[cncadmin]

anyone using this software yet? https://www.spaceclaim.com/v2/default.aspx

[Dan B]

Yes, I have tried the demo. It is pretty impressive, but finicky with regard to video cards. I have a high end Nvidia Quadro card (although a couple of years old) and it will not run on it. At home I'm running an ATI gaming card and it runs okay there.

I thought that it might be a good tool to use along with Rhino, especially for adding complex fillets. However, the complex fillets fail more than they succeed, so it's back to Rhino. At least if the FilletEdge command fails in Rhino, the FilletSrf command is there to get the job done.

Dan

[Dan B]

I'm still playing with this. I think we will purchase a seat of LTX to work along side Rhino. It will save us some time here and there, so it's worth a try. At $850 to buy it (not lease) and no annual maintenance, it's reasonably priced for what it can do.

Dan

[Dan B]

Well, we ended up buying the professional version. They no longer do the leasing thing. We got a perpetual license. I will also be working with SpaceClaim (the company) to help them with some real world examples so they can continue to develop the product.

Should be a lot of fun.

Dan

[forrey45]

and what is the price of the pro version?
Forrey

[Dan B]

Under $3000 last time I checked.

Dan

[bad bearings]

I had some video card trouble as well and found a demo product--swiftshader--that fixed it. Swift shader is a software shader.

[dirtdiggler]

Just curious where you installed the .dll files? I downloaded swift shader but couldn't figure out where to install the files.

Thanks-

[bad bearings]

If I remember right there were two files d3d8.dll and d3d9.dll both should be dropped into the main application directory of spaceclaim where spaceclaim.exe is located. I think that's all there is to it.

[jdr1961]

I have been using SpaceClaim Engineer 2009 for about 3 months. It's extremely easy to learn, even for an old shop dog. Started using it on day one.

I use it to receive customer data and prepare it for programming. It imports from ALL the solid modelers. I really like that I can add, remove or adjust features by simply clicking and dragging. It's infinitely easier than trying to modify the model with my CAM softare, and it saves me from having to create tons of wireframe when programming. Simple to take 2D ACAD geometry and turn into solids for programming, too.

Also, it is a breeze to design fixtures and clamps for CNC programming and CMM programming. Now I can actually use the machine simulation in my CAM software, which I didn't do before because it was just too much trouble to model everything. I've attached a pdf of a tooling block I designed to hold a grooving tool in a Hardinge SuperSlant lathe. Took no time to desing the block, then I programmed it right off the solid model. The groover was downloaded as a STEP file from the Iscar website and placed right in to my SpaceClaim file.

Doug Robinson
FocalPoint Engineering Systems
www.focalpoint-eng.com

[dirtdiggler]

Hi Doug,

Thanks for your feedback.

I totally agree with what you have to say about Space Claim. I'm really surprised there are not a lot more followers here on CNC zone and on other forums. To me this software is absolutely revolutionary and there is nothing like it!

I come from a SolidWorks backround, and I recently bought a copy of Rhino3D which definitely has the biggest learning curve in my opinion. I'm still learning and ocationally punching the wall. I'm seein that I can use Rhino 3D to create the 3D forms quickly and then I just import them with the click of a button into SC. In SC I can create real parametric assemblies, add fillets and fix the geometry. It's so easy that you say to yourself, why can't all software be this easy? What's really cool is that it allows to create really loose 3D models in rhino and then make them airtight in SC with the click of a button. This process would normally takes hours of hair pulling time in Rhino.

Apparently the new SC features are that you can do all your surfacing in the software itself. I haven't yet learned how to use all the curves correctly but it's at the top of my list.

My only issue is that I'm using a slow laptop with built in graphics. I crash a lot. Rhino 3D runs super fast on on the same computer and never crashes - while SC crashes 50% of the time. Until SC figures this out I'm going to have to grab a cheapo desktop with some beefy graphics. To me it's worth having separate computer just so I can use this software.

[bad bearings]

I agree, I've worked with SpaceClaim for a couple weeks now and it does seem easier to use than the typical solid modeling package. The interface is simple and easy to use and isn't weighed down with all the complex features of traditional modelers. The company has good customer support as well.

[CTAC]

New CNC Zone guy here, this is my first post.

I am using it. Just bought it this week, after cautiously evaluating it for two months.

I am a long time Solidworks user, and can model really well in SW. As powerful as SW is, I have been frustrated by SW in the past, and have lost tons of work when I had changes that gave me the old "rebuild error" and I had to go backward 25 steps. When I didn't think through my model 100% before building it.

