Welcome to the Onshape forum! Ask questions and join in the discussions about everything Onshape.

First time visiting? Here are some places to start:
  1. Looking for a certain topic? Check out the categories filter or use Search (upper right).
  2. Need support? Ask a question to our Community Support category.
  3. Please submit support tickets for bugs but you can request improvements in the Product Feedback category.
  4. Be respectful, on topic and if you see a problem, Flag it.

If you would like to contact our Community Manager personally, feel free to send a private message or an email.

Modelling a Knurl

ShepRCSShepRCS Member Posts: 9
HI All

Did anyone manage to make a Knurl work? I'm trying to find the best way. 

My normal method (solidworks) would be to do the following
  1. Draw Helix on the surface to be Knurled
  2. Sketch a triangle at end of Helix
  3. Sweep a cut with the sketch along the Helix
  4. Circular pattern the the sweep
  5. Mirror the circular pattern
With Onshape I finally managed to get the following to work
  1. Draw Helix on surface Clockwise
  2. Draw Helix on surface Anti-Clockwise
  3. Sketch Triangle at end of helix
  4. Sweep a New part on first Helix
  5. Sweep a New part on second Helix
  6. Circular pattern both of the new parts
  7. Boolean Add all of the sweeps together
  8. Boolean Subtract Sweep mesh from part I want to Knurl
It works but is a bit long winded mainly because you can't pattern or mirror the feature you have to do the faces, but faces patterning does not work when the resultant geometry intersects.

Anyone any thoughts on how to do this more efficiently?

Screenshot of my end result attached


Shep

Comments

  • burhopburhop Member Posts: 22 ✭✭
    I gave it a shot but my variations were dead ends.  I ended up with the same solution as you :(  
  • lougallolougallo Member, Moderator, Onshape Employees, Developers Posts: 2,001
    Currently we cannot pattern a pattern or mirror a mirror etc but those will come.  As far as approach, I did:


    1. Helix/triangle/sweep
    2. circular pattern body around center axis (n times)
    3. Mirror all bodies about a plane located at the knurled circular body center.
    4. Boolean subtract.
    I could also do a face pattern for the first circular pattern then just mirror the single seed part then copy the faces and do another face pattern but face patterns are much more efficient but less robust to change.
    Lou Gallo / PD/UX - Support - Community / Onshape, Inc.
  • ShepRCSShepRCS Member Posts: 9
    @LouGallo Looks good.  I tried mine with that few steps but had problems with spinning circle of death.  I'm on slow internet at the moment though so that is probably something to do with it!

    Looking forward to pattern a pattern etc!
  • nathaniel_zaharianathaniel_zaharia Member Posts: 20
    How can you modify this to add a knurl to only a portion of a cylinder?  For example, I am modeling a maglite flashlight and the battery tube has a knurl about 4 inches long in the center of the tube.  

    Here's what I tried to do:
    -I made a separate cylindrical surface
    -I made a helix on that surface and swept a cutting tool with it
    -I moved that cutting tool to the maglite tube and made a circular array to have multiple tools
    -I tried to Boolean those cutting tools to make half the knurling... and the boolean tool fails at that step

    I suspect that I might be having an issue with trying to cut too many things at once, but I don't want to cut each piece of the knurling one at a time...

    Any ideas?
  • traveler_hauptmantraveler_hauptman Member, OS Professional, Mentor, Developers Posts: 419 PRO
    Can you share the model public?
  • navnav Member Posts: 258 ✭✭✭✭
    edited July 2015
    Hi @nathaniel_zaharia here is an approach, instead of having a surface separately why don't you draw it in your existing cylinder and extrude it the 4 inches you need, then you can create in that surface the two helix you need. One sweep to remove material and the second one to create new material then you use the boolean subtract to obtain the desired results.





    Nicolas Ariza V.
    Indaer -- Aircraft Lifecycle Solutions
  • nathaniel_zaharianathaniel_zaharia Member Posts: 20
    Awesome!  Thanks for the advice.  I thought I would get an email or something when people commented on this, sorry it took me so long to check back.
  • viruviru Member, Developers Posts: 619 ✭✭✭✭
    edited July 2015
    @nathaniel_zaharia , Onshape already had given provision for getting notifications if anybody commented on your Initiated discussion or you tagged in any post.

