BEFORE ASKING A QUESTION, DID YOU READ OUR WIKI? Our includes answers to common questions (e.g. 'How do I start?' ) and links to many valuable resources. It IS under reconstruction right now, so we apologize for broken links, etc.
Then, you need the a woodworking CAD software to design your ideas. Check out the detailed reviews of the best softwares in 2015. CNC Piranha FX - Woodworking Plans & ToolsOne of the latest tools to enter the hobbyist woodworking market is the CNC – a machine featuring Computer Numerical Control (CNC).
RULES FOR POSTING is a forum that encourages the respectful exchange of woodworking knowledge and projects. Before posting, check that your content doesn't violate the rules below. Go to for a detailed explanation of the rules.
Project posts are OC (Original Content) only. If you didn't make it don't post it. Exception: parents posting for their school-aged children. No blog or video channel spam.
No reposts. No viral content. No rehosted/freebooted content.
No memes, image macros, reaction gifs/videos, etc. No overt self-promotion. How much is this wood/tool worth, what tools should I buy, look what I bought, wood id, and other quick questions should be posted in the pinned weekly quick questions thread. Related sub-reddits. I've been using google sketch up for the past year now and learned it from this website. I just commented to my wife today how google sketchup has changed the amount of time I spend calculating dimensions in the shop.
I used to have a calculator out figuring things out on engineering paper. Now, I spend an hour or two creating my cabinets on sketch up, dimension everything, take the laptop to the shop, and set my fence on the table saw. I rarely use my tape measure! The fence is so accurate, and I'll use a calipers to set the dado depth and width. I'm blown away at how quickly I can make an entire cabinet that fits perfectly together with no thinking or calculating.
I also recently got a 3D mouse! It really makes interfacing with my drawings A LOT easier and smoother. I highly suggest one if you plan on using sketch up more than once or twice. As other have said, SketchUp is free and good for lots of things, detailed drawings is not one of them IMHO. Depending on how frequently you are wanting to use/needing to use the software and what it is worth to you I suggest Solidworks and AutoCAD. If you need it very occasionally maybe look for free trials/ student versions.
They might have fewer bells and whistles in those versions, but most of the expensive bells and whistles are of no use to creating woodworking layouts. You can also look up youtube videos of hobbyists who make things on CNC machines (x-carve, shapeoko, etc) and see what software they use to create their CNC code/layouts.