Sometimes that is just because of the direction a re-design takes, and you cannot plan for everything. However, those days are gone! :-) Spaceclaim doesn't have chronological steps - the whole thing is one big solid. It doesn't care what order you do things! I can move a part wall on a finished piece and there isn't any rebuilding issue. This is extremely cool.

It also imports my most complex SW files perfectly, and they are now just one piece vs. 100+ sketches.

I also got the Bunkspeed Hypershot module with it, which I have not played with yet, but it is going to be awesome to see a part in the final metal finish vs. a grey blob.

I am extremely impressed with this software.

[bad bearings]

I am an engineer who has spent over 20 years using Autodesk products. I have been using Spaceclaim for perhaps 60 hours now and have to say that it is much faster and easier to use than Autodesk Inventor or Solidworks. They also have excellent customer support. I am surprised more shops have not caught on to this product as it is cheap and interoperable with many other packages--such as Inventor and Solidworks.

[chich2]

Hello,
I have a question for current users of SpaceClaim. What does SpaceClaim recomend as a CAM program to go with SpaceClaim? What are people using for CAM with SpaceClaim?

Chich

[Dan B]

I'm not sure if they recommend any CAM in particular, but that's irrelevant anyway. You need to decide what you need CAM for (2, 3, 3+2, 4, 5 axis), what features you need, and how much you can afford to spend.

You'll get lots of people telling you what the "best" software is, but that's really only a reflection of the program they happened to learn. I'll tell you WorkNC is the best, but that's because that's what my employer bought 15 years ago and what I know very well.

If you outline what you need to do, and how much you want to spend, it will be easier to list the programs that fall into that criteria. It will be up to you to demo them and decide for yourself.

Dan

[CTAC]

MECsoft is one of their partners. I'm demo-ing that now. If anyone has recommendations for 2.5D / 3D CAM milling please post. Something that won't break the bank would be nice. I think Gibbs and Master both are around $5K and up. Is there something that auto-detects toolpaths and does some work without telling it every path?

Back to SC: I think the coolest thing is the Bunkspeed / Hypershot plugin for Spaceclaim. It's incredibly cool to see what your part is going to look like when done in High Def modeled substrate vs. a green block. You all should check this one out, it's pretty damn amazing. I'm thoroughly impressed.

Oh yeah, and the crashes that dirtdiggler is experiencing I've never had on my desktop (I've never tried to run CAD on a laptop). The program is stable for me, there must be some graphics conflict on that laptop?

[Piper2007]

Regarding video card problems with Spaceclaim I have a Home build PC Asus A78n8x-x motherboard with an Athlon XP3200 and 3Gb of RAM. The video card is a Geforce 6200 with 265Mb of memory. Spaceclaim runs like greased lightening! By the way this card will run two displays which is great for looking at one of the numerous SC training videos while trying out the method in SC on the other screen. Spaceclaim cost me in the UK £1570 and was half the price of Solidworks and easier to use. I am still learning but it has some very powerful features as I upgrade my AutoCAD 2D skills.

My next step will be to be to translate Spaceclaim's 3D drawings into G code for Mach3. Any suggestions? I was wondering about Meshcam?

[dirtdiggler]

Regarding video card problems with Spaceclaim I have a Home build PC Asus A78n8x-x motherboard with an Athlon XP3200 and 3Gb of RAM. The video card is a Geforce 6200 with 265Mb of memory. Spaceclaim runs like greased lightening! By the way this card will run two displays which is great for looking at one of the numerous SC training videos while trying out the method in SC on the other screen. Spaceclaim cost me in the UK £1570 and was half the price of Solidworks and easier to use. I am still learning but it has some very powerful features as I upgrade my AutoCAD 2D skills.

My next step will be to be to translate Spaceclaim's 3D drawings into G code for Mach3. Any suggestions? I was wondering about Meshcam?

Man, you really do need a good video card to use spaceclaim! My little IBM notebook could not handle it and was constantly locking up. I tried it on another laptop with a beefier video card and had the same issues. It got so frustrating that I just didn't buy the program after my limit was up. Now that I know how to use Rhino correctly I can do things quick and fast with no crashing. I still think Sapceclaim is great, but I think it's uses are better as a compliment to Solidworks or Rhino for fillets and modifications. I just wish it ran a little lighter.

[Protoconcepts]

I have been using spaceclaim since 2009, and it is hands down the best, most intuitive, most forgiving CAD program out there. I've tried ALL of them and given them all a good go, including SW and Catia... and honestly, its just fantastic. Not maybe the best for everything but for most things. Win win.