If you are a fan of drafting out your creations in a digital format before taking on a DIY woodworking project, then DraftSight is an application that should be right up your alley.
DraftSight is one of the most powerful 2D design and drafting software available. The free version cannot be used for 3D drafting.
The CAD software has been specifically designed to help users create impeccable 2D drawings along with taking on complex DIY woodworking projects.
Why Use DraftSight?
One of the main reasons why it would be a great choice for woodworking enthusiasts is because it allows users to open and save both DXF and DWG files.
Apart from that, users can also save their designs and drawings in various other formats, including .pdf, .jpeg, .svg, .png, and so on.
Additionally, the software allows users to attach drawings from external references which are supported as well.
What makes DraftSight unique is that the 2D CAD software offers features that are aimed at improving the designing results of DIY woodworking enthusiasts as well as professional CAD designers.
If you are looking for a 3D option though, Drafsight is NOT the choice for you! For 3D drafting, we 100% recommend Sketchup Make.
Highly Interactive
DraftSight is an efficient and accurate 2D CAD design software that makes for an easy drafting solution.
What sets this software apart from the rest is its user-friendly interface which makes it easier for you to design and draft using the software.
You also get access to the Cartesian Coordinate System which happens to be one of the most sought-after features of the program since it allows users to take advantage of numerical coordinates to help them organize items or find out the accurate lengths of their drawings.
Design Accurately Using Entities
The design software has been built using entities.
This allows DIY woodworking enthusiasts to add special setups and displays to their drawings.
What this means is that you are allowed to include lines, tables, points, masks, and arcs to your drawings.
This alone is a great feature to have, especially considering DraftSight is a free program.
It is every bit as powerful as the AutoCAD version I used in college for 2D. In fact, it was released for free by SolidWorks, a popular 3D drafting program – virtually forcing AutoCAD to move into 3D modeling or be left behind.
There are paid plans now, but the free version has a LOT of functionality. I’ve never needed to upgrade to the paid options.
Further Customization Using APIs
Just when you thought it couldn’t get any better, the program allows you to customize and automate further using APIs.
The integration of APIs to the software’s interface means that users can now use them to speed up the drawing process while drafting more accurate 3D models.
Thanks to the powerful tools of DraftSight, dimensioning, scales and output have never been easier for the DIY woodworking enthusiast.
Batch Printing
Another feature that makes DraftSight stand out from the rest is its ability to batch printing.
With this feature, the user is able to send not just a single drawing but a whole set of drawings to their printer so that they can get printouts in batches.
This makes the process much quicker, especially if you are a woodworking enthusiast who prefers to make quick changes on-the-fly.
Here’s a short video on how Draftsight does Batch Printing:
Additionally, users can also view and track all of their print outs using the Batch Print List, where all of the information on their batch printouts have been saved.
PDF Underlay
DraftSight also offers a feature called PDF Underlay.
The feature allows users to attach multiple PFD documents to their drawings using the AttachPDF command. This makes it easier to attach notes or view their work in PDF format.
Overall, DraftSight is a great software for professionals as well as DIY woodworking enthusiasts looking for design software that enables them to create accurate drawings in 2D.
If you’re interested in the software we recommend the most, check out this review.