When it comes to fabrication, my projects always turn out best when I work out all my ideas before I get started. I don't like to figure things out as I go because, inevitably, something gets overlooked or left out until the last minute. I admire all the fabricators that are able to lay a general idea out in chalk on the shop floor and get to work, but it's just not my style.

If you want to get some good advice about what it takes to start bending tubing, read Tube Bendin' 101 by Rob Park on Pirate 4x4. Craig Perronne also shares some good tips in his short tube bending article Fab 101 on Off-Road.Com. JD2's Instructions|~www.jd2.com/TemplateBendingTuturial.pdf are worth reading too.

Remember that everyone wastes some tubing when they're getting started. It's easy enough to transfer measurements to a full-size drawing to work from, but it takes a lot of practice to bend tubing accurately...

I took several computer-aided drafting classes at a community college in the late 90's and have been using AutoCAD to create 2D mechanical drawings of my projects ever since then. I use AutoCAD just like a sketchpad, transferring hand-scribbled notes into design files, plotting critical measurements and working out ideas to see how my projects will take shape.

Designing a rollcage in 2D is a tedious process though. I usually have to create at least three different drawings to represent the top/bottom, side and front/back. And whenever I make changes to one drawing, I also have to update the other drawings manually. Then I have to break down the assembly into separate drawings of all the parts that I need to bend and notch. The steep learning curve of more advanced CAD programs like SolidWorks has kept me using outdated software that I'm comfortable working with.