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Isometric Drawing -- VektorCAD Tutorial

This tutorial shows how to create a clean isometric pictorial in VektorCAD using the built-in isometric mode. You will draw each face on the correct ISO plane, add isometric circles for holes, and dimension the final drawing.

Line weight conventions

Thickness Used for
Thick Final visible edges
Normal Construction lines, dimensions, hidden edges
Hidden linetype Invisible edges behind the solid
Center linetype Centerlines for holes

Problem Statement

Draw the isometric projection for the block shown in the orthographic views below.

Orthographic Views

Objective:

Requirement Details
Commands used Line, Ellipse (IsoCircle), Copy, Trim, DimAlign, Oblique, Text
Visible edges Thick thickness
Construction / dimensions Normal thickness
Isometric mode ON (ISO Left, ISO Top, ISO Right)
Entity Snap ON throughout

Isometric Basics

Concept Description
Isometric axes Three axes at 120 degrees apart (30-degree left, 30-degree right, vertical)
ISO Left plane Left face of the object (angles: 90 and 150 degrees)
ISO Top plane Top face of the object (angles: 30 and 150 degrees)
ISO Right plane Right face of the object (angles: 90 and 30 degrees)
Isometric angles Use @length<angle where angle is 0, 90, 180, or 270 (mapped to ISO axes)
IsoCircle Draws an ellipse that represents a circle on the active ISO plane

Step-by-Step

1) Setup

  1. Thickness: Set to Normal (Thin / Normal / Thick)
  2. Entity Snap ON: Endpoint, Midpoint, Center recommended
  3. Isometric ON: Turn Isometric mode ON in the status bar and select ISO Left to begin

Isometric Mode

Tip

When Isometric mode is ON, the cursor crosshairs rotate to match the active ISO plane. Switch planes as you move between faces.

2) Draw the Left Face

  1. Start the Line command at the bottom corner

  2. Enter the following polar coordinates in sequence:

    Input Direction
    @50<0 Along bottom-left axis
    @20<0 Continue along bottom
    @20<0 Continue along bottom
    @15<90 Vertical up
    @90<180 Along top-left axis
    c Close the shape

Left Side 1

  1. Draw a Line using end snap at the 50 mm mark -- draw a vertical line to cut the top edge
  2. Repeat at the 70 mm mark
  3. Start a new Line at the bottom corner
  4. Enter @70<90, @15<0, @70<270 and press Enter to create the L-shape left face
  5. Use Trim to remove intersection lines

Left Side 2

3) Draw the Top Face

  1. Change ISO plane to ISO Top in the status bar
  2. Turn Snap OFF and keep Entity Snap ON
  3. Start Line and pick the endpoint at the L-shape inner corner
  4. Enter @60<90, @75<0 and pick the end of the L-shape to draw the top face
  5. Draw the other top face edges as shown:

Top Side 1

  1. Copy lines to complete all top faces

Top Side 2

4) Draw the Right Side

  1. Change ISO plane to ISO Right in the status bar

  2. Copy the line at the inner corner of the L-shape:

    Action Details
    Base point Corner point
    Second point @35<90 (vertical offset)

  3. Copy the vertical line (inner edge of L):

    Action Details
    Base point Corner point
    Second point @30<0 (horizontal offset)

  4. Select both new lines, change thickness to Normal and set Chain stroke

Right Side 1

Draw isometric circles (holes):

  1. From the Circle dropdown, click Ellipse
  2. Click IsoCircle option to draw an isometric circle
  3. Pick the intersection point of the construction lines
  4. Enter 15 for the radius
  5. Use Trim to remove the top semicircle
  6. Draw lines connecting the ends of the semicircle
  7. Copy the semicircles and lines, then Trim extensions

Right Side 2

Note

IsoCircle automatically draws the correct ellipse for the active ISO plane. Make sure you're on ISO Right when drawing circles on the right face.

5) Add Dimensions

  1. Switch thickness to Normal
  2. From the Dimension submenu, click Aligned
  3. Draw the necessary dimensions on each face

  4. Use Oblique command from the Dimension submenu to align dimensions to isometric views:

    Oblique angle Aligns to
    30 Right-side isometric axis
    -30 Left-side isometric axis

  5. Select each dimension and enter the appropriate oblique angle

Final Isometric

Tip

The Oblique command rotates the dimension extension lines so they follow the isometric axes, making dimensions readable and correctly oriented.

Result Checklist

Item Status
Isometric mode ON with correct ISO plane for each face
Left face drawn with correct L-shape profile
Top face completed with all edges
Right side with isometric circles for holes
Visible edges in Thick; construction in Normal
Dimensions aligned to isometric axes using Oblique
Hidden edges shown with Hidden linetype (if applicable)

Commands Recap

Command Purpose
line Isometric edges and axes (@len<angle)
ellipse (IsoCircle) Isometric circles for holes/bosses
copy Duplicate edges and features
trim Remove unwanted line segments
dimalign Aligned dimensions
oblique Rotate dimension extensions to match ISO axes (30 or -30)
text Labels and annotations
Format Panel Set Thickness (Normal/Thick) and Linetype (Continuous/Hidden/Center)
Status Bar Entity Snap, Isometric mode (ISO Left/Top/Right)

Complete

You've completed an isometric drawing with correct axes, line weights, isometric circles, and readable dimensions. Export to PDF to verify line weights and scale in print preview.