  • Narayan_KNarayan_K Member Posts: 379 ✭✭✭
    Yes. also you can set the notification preference such that you get the mail notification also.
    1.click on account option in the right top corner and click on Preference.


    2. You can set the following settings.


    then save the preferences.Now you can get the mail for the notification.
  • nathaniel_zaharianathaniel_zaharia Member Posts: 20
    You guys rock my world.  

    Thanks so much for the help.
  • nathaniel_zaharianathaniel_zaharia Member Posts: 20
    @nav can you explain this a little more?  I didn't quite understand.
  • navnav Member Posts: 258 ✭✭✭✭
    Hi @nathaniel_zaharia below the steps with images if still have doubts please let me know.

    1. Extrusion of the maglite body

    2. Extrude a surface using the external cylinder (Use the USE command to include the geometry)







    3. Draw a plane where the extruded surface starts
    4. Draw the sketch you need to sweep 

    5. Sweep cut the sketch from last step using the helix as sweep path

    6. Use Circular array command (Select face pattern) make sure you select all faces of the sweep 
    7. Create another helix in the extruded surface this time change direction to counterclockwise
    8. Sweep the same sketch from step four using the new helix and instead of cutting select the option NEW

    9. Circular array of the new part.

    10. Now a boolean subtract operation (Tools the 40 + parts you created in the last step, Target Part 1 in my case) 

     11. Final Result

    Nicolas Ariza V.
    Indaer -- Aircraft Lifecycle Solutions
  • andrew_troupandrew_troup Member, Mentor Posts: 1,584 ✭✭✭✭✭
    @nav
    Could you alternatively use 
    only the second part  of your procedure, then mirror the resulting 40 tools (about your "Top" Plane) to provide the opposite handed array of a further 40, prior to doing the Boolean subtraction?
  • navnav Member Posts: 258 ✭✭✭✭
    Hi @andrew_troup could you please send me some screenshots of your proposed method I couldn`t replicate it, thanks
    Nicolas Ariza V.
    Indaer -- Aircraft Lifecycle Solutions
  • nathaniel_zaharianathaniel_zaharia Member Posts: 20
    @andrew_troup :
    I think the issue with your idea is that the tools disappear after the boolean subtract operation.
  • nathaniel_zaharianathaniel_zaharia Member Posts: 20
    @nav
    Thanks so much, man!
  • andrew_troupandrew_troup Member, Mentor Posts: 1,584 ✭✭✭✭✭
    edited July 2015
    @andrew_troup :
    I think the issue with your idea is that the tools disappear after the boolean subtract operation.
    Hmm... the way I visualised it, the Boolean Subtract would not happen until last thing, at which point, I would actually want the tools to disappear.

    And even if I didn't, there's an option under BS to "keep tools" ... but perhaps I misunderstand what you're saying

    @nav: for some reason I cannot currently connect to Onshape CAD, and it may be a while till I get a chance to try the method out.
  • imagineeredimagineered Member Posts: 57 ✭✭
    Not sure how this goes in Onshape, but in other packages, we'd normally just reference a knurl or texture it otherwise file size goes up 1000% & program speed goes down 500%. Can understand if it is a plastic part to be moulded but otherwise, times short  ;)
  • navnav Member Posts: 258 ✭✭✭✭
    Hi @imagineered indeed this feature as well as others you'll see posted in the forums are just a note in a mechanical dtrawing (onshape currently lacks a drawing module but its coming soon), I believe by doing this we are pushing the limits of what OS can do online; in more complex assemblies these features probably won't be modeled. There are already some post in the forums talking about performance issues in large assemblies.

    In my particular case that I'm part of this krurl post doing it even though I know its just a note in a drawing thought me some tricks from OS that I can use when modeling a different part.
    Nicolas Ariza V.
    Indaer -- Aircraft Lifecycle Solutions
  • BobsicoBobsico Member Posts: 2
    Hey, I was looking at making a knurl on a curved surface and only found this :neutral:
    So I made it by splitting the curved surface with the extruded surface of the helix, then I just used a remove sweep along that surface's edges (and mirrored it for the other direction).
    But my knurls point up, so something is going on here, the knurls are not uniform. I did click the keep orientation as the start and end orientation of the cut should be the parallel.

