measuring for solidworks
 

hey guys i was wondering when im making a cad and need measurements that are going to be spot how do get these measurements ?

for example if i was to make a strut tower base i would measure the outer circle then the inner circle then measure from the edge of the inner circle to the edge of the bigger circle (where the studs go thru)?

then when im making the holes for the studs do i measure from the center of one stud to the other stud and basically triangulate?


will this give me spot on holes every time?

From stud to stud we always just zero the caliper out to the diameter of the hole and then measure outside to outside and usually it's a little easier if you have a bolt in the hole to measure the outside points. We generally try to avoid trying to measure from the center of holes because you're just guessing where it is.

For small parts like that I would honestly just take a picture with a ruler and then put the picture in solidworks to model over or even if you don't have a ruler as long as you know one of the dimensions you can scale everything correctly. Then you can print it out on a 1 to 1 scale and make sure it lines up. It's how I did an oil pan flange and it was much much faster than trying to actually take enough measurements to locate all 15 or so holes.