Official Luthiers Forum!

Guys,
Short of laying out the design by hand, I've been wondering if there are any other ways to sketch out the next build. Are there any computer programs that can do this? I'm not talking about things like Photoshop, but programs that are actually designed for this kind of thing.

You need to be a bit more specific. Are you looking for a 2-D drawing package or a 3-D package? There are several flavors of CAD with different abilities, learning curves and price tags. What is it you are looking to do with it?

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Aoibeann

Here is a program for putting together the outline, and one for rosette layout. etc. dont know if its usable for exporting to Cad etc.

http://gicl.cs.drexel.edu/people/sevy/luthierie/software/software.html

Lars

I've drawn three body styles in google sketchup. It takes a little practice but once you get the hang of it you can easily alter your plans. For example, it takes less than a minute to change string spacing at the bridge and redraw the outline for the neck. Then you can measure the width of the new fretboard at the body joint (or anywhere else). When you're finished you can print your plan to exact scale. Sketchup is 3d capable, but I've only worked in 2d.