Coil
Wind a round, V or square shape around a sketch circle to make springs and screw threads.
- Coil I AdvancedPart Studio toolbar
| SchoolCAD | Onshape | Fusion | SOLIDWORKS |
|---|---|---|---|
| Coil | Helix + Sweep | Coil | Helix and Spiral + Swept Boss |
Coil winds a shape round and round a circle, climbing as it goes, like the wire of a spring or the thread on a bolt. Use it for springs, the thread on a 3D-printed jar lid or bottle cap, a vice screw, or a spiral decoration.
In Standard, find Coil with Search tools (` or Alt+C), or switch to Advanced at the end of the toolbar.
How to use it#
- In a sketch, draw a circle. Its centre is the coil's axis, and its size is the coil's diameter. For a thread, make the circle the size of the shaft or the hole. Finish the sketch.
- Click Coil, or press I.
- Choose New part for a spring, Add for a thread on a shaft, or Remove for a thread cut into a hole.
- Choose the Section (Spring, Thread or Square) and type its size.
- Type the Pitch and the number of Turns.
- Check the preview, then click ✓ or press Enter.
Options#
| Option | What it does |
|---|---|
| New part | Makes the coil a part of its own, such as a spring. Type a Part name and choose its Material. |
| Add | Adds a thread to a shaft. Draw the circle the size of the shaft. |
| Remove | Cuts a thread into a hole. Draw the circle the size of the hole. |
| Sketch | The sketch with the circle. |
| Section | Spring: round wire. Thread: a 60° V thread, like a screw or a bolt. Square: a square thread, like a vice or clamp screw. |
| Wire Ø or Thread depth | For Spring, how thick the wire is. For Thread and Square, how deep the thread is. In mm. |
| Pitch | How far it climbs in one turn, in mm. |
| Turns | How many times it goes round. The height (pitch × turns) is shown under the boxes. |
| Left-hand | Winds the other way, for a left-hand thread. |
| ⇅ Flip direction | Sends the coil the other way from the sketch. |
| Merge scope | For Add and Remove: tick the parts it changes. With nothing ticked, it works on the parts it touches. |
Tips#
- The coil starts at the sketch and climbs away from it. If it goes the wrong way, click ⇅ Flip direction.
- When you choose Thread, the depth is set from the pitch for you.
- Metric threads: M6 has a pitch of 1 mm, M8 1.25 mm and M10 1.5 mm.
- For 3D printing, make threads a little loose (0.2 to 0.3 mm), so the parts screw together.
- Coil uses one circle, so use a sketch with just one circle in it.
If it does not work#
- Draw a circle first: its centre is the coil's axis and its size the coil diameter (for a thread, the shaft or hole size). There is no sketch with a circle yet.
- The sketch needs a circle: its centre is the axis and its size the coil diameter. Choose the sketch with the circle in Sketch.
- Nothing to add to: it does not touch a part. Choose "New part" instead. The coil does not reach the shaft. Centre the circle on the shaft, make it the same size, and click ⇅ Flip direction if the coil runs away from the shaft.
- The cut did not remove anything. Check the direction, depth or the part it cuts. Click ⇅ Flip direction so the coil goes into the part.