Finding and downloading CAD models of standard components
When you want to use standard components in your assemblies, you do not need and you also shouldn`t model them up on your own. Manufacturers of standard components provide 3D CAD models of their produced components in most industry standard 3D formats. The most flexible 3D format being STEP. Step files can be used in pretty much every 3D CAD software.
These are some, but not all, manufacturers of standard components that also provide 3D parts:
There is also a third party platform 3DFindIt made by Cadenas that provides 3D CAD models of many different manufacturers components.
For the use with FreeCAD, I downloaded all the required standard components in STEP file format. Next, I will import and assemble all the standard parts with the shaft that I already created on my own.
Importing and assembling standard components in A2Plus
To assemble all standard components with the shaft in FreeCAD A2Plus, I first placed the shaft as the first component of the assembly.
After that I imported the standard components one by one into the assembly and constrained them to the shaft.
- ball bearings (2x)
- sprocket
- dual chain sprocket
- locking ring 25 mm (2x)
- locking ring 20 mm
- key DIN 6885 6 x 6 x 16
To create an assembly using A2Plus you usually only need the Axis coincident and Plane to plane contraints. I pretty much never use any of the other constraints in A2Plus.
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