    Anyone spot my mistake?

    here's the workspace. BTW: it's a flywheel for a dart shooter, the intersecting cylinder is the soft dart.


    @imagineered : I'm designing to 3d print so I need all the final geometry in there.







  • BobsicoBobsico Member Posts: 2
    edited January 2020
    I've found that my sketch profile did not rotate to keep aligned to the center of my helix to fix this I have now changed to using a loft and 2 profiles, this seems to work fine.



  • matthew_taylor783matthew_taylor783 Member Posts: 4
    It stills seems that Boolean Subtract does not actually subtract, infact it seems to duplicate parts instead of negating. I am having a very rough time with it currently. Video a guy posted on youtube shows it straight forward and on Onshape but after many thorough attempts I just cannot get it to properly knurl...very frustrating. Help please
  • SethFSethF Member Posts: 129 PRO
    @matthew_taylor783
    It stills seems that Boolean Subtract does not actually subtract, infact it seems to duplicate parts instead of negating.
    This part sounds to me like you need to deselect the "Keep tools" option within the boolean feature.
  • glen_dewsburyglen_dewsbury Member Posts: 559 ✭✭✭
    This one was not hard to make with one sweep,  a mirror and circular pattern. The more items in the pattern the more time to drink coffee while the Boolean tool works!
    https://cad.onshape.com/documents/12b0679a712bc6f544f72c07/w/67e973d9c8c7d9393a467fa0/e/7c9a41383482a51b93b58302

  • S_RegulaS_Regula Member Posts: 88 PRO
    nav said:
    Hi @nathaniel_zaharia below the steps with images if still have doubts please let me know.

    1. Extrusion of the maglite body

    2. Extrude a surface using the external cylinder (Use the USE command to include the geometry)







    3. Draw a plane where the extruded surface starts
    4. Draw the sketch you need to sweep 

    5. Sweep cut the sketch from last step using the helix as sweep path

    6. Use Circular array command (Select face pattern) make sure you select all faces of the sweep 
    7. Create another helix in the extruded surface this time change direction to counterclockwise
    8. Sweep the same sketch from step four using the new helix and instead of cutting select the option NEW

    9. Circular array of the new part.

    10. Now a boolean subtract operation (Tools the 40 + parts you created in the last step, Target Part 1 in my case) 

     11. Final Result

    This is pretty slick, and easy to boot! I was looking for a simple way to model knurling on a cylindrical part, and I think this will suffice. Thanks for sharing!
  • Evan_ReeseEvan_Reese Member Posts: 2,060 PRO
    Since this comment bumped the thread to the top I had to do my version. Here are some of my tricks:
    • sweep the helix as a separate body
    • use thicken on both ends of the helix to extend it out tangent to it so the knurl terminates more realistically
    • mirror the swept part
    • circular pattern set to PART, and REMOVE, so you don't need to boolean after. This also means if you add more grooves you don't have to edit the boolean feature to add them.


    Evan Reese / Principal and Industrial Designer with Ovyl
    Website: ovyl.io
  • shaun_singhshaun_singh OS Professional Posts: 22 PRO
    Since this comment bumped the thread to the top I had to do my version. Here are some of my tricks:
    • sweep the helix as a separate body
    • use thicken on both ends of the helix to extend it out tangent to it so the knurl terminates more realistically
    • mirror the swept part
    • circular pattern set to PART, and REMOVE, so you don't need to boolean after. This also means if you add more grooves you don't have to edit the boolean feature to add them.


    Works a treat!
  • gediminas_jurgaitisgediminas_jurgaitis Member Posts: 1
    lougallo said:
    Currently we cannot pattern a pattern or mirror a mirror etc but those will come.  As far as approach, I did:


    1. Helix/triangle/sweep
    2. circular pattern body around center axis (n times)
    3. Mirror all bodies about a plane located at the knurled circular body center.
    4. Boolean subtract.
    I could also do a face pattern for the first circular pattern then just mirror the single seed part then copy the faces and do another face pattern but face patterns are much more efficient but less robust to change.
    2023 and we still can't pattern a pattern or mirror... unacceptable.
  • S1monS1mon Member Posts: 2,321 PRO
    That post was from 2015. You can pattern a pattern just fine now, and I’m pretty sure you can pattern a mirror.
Sign In or Register to comment.