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I'm late to this thread but wanted to ask in case anyone sees this and has a specific recommendation: Is there a good free/cheap alternative to F360 for me? I

I'm late to this thread but wanted to ask in case anyone sees this and has a specific recommendation: Is there a good free/cheap alternative to F360 for me? I use Fusion 360 to model simple things for 3d printing. I've gotten used to it and think it's great when things work, but have been weary of their cloud and buggy "free personal use" licensing stuff since the start. I'll check out some of the other programs mentioned in this thread -- SolveSpace, FreeCAD etc. -- but from a first glance it seems they will all take ages to get used to. Maybe I should try become a Blender god even though IIRC that isn't really set up to do parametric modelling (I have a passing interest in game design etc. so the skill could be useful)?

dbrueck 4y ago
I've been using OnShape for the same sort of work. For now at least it's less user-hostile, but it's web based so they could still turn on you. I'm still hopeful that Blender will become a great parametric modeler. Check out the https://www.cadsketcher.com/ https://www.cadsketcher.com/ add-on - it's getting to the point where I might take the leap.
- staindk 4y ago
  Sweet, will look into those, thanks. I just spent a while in wonder at a node-based parametric design tool for Blender called Sverchok[1] - looks super powerful but wayyyy too much for my 3D printing toothbrush holders and phone stands haha. CAD Sketcher looks much more like what I'm used to. [1] https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Tu_31Cigflc https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Tu_31Cigflc
Blackthorn 4y ago
Solid Edge should do what you want. Their CAM is pay-for, but iirc the 3d printing parts are part of the free offering.
- staindk 4y ago
  Thanks, took a while to find but seems the version to go for is their Community Edition[1]. Had a look at a recent tutorial and it looks great! [1] https://www.plm.automation.siemens.com/plmapp/education/solid-edge/en_us/free-software/community https://www.plm.automation.siemens.com/plmapp/education/soli...
deleted 4y ago
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dbrueck 4y ago

I've been using OnShape for the same sort of work. For now at least it's less user-hostile, but it's web based so they could still turn on you. I'm still hopeful that Blender will become a great parametric modeler. Check out the https://www.cadsketcher.com/ https://www.cadsketcher.com/ add-on - it's getting to the point where I might take the leap.

staindk 4y ago
Sweet, will look into those, thanks. I just spent a while in wonder at a node-based parametric design tool for Blender called Sverchok[1] - looks super powerful but wayyyy too much for my 3D printing toothbrush holders and phone stands haha. CAD Sketcher looks much more like what I'm used to. [1] https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Tu_31Cigflc https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Tu_31Cigflc

Blackthorn 4y ago

Solid Edge should do what you want. Their CAM is pay-for, but iirc the 3d printing parts are part of the free offering.

staindk 4y ago
Thanks, took a while to find but seems the version to go for is their Community Edition[1]. Had a look at a recent tutorial and it looks great! [1] https://www.plm.automation.siemens.com/plmapp/education/solid-edge/en_us/free-software/community https://www.plm.automation.siemens.com/plmapp/education/soli...

deleted 4y ago

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