Legacy 2D, rebuilt as a real part.

Bring a DXF or DWG in as a sketch, then build the solid from it by instruction. You get a native part with a feature tree, not traced geometry you cannot edit.

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What this does.

CADABRA opens a DXF or DWG as a sketch inside a new SOLIDWORKS part. From there you build the solid by instruction, and the result is native features in a feature tree.

It does not read a PDF, a scanned print, or a photograph, and it does not infer a solid from projected views on its own.

What it removes is the tracing and the re-modeling.

How the conversion runs.

  1. 01

    Open the DXF or DWG

    CADABRA imports it into a new part as a sketch. Native SOLIDWORKS files open directly; DXF and DWG take this import path.

  2. 02

    Measure what came in

    Dimensions are not imported with the geometry, so ask for what you need: extents, hole positions, spacings. Ask Mode measures the sketch rather than reading annotations off it.

  3. 03

    Build the solid

    Extrude the profile, cut the holes, add the fillets and patterns. Each step is a native feature operation, so the tree is yours afterwards.

  4. 04

    Check it against the print

    Verify the dimensions that matter before anything downstream uses the part.

Why it beats tracing.

The sketch is real geometry, not a picture.

A DXF or DWG carries actual curves and positions. Imported as a sketch, those become something you can measure, reference and build on.

  • Hole centers and profile geometry arrive at their true positions.
  • Dimensions are not imported with it, so you measure the sketch rather than read annotations off it.
  • Nothing is redrawn by hand.

The build is native, so the part stays editable.

Every operation is one SOLIDWORKS would perform. The result is a normal part file with sketches, features and relations.

  • Roll back, reorder and edit dimensions as usual.
  • The part feeds assemblies, drawings and BOMs like any other.
  • A colleague who has never heard of CADABRA can open and edit it.

Where this pays for itself.

  • Legacy archives. Parts drawn before the company moved to 3D, needed again for a revision.
  • Supplier and customer geometry that arrives as a DXF or DWG and has to enter your assembly.
  • Laser and waterjet profiles that exist as flat DXF and need a solid behind them.
  • Lost models whose native files did not survive a vendor or PDM migration.

What it will not do.

There is no PDF reader, no scan reader and no OCR. A print that exists only on paper or as a raster PDF has to become a DXF or DWG first, by whatever route you already use.

It also does not infer a solid from three projected views on its own. You lead the build and CADABRA performs each step.

Which plan this is on.

Drawings Mode is on Enterprise. It reads your title block and drawing rules first, so it is set up with you rather than switched on. Everything above happens there.

Questions about drawing to CAD.

Can CADABRA convert a 2D drawing into a 3D model?
Yes, as an assisted rebuild that you check. Open the drawing in SOLIDWORKS, or attach a picture of the print, and ask for the model. CADABRA reads the sheet, reconciles the projected views against each other, and builds a new part with a real feature tree. Nothing verifies the result against the print except the measured comparison CADABRA reports, so an engineer checks every dimension before it is used.
Which drawing formats can CADABRA open?
A saved SOLIDWORKS drawing is read directly when it is the open document. A PNG or JPG of a print is read as a picture, which is the route for a scan or a supplier print. DXF and DWG are imported instead as one unfiltered sketch in a new part, every layer and border line included, so they are geometry to build on rather than a rebuild. Do not attach the print as a PDF: a PDF is treated as a drawing-standard reference and is learned from instead of rebuilt.
Do I still need to check the converted model?
Yes. Verify the dimensions that matter before anything downstream uses the part.
Is text-to-CAD output editable, or is it a dumb mesh?
With CADABRA it is editable. Prompts are resolved into native SOLIDWORKS features such as extrudes, cuts, fillets, patterns, and Hole Wizard operations, so every result lands in the feature tree with its sketches and dimensions intact. You can roll back, edit a dimension, or change design intent exactly as you would on geometry you modeled by hand.
Do I need my own SOLIDWORKS license?
Yes. CADABRA is an add-in, not a CAD system. You keep your existing SOLIDWORKS license, files, libraries, and PDM, and CADABRA works inside them.

Bring a legacy DXF.

20 minutes, your file, built up on the call.

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