XTrackCAD - Anybody here use it?

[Cjcrescent]

I entered in the dimensions for the 130' turntable. 9-15/16". The diameter of the turntable wouldn't matter anyway. The tracks are 10 degrees apart originating from the center of the turntable. It's the roundhouse that isn't lining up correctly. It's no big deal. But I am a CNC Programmer and a machinist. So I am anal retentive and everything needs to be exact or I go crazy LOL.

XtrtackCad, for all of it's pluses, does have one big weakness. That weakness is that its not really a CAD program. Its a graphics program, that happens to draw trackplans. If you really feel that you need tighter tolerances, there are programs out there, that are true CAD programs. But unlike XtrackCad, they aren't cheap. Some don't have track libraries, structure files, etc. You have to draw all that in as you go.

I've used XtrackCad ever since it first was released as freeware by Silube (SP) Software back in the early 2000's. I've always told my friends and clients that I've used it to design trackplans for, that its a plan, not a blueprint.

 

[NScaler]

That makes sense. Yes, it is great software. There are many improvements that could be made nevertheless though. Is the software designer open to suggestions? Because I think when you click to place the first end of a piece of track it would be nice if you could type "R0.000" "A0.00" L"0.000" etc and these would lock the track to that configuration. Not so much for precision, as it would also be nice to be able to plan yards, sidings, etc more easily. But turning off that "Snap" feature has helped a bunch. So thank you.

The roundhouse measures properly based on Walther's dimensions. I actually would like to scratch build the roundhouse anyway. I just see you guys have the tracks lined up a lot better than mine so I thought I might be doing something wrong.

Thanks for the help!

 

[IronBeltKen]

... I just see you guys have the tracks lined up a lot better than mine so I thought I might be doing something wrong. ...

I manually drew my roundhouse using lines and shapes, after my turntable and trackwork were in place.

 

[jdetray]

For those not already aware of it, XTrackCAD is an open source project. The software is a volunteer effort. If you visit the XTrackCAD Wiki, you can find out more.

http://www.xtrkcad.org/Wikka/HomePage

- Jeff

 

[Cjcrescent]

Jeff,

Thanks for adding that. I've been under the weather for a couple of days and haven't been on the computer at all. I'm supposed to be a beta tester when the next version comes out, but in talking with the project director, it may be a while before that happens. We'll probably get a couple of minor updates before we get anything like we'd really like to see.

 

[Cjcrescent]

Kevin,

Sometimes the software can't translate the dimensions properly into a "good" graphic. But you can draw your own versions of the structure, or draw in a structure that you have built, that's not in the files by using a blank layout area, then saving the newly drawn structure into a structure parameter file. I have over 20 structures drawn onto mine that's not anywhere in the structure files available.

 

[NScaler]

Thanks Carey. I haven't gotten that deep into learning the software yet. So drawing a structure that way, does it allow you to enter specific coordinates for the geometry?