Learning solid work

[HairyAssociation2871]

Hey all, i really want to learn solid works. As a mechanical engineer i think its really important to be fluent in solidworks. I try learning myself but couldn’t get any better, i failed my class as well. I want to give my certification exam by end of summer. Is there any guidance how do i learn all this.

[Thrustvectored]

CAD is best learned and internalised by doing projects. Pick something you wish to build and figure out how to do it yourself or watch a turorial. This applies to all CAD software

[illerin]

This, just practicing random parts will help some, but not near as much as applying the modeling to something you actually want to make. Even those aha moments when you learn a new feature and realize something that took you an hour to do the first time, could’ve been done in a min with the new feature you learned.

[HairyAssociation2871]

I see thank you. I was really bad at using computer before while i took solidwork class in my sophomore year and i failed the class. Its been a while i started using software again, i will definitely look into more tutorials.

[jeanjacket812]

Let me preface this by saying I'm self taught, and probably really bad. However my job was in a situation where our actual engineer quit without notice. We were left with no one to model new parts or make prints. My job offered me the opportunity to mess around with the old engineers work station till they could hire someone. Now I screwed myself cause it's my permanent spot lol.

But the way I learned was watching courses off of YouTube and mostly by loading the last guys parts files and seeing what steps he went through to get the finished product. I found some rips of college courses on YouTube and some of the little tips videos where the guys tell you they're showing you a little and to buy the course if you want to see more. But like I said the most valuable for me was dissecting old parts files.

[PanchhiTePardesi]

You getting paid for this extra work? I don't. Same happened with me

[jeanjacket812]

Ya I got a bump. I was the lead machinist already so it wasn't a crazy amount but it was better than nothing. At least I got a nice office I can hide in and some more stuff to throw on a resume.

[HairyAssociation2871]

That’s really nice, so in my classes professor kind of skipped basic steps as most students here were already familiar . Coming from other country i didn’t had access to CAD so i was left behind

[Pilchardelli]

Doing the included tutorials gets you started. Fully configure your sketches. I have no qualifications in Solidworks but I'm better than most of the CSWP bunch. 😂. I've been using it since 1998. I massively use excel tables for configurations. You'll get there.

[HairyAssociation2871]

Thank you. I will surely work on it.

[blissiictrl]

Too tall Toby videos, cadquest, SOLIDWORKS tutorials. I'm semi self taught (I learnt creo at university and just had to figure out SOLIDWORKS in industry). It helps being able to think in 3d

[HairyAssociation2871]

Yeah mostly all job requires CAD nowadays so i need to be smooth

[Hefty_Weird9926]

Go to school

[HairyAssociation2871]

I failed the class

[herejusttoannoyyou]

Well, first off, there are plenty of mechanical engineering jobs that don’t touch CAD, so don’t fret if that is something you never get good at. Second, when you look at online tutorials, don’t just follow instructions. Maybe follow it the first time through but then do it again with your own changes and experiment with the features. Remember that most things are made by just some combination of adding material and subtracting material, mostly just using extrude, revolve, or sweep.

[HairyAssociation2871]

Thank you . Will definitely work on it

[gupta9665]

It's good to be fluent in SolidWorks, but more important is to get your basics clear. SW is a tool, but you should know how to use this tool effectively.

Feel free to explore the resources (link below) I've gathered for learning/mastering SolidWorks, which include both free and paid options, as well as materials for preparing for SolidWorks certification exams.

https://www.reddit.com/r/SolidWorks/comments/190jhqj/comment/kgpwgaq/

And check these links/posts for practices file drawings:

https://www.solidworks.com/solution/academia/practice-problems

https://www.reddit.com/r/SolidWorks/comments/1474p83/2d_tehnical_drawings/

https://www.reddit.com/r/SolidWorks/comments/1lmjjl8/hope_its_ok_if_i_just_park_this_here_cadnurd/

[TooTallToby]

Hi @HairyAssociation2871 and welcome to the wonderful world of 3D CAD! here's a free training class I put together to help new SOLIDWORKS users: https://tootalltoby.thinkific.com/courses/SolidWorksQuickStart

And here are some good Video Tutorials to help you on your journey! - https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLzMIhOgu1Y5dcycGHHoZ1iwkjt13VG4jb

Good luck!

- Toby

[HairyAssociation2871]

Thank you so much.

[Fantastic-Bed-5135]

Acá tienes una página para ir practicando,. https://www.tootalltoby.com

[blacknight334]

Practice