Twisted Extrusion
Twisted Bar modeled 3 ways - Extrude and flex, Sweep with twist, Loft with helical guide curves
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Step 1: Finished Product Revealed
The three bars below were modeled using three separate methods: apply flex to extrusion, sweep with twist, and loft with helical guide curves.
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Step 2: Extrude and Flex
This tutorial assumes the "student" is familiar with making sketches and extrusions.
Draw some closed curve to extrude - a 1/2" square on the top plane was use for this tutorial.
-Extrude it - Extrusion below is 15" long
-Insert Features Flex..
-Select the Extrusion.
-Select the "Twisting" Button and "Hard Edges"
-Enter 720 degrees for the amount of twist
Careful here, a large number - say 7200 accidentally entered instead of 720 - could cause SolidWorks to take a long time to apply flex.
-Click the check mark to apply flex.
Congratulations, bar is twisted, it is that easy.
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Step 3: Sweep with Twist
Draw another 1/2" square on the Top plane centered on where it meets the Front plane.
Draw a vertical line on the Front Plane from the center of the square 15" high
Select Insert Boss/Base Sweep
Select the square as the sketch profile and the vertical line as the path
Select Options, Profile Orientation, Follow Path,
Select Profile Twist, Specify Twist Value
Enter 720 degrees in Direction 1
Select the check mark to apply the sweep