on a special sale software site, it has 3D, but there wasn't any instructional video.
Sounds like I need to download the free EV version.

Thanks for the tip.
Hager