How do you sketch up your designs?

[HSC ///]

I started my manufacturing career 26 yrs ago as an auto cad draftsman and then cam programmer. However I do every knife design by hand sketches. I don't see much value to a cad design/drawing unless you intend to take it to another level and make use of the geometry in some way such as CNC water jet blanks, machining handles or bevels on a CNC etc. There's a lot to do and learn in knifemaking and I don't think the learning curve for a cad program is worth it. That's my practical experience and personal opinion. Murray Carters book on knife designs has some guidance on making sketches and patterns but others here have excellent and similar suggestions

If you want to learn a software tool for your own personal learning, that's different. But for the minor adjustments or variations in design you asked about, I don't think you will find anything faster than a pencil and eraser.

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[TonyRV2]

...If you want to learn a software tool for your own personal learning, that's different. But for the minor adjustments or variations in design you asked about, I don't think you will find anything faster than a pencil and eraser.

I think that I would tend to agree with this except that using a cad program like DraftSight or Inkscape does allow for a way to conveniently save designs as opposed to sorting through a pile of papers...papers that in my case I'd likely never find. And yes, the learning curve can be steep for anyone that lacks experience in dealing with rendering software.

 

[Lieblad]

I buMora.

 

[i4Marc]

I always start with hand sketches. The ones I think have promise are scanned into the computer and placed in Adobe Illustrator. I clean up the lines and adjust proportions where necessary with every effort to keep the spirit, attitude and flow of the original sketch. When that is done I print out a final copy and mount to a piece of hardboard and profile for use as a template.

 

[BartlettBlades]

I prefer to design digitally. It gives me the ability to easily compare one version of a design to another. If I want to see what a different handle material will look like, it's just a matter of a few clicks. All my designs can easily be stored and recalled. A card stock printout can be printed and cut out with scissors anytime I need a template. There is a learning curve for using something like Coreldraw or Illustrator, but for me it's much more flexible than pencil and paper.

NC Biker,

Where could I obtain the patterns to see what different handle materials would look like in illustrator??

paper -> clay and cardboard -> Pro/E ISDX -> clay and cardboard -> steel and micarta ->Pro/E ISDX -> CNC -> design perfection Shangri-La

The ability to tweak a design in a smooth organic way is important. The spline tools in Adobe Illustrator and Photoshop are good tools. I wouldn't use CAD with straight lines and constraint radius arcs for design development.

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[NC Biker]

NC Biker,

Where could I obtain the patterns to see what different handle materials would look like in illustrator??

You have to create them. Below is an example of how I do that in Coreldraw. If I want to see what the handle would look like using a different wood, I just change the photo.

 

[Mitchell Knives]

I use AutoCAD for all of my designs.

I like having the ability to scale designs and compare different versions with ease.