Track Design Software
 

Can anyone recommend a decent track design software for 1/10th off road?

TORCH is about to be ripped up and redesigned with new astro and 3m wide track hopfully etc.

How about a regular CAD program...and someone who knows a thing or two about track design...surely your best bet. Not heard of any real track design software!

There are 2 free 2D CAD programs around at the moment...google the following:

DoubleCAD XT

Draftsight

Both written by respectable companies...not used either as I have access to AutoCAD, but have heard good enough things about them...and for free...who can complain!

Best bet for me though would be to design a space with features in it that you can lay multiple tracks on. Much more interesting than having the same layout each time...and much better for improving your driving generally...all the best tracks do this :thumbsup:

There's a PC game called "Track Mania" where you can design your own track and then go and race on it :thumbsup:

Its not really like designing an RC track but it does give an interesting perspective on track layout ... and being able to race around it is cool ...

I've used Corel Draw to design a track.
http://i374.photobucket.com/albums/o...s/th_io2-1.jpg
If you know how to use Corel, it's simple. You just measure your track area, create a page size with the same proportions, and scale a pen to your lane width. In my case they are 8 ft wide. Then freehand draw your track.
(the black border around the outside of the track in this drawing is the actual usable track area)
If you don't want to pay for something like Corel, you can always download 'Inkscape'. It's a free vector drawing program.

Here was another, more crudely drawn one:
http://i374.photobucket.com/albums/o...ts/th_iol3.jpg
And a video of the actual track:


You can see there were some minor changes in order to work around the colums in the middle

I know it's not perfect but it does give you an idea plus it's free,
http://www.zanthrax.nl/files/trackmaker.zip

I use Rhino. here is one of the first tracks i did while at the steep side of the learning curve.

http://i471.photobucket.com/albums/r...roadtrack1.jpg

Its pretty handy. you can design jumps and stuff and make shapes that a cnc router will cut.
Not something you are going to pick up in a couple of evenings.

You will be able to get the hang of, as Blue_Pinky mentions, DoubleCAD etc very quickly though. its a bit like an advanced 'windows paint' and very useful.

I have built many things with the aid of both 2 and 3d cad.

Have also used Zanthrax (pic below) as Wylie mentions. also useful. especially for indoor onroad.

http://i471.photobucket.com/albums/r.../alltracks.jpg