With a little practice, you get used to inserting a part and simply constraining it into position without regard to original orientation, or need to manually rotate the part before applying constraints.
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While vertical orientation may be more comfortable when creating legs or stiles, the final orientation of the part in the assembly is determined by assembly constraints to the rest of the model and not the original orientation during part creation. Lumber can be created with a horizontal or vertical orientation, with a horizontal orientation being common because of sheet good creation conventions. This indicated Face side as well as grain orientation, and can easily be Suppressed or deleted when modeling is completed. This is a simple arrow shaped line sketch created on the face of the part, and an Extrude Cut 1/64" deep into the face of the part. We has also begun including a directional arrow on the face of sheet goods parts to aid in properly orientating parts during model assembly. Just turn on reference geometry for a part in an assembly and hover over the Planes line item in the Design Explorer to display the normals arrows. While Alibre does not have material directionality indicators to show grain direction, with this convention you can use the normal arrows from the reference planes to determine face/reverse side and grain direction. It will also allow design work to proceed with a consistent understanding of grain directionality and orientation from modeling to construction. By using the convention of grain running horizontally, from Left to Right when there is a grain directionality, assures consistent material handling and will reduce errors.
![woodworking cad with wood dimensions woodworking cad with wood dimensions](https://woodexpert3d.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/05/projektowanie-woodexpert.png)
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It also helps when dealing with specifying edge banding. It is consistent with working with sheet materials on a panel saw, on saw horses or a workbench, or doing layout work. This convention has its basis in orientation used in Cutlist and sheet goods layout and optimization programs. When creating Sheet Goods parts, we prefer to create those parts with the Length oriented horizontally along the X axis, and Width vertically with the Y axis. This will allow you to use the “reference geometry” to constrain parts and sub-assemblies in assemblies.
WOODWORKING CAD WITH WOOD DIMENSIONS SOFTWARE
This is a best practice that crosses software brand, and is considered a good modeling technique no matter what vendors software you are using. There are always exceptions, but you should have a good reason when deviating from this “best practice”. Parts and Assemblies should be created symmetrically about the reference planes where possible. Considering these orientations while creating parts and assemblies will make creation of a drawing easier, as well as provide a smooth and consistent workflow. The Front view of an Assembly should be the front of a piece of furniture, cabinet, or when unclear something reasonable like the face of a bed headboard or footboard. The Front view of a part should be face of a board or molding, and not an edge or end. The standard Orthographic views of Front, Top, Right and Isometric should reflect those orientations for the Parts and Assemblies. Below are some of the most important considerations: Create Parts and Assemblies with attention to view orientation. It is important though to follow certain conventions and standards to ensure consistent part creation and reliable predictable models. This tutorial is compatible with all versions of Alibre including Xpress. Since most woodworking parts are simple rectangles or linear sticks, an Extrude Boss will be used create most woodworking parts. This tutorial covers the creation of a standard woodworking board or sheet goods part.