Making A Cardboard Model The Easy Way?

[joking]

When I was a kid (50 years ago) Kellogs Cornflakes offered a life-like "fold and stick" cardboard model of the "Queen Mary". From that time onwards I've always retained an interest in cardboard modelling, hoping one day that there would be a computer program that would allow me to make models of my own designs. Last night I found two such a programs called TouchCad and Touch-3D (http://www.touchcad.com/), but it seems they're designed to run on the Mac. The company offers a way to run the programs on a Windows platform, but this requires a mac Emulator which effects both operating speed and price.

TouchCad or Touch-3d may well be a way out for those of you wishing to visulize your design in real 3D by way of a cardboard model, and I guess it adds a whole new dimension to the meaning of 3D modelling. It would be perfect for designing interiors because you could actually make components to add or remove from your model.

Now for the big question:

Does anyone know of a similar program that operates on the Windows platform? There are several sheet metal unwrapping programs around, but nothing like this little beauty - or am I wrong? Please advise

[Tohbi]

"plyboats" is a dos based modeling system for sheet construction. once the design is created, one can translate to any modeling size by accessing a part of the program.

[BCBoater]

Carlson's Hulls program outputs DXF files of the bulkheads and planks for plywood boats. A few minutes with a CAD program to stick them together into a cut out model and you're ready.

Here's a little card stock kayak I just did yesterday....

[Guest]

Originally posted by joking
When I was a kid (50 years ago) Kellogs Cornflakes offered a life-like "fold and stick" cardboard model of the "Queen Mary". From that time onwards I've always retained an interest in cardboard modelling, hoping one day that there would be a computer program that would allow me to make models of my own designs. Last night I found two such a programs called TouchCad and Touch-3D (http://www.touchcad.com/), but it seems they're designed to run on the Mac. The company offers a way to run the programs on a Windows platform, but this requires a mac Emulator which effects both operating speed and price.

TouchCad or Touch-3d may well be a way out for those of you wishing to visulize your design in real 3D by way of a cardboard model, and I guess it adds a whole new dimension to the meaning of 3D modelling. It would be perfect for designing interiors because you could actually make components to add or remove from your model.

Now for the big question:

Does anyone know of a similar program that operates on the Windows platform? There are several sheet metal unwrapping programs around, but nothing like this little beauty - or am I wrong? Please advise

You are wrong. TouchCAD runs on Windows too.

[Tohbi]

the old "plyboats" program runs on dos. i use it and it works well.

[Guest]

Originally posted by Guest


You are wrong. TouchCAD runs on Windows too.

I run it on both Mac OS Classic, the new unix based MacOSX and on both Windows 98 and XP and it does not require an emular.

TouchCAD is a MUCH more powerful modeler and unfoler than any other the other programs suggested.

/Claes