How do I print out a sketch?

[Anonymous]

Hi all,

What's the best way to go about printing out a sketch on a regular inkjet printer to scale?

[khankins5]

Wow I surprised my question from 2016 is still active.  I think one of the early replies said to pick another product if I needed to print.  I did...it was not an Autodesk product but it was an important feature to me as printing to scale on paper for a first look is important for template usage.  I see still no plans for support for that.  Still I did like the flow of it way back when I tried it.  Not going to learn two sep systems or futz around a lot of steps...just to print.  I still think I it's pretty basic function imo 

[mastertechjohnny]

I found this work around although I think they came out with a new way to
do it.

Save sketch as .DXF
Open adobe illustrator open the .DXF file and print from there.

I got full sized prints. But yes I already had illustrator so for me I
didn’t have to buy anything but it was very annoying having to do so to
print a design for mock up.

[Anonymous]

Sounds like a dick-ish comment to me; What if someones cnc went down and they had to get a part to a customer whichever means possible?

[HughesTooling]

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@Anonymous wrote:

Sounds like a dick-ish comment to me; What if someones cnc went down and they had to get a part to a customer whichever means possible?

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Do it right and generate a 2d drawing with a title block, tolerances, material and dimensions and even supply a 3d model along with it.

I wonder how many paying customers would want resources put into this. I wouldn't want time wasted on it until the sketch engine has improved a lot and the 2d drawing workspace is 100% finished. Looking at the state of the 2d drawing workspace and speed of development I'd  put that 5 to 10 years!

I have access to 2 other solid modelers like Fusion and both have a print sketch option and do you know what, it only gives you an image file from both. Same situation there, solid modeling sketches are pretty useless for anything so why waste time developing a print function. Both of those programs are several thousand dollars so I doubt anyone's going to buy them and just use it for 2d.

Mark

[mastertechjohnny]

What is dick-ish about my comment? I have a work around and the programs used to do the work around. 

If your not happy with it message and email the software company/developers. I am merely providing a work around that I used to do so. This software is hobbyist/enthusiast based. Otherwise you would be using solid works for $6,000.00 USD and having to learn the more complex software. 

[Anonymous]

Well after all the heated debate it appears that a sketch capability has been added to the drawing function.

You still need at least 1 body in the design to move to the drawing function. From there there is an Add Sketch button in the Geometry menu.

Thanks Fusion 360 for listening

[laughingcreek]

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@Anonymous wrote:

...Thanks Fusion 360 for listening

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well, sorta.  lots of folks want this so they can use the sketches for 2d operations like laser cutting, etc.  Unfortunately, you can only show model sketches with a phantom line type (dash dash long) and not a solid line.  not useful for what many wanted-

[Anonymous]

I've been able to do a sketch in the Drawing tool with solid lines and
dimension the whole sketch.

You might want to go and have another play.

[laughingcreek]

attempting part path creation for the purpose of 2d operations like laser cutting, etc, with the rudimentary sketching tools available in the drawing environment would be ludicrous.

[Anonymous]

How did you go from my saying that a sketch can be produced with solid lines in the drawing environment to suggesting that part path creation would be ludicrous? Did I suggest that part path creation was possible or that I'd use this functionality to produce a drawing that I use to do so? No!

My earlier post said that a sketch can now be done in the Drawing tool. You responded with only with a limited "phantom line type (dash dash long) " capability.  I suggested that you should go an look again as I could do a sketch in the drawing environment that had solid lines.

For me the ability to quickly produce a 2D dimensioned sketch to take to the shed is a significant step forward, I would not use it do drive a CNC machine or laser cutter, to suggest that I would is insulting. Others like me who have requested this functionality wanted it for quick shop discussions not for precision part manufacture.

So yes the functionality is rudimentary, but it's a start. Hence why I thanked the Fusion 360 team for listening.

A few senior members of this forum can be very condescending at times and this can stop other people from making posts or suggestions through fear of being told their post is "ludicrous", especially when then the senior member has made an assumption.

[laughingcreek]

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@laughingcreek wrote:

...lots of folks want this so they can use the sketches for 2d operations like laser cutting, etc.  Unfortunately, you can only show model sketches with a phantom line type (dash dash long) and not a solid line.  not useful for what many wanted-

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This entire post, back from 2015, began as a request/discussion of how to get a sketch from the design environment out to a piece of paper.   being able to make basic lines that aren't associated with any geometry in the drawing environment does nothing to address that.  AD's position back then was "this is a 3d program, why would you want 2d geometry output?"  The need for it since then has been demonstrated over an over again.  Yet the only way's to get usable sketches from the design environment out are sill work arounds.  the primary one involves exporting as DXF, but even there, if you want any dimensioning data to show, you have to do through a series of work arounds.   Add to that there is no way to configure the DXF output like you can in other programs, so if the receiving program doesn't happen to translate the current version right, your again out of luck.

The ability to put sketches in drawings was indeed a need function, but for a whole different set of reasons than what this thread was about.

[Anonymous]

Since 2015 when this post was started, Auto Desk bought Eagle, and now supports PCB design in this "3D" modeling program. So many of the arguments made here by non Auto Desk reps on why asking for a 2S feature from this "pure 3D modeling program" is moot. 

[mastertechjohnny]

The 2D feature we are all talking about is to Print a to scale model before
spending the effort to plasma cut or 3D print for hours just to find out
that we need to change something by (just an example) .25” [1/4”]

Some people might not get out of the 3D world and have to actually make the
items on the screen and to them it may not effect them as much. Being a
hobbyist/above average beginner that designs then makes the items on the
screen IRL (in real life) a simple 5 mins print and scissor cut with
actuate dimensions would be a amazing addition.

I believe solid works has this feature. I don’t have it and I don’t want to
pay their premium for it. I think auto desk could easily make this a
usable feature that would help a lot of us users out.

[Anonymous]

I agree the sketching function in the drawing environment is rudimentary, but it's a start and shows that Fusion 360 developers are listening to those of us who also want to work in 2D. Far easier to improve something than create it.

[joshCPH3D]

What he is saying is, you cannot import 2d sketches into the drawing environment to be dimensioned, converted to PDF, and printed. Fusion doesn't have this feature. Which is absolutely ridiculous. I'm am trying to figure out a work around for this now. So frustrating...

[mastertechjohnny]

The work around I found is to save the drawing as a DXF and then open that
file with adobe Illustrator and scale 1:1 and then print from Illustrator.
The downside to doing it this way is that larger scale parts will be on
multiple pages unless you have a large format printer big enough to
accommodate.

[colinskaminski]

I have to make 2D templates often. If it fits on my printer I extrude the shape and move to the drawing environment. If it does not I extrude a shape and tape a pen to my CNC and draw the shape. It should be a lot easier. 

[MichaelT_123]

There is even simpler way... by just going to a tattoo artist.

[Anonymous]

Printing from Fusion, I  use the snipping tool in MS Windows then print that

[rushabhthakkar_910]

There is an Easier and a Efficient way to do this... 

We can make the sketch that we want to print. And just extrude the whole sketch. The height to which it is extruded does not matter. Because what you want to print is a 2D Drawing. And not a 3D Model. But you only have to keep in mind that you do not extrude all the bodies and join them. I mean keep the bodies as new ones as per the sketch. 

Maybe this process will take less than 2-3 minutes to generate the outcome and print your sketch...