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Workplane Tutorial

Work planes - Example on a carpenter's saw horse. (trestle)

The saw horse is used to apply and practice the explanations of work planes from training part 1.

Introduction.

When entering components in the working plane, the depth positioning is always flush with the front unless otherwise specified. The unit for all lengths is meter.

  1. We create a new building position called CSH.

  2. A saw horse is planned with a squared timber as support with a cross section of 0.120 x 0.120, with a height of 0.770. The legs of the saw horse have a cross-section of 0.080 x 0.080, the other struts a cross-section of 0.060 x 0.060.

  3. We start with the horizontal, global work plane, and we adjust its size and grid according to the space requirements of the saw horse in the plan view; 1.00 direction X and 0.500 direction Y, in a grid of 0.100.

The first timber to be positioned is our support 0.120 x 0.120. When choosing a constant cross section General - with 2-1-1 - a click point in our work plane is sufficient to position the square timber correctly immediately.

  1. The settings for it and the result are shown in the next two images:

The next step is the positioning of the legs. The upper point of a leg's origin should be 0.200 from the end of the support timber, from here the edge of the leg runs to the next corner of the work plane.

  1. For this we set (with 4-1-1 and B for reference point) a 3D auxiliary geometry point at the top of the support timber:

Relative to our work plane, the legs are each inclined in two directions. On the narrow side, the legs are connected by an Andrew's cross and must be flush, i.e. they lie in the same plane like tilted jacks with a side surface. This defines our first arbitrary work plane "legs narrow side".

  1. We create the arbitrary work plane, as shown in the picture. The order of the points is important so that the coordinate system of the plane fits!

  1. Then we create the first leg of the saw horse (trestle) with a cross-section of 0.080 x 0.080 as component input in the working plane with 2-1-4 as constant cross-section, beam along X. It makes sense to set the Positioning Point to Choice.

  2. The next picture shows the result:

  1. To connect the leg to the support timber, we first switch to the global work plane and generate two horizontal cuts with 3-4-3; bottom to global zero, top with an offset of 0.020 from OK support timber.

  1. In addition, with 3-4-7 on the leg we create a vertical cut parallel axis support timber, to avoid a collision with the opposite leg with 0.003 offset:

The leg is now to be connected to the saw horse (trestle) with an angled end lap notched 0.020 parallel into the side surface of the support timber.

  1. With 9-2-5 we create a vertical work plane, named "angled end lap", as shown in the picture:

  1. With the function 2-1-7 beam 2 points we position a board with 0,020 thickness and 0,080 width at the connection from the upper leg end to the support timber.

Choosing points: From the 3D auxiliary geometry point to the intersection point of the outside leg to the lower edge of the support timber.

  1. We switch to the Global System and create a 3D point in the middle of the top support timber.

  2. Then we mirror the auxiliary part for creating the notch with 2-7-5 on the axis of the support timber, then we copy both auxiliary parts with 2-7-3 around the new auxiliary geometry point and a parallel to Global Z by 180°.

  3. With 3-8-1 we produce the connection in the support timber with lap joint. The fixed depth of the lap (in the input dialog of the processing the beam is 1) is 0,000.

  1. Then the lap in the support timber is disband and the help timbers are deleted.

  2. We switch to the work plane "Lap joint" and move it 0.020 parallel to the rear (or in Z direction - 0.020).

  1. Then we position a help timber for the creation of the birds mouth at the upper end of the legs, with beam along x (2-1-4) as shown in the next picture:

  1. We switch to the global work plane, create a birds mouth in the leg with 3-7-1 and the auxiliary component, then disband the birds mouth in the leg and delete the help timber.

  1. Then we mirror and copy the leg as it is already described with the help timber for the lap joint.

The saw horse (trestle) should be in this stage of completion.

  1. For the input of an Andreas brace for bracing at the beginning of the saw horse we change to the work plane "legs narrow side".

  2. We hide the support timber and the other pair of legs (8-05).

  3. With 9-2-04 we change the origin and orientation of the work plane by first selecting the outer corners of the left leg and then the right leg at the bottom ...

  1. ... and then exchange the values for X and Y in the grid settings with 9 -2-01. 03?

  2. With 02-3-1 we then call the 2D drawing function for line input.

The work plane automatically rotates into its view.

  1. With a line we determine the position of a top edge for the position of the Andreas brace, then offset it down with 03-5 by 0.060, and mirror the lines at the center perpendicular with 03-4 to check the position of the Andreas brace and correct if necessary.

The result can be like that:

  1. With the function 2-1-7 beam 2 points we now create the Andreas brace:

  1. Then we connect it with 3-9-5 notched lap with the legs

  1. Then we create in the middle of the cross a lap joint with 3-8-1 (Depth in beam 1: Bisect)

  1. We create another arbitrary working plane "longitudinal bracing" by selecting the outer corner points of two legs in the longitudinal direction and the upper corner point of the same edge on the right leg; the work plane gets a grid area of 1,000 x 1,000:

  1. In the work plane we then draw a line for the top of the longitudinal brace to avoid overlapping with the Andreas brace, and temporarily enter the brace with a thickness of only 0.020:

The input is made here over the entire width of the raster area. Since the brace and the outer sides of the legs on this side are not flush, normal lap jointing is not possible.

  1. With the created board we now create a lap joint with full board thickness of 0.020 and disband this connection lap joint in both legs, creating a free lap joint.

We delete the board and then create the actual longitudinal strut in the same length using the settings as for the Andreas cross (W x H = 0.060 x 0.060).

  1. We cut the longitudinal brace at the ends flush with the surface of the legs.

Now we create a V-cut. A birds mouth is not possible here because the angle between the legs and the longitudinal brace is 93.45°. Therefore, we customize the longitudinal brace with 3-6-1 by a V-cut and the option < four points >, with selection of the longitudinal brace for the V-cut and point selection on the leg in the order shown:

  1. For the installation of the Andreas brace and the longitudinal brace on the opposite sides we now proceed as described above.

Our saw horse (trestle) will look like this when finished:

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