Just a heads up that the Solidworks Maker Edition is a pile of hot flaming garbage and I would avoid it at all costs.
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Oh gosh, just when my hopes were raised, they’re just as quickly dashed. I believe you, but can you elaborate a bit? What exactly is wrong with it? What makes it “hot flaming garbage”?
This video sums up the major issues. I used Solidworks professionally for over a decade. I really wanted the “Marker Edition” to work but it’s just not usable.
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No matter which one you choose, it’s great that we have so many choices.
I much prefer AutoCAD but it is far too expensive for most people.
I think you misunderstand. Dimensions are not important in most 3D animation and graphics software. Perspective or relational size is what people most work off of. Your primary way of creating anything is by pushing / pulling vertices, edges and faces w/o worrying about accurate dimensions.
Having done commercial 3D animations in the past I’m talking about the differences from experience. Rhino CAN be used in this way, but as soon as you get to needing dimensionally accurate parts, and get into entering dimensions for everything, you have moved from polygon based modelling to parametric. Plus there are 2 basic categories of parametric modelers, solid based and surface based (polygonal modeler). So just because it has polygons doesn’t mean it can’t be classified as a parametric modeler.
A good way to highlight this is Blender has NO built in way to do constraints, you have to install the CAD sketcher plugin, which is no where near as powerful and useful as an actual parametric program, or Rhino.
Most animation programs will NOT do layers, sectioning, drawings, bill of materials (none of them do this), auto CPlanes, and many other Drafting CAD/CAM tools used in Rhino and other programs.
I did an entire scene of a throne room with some special effects on a sword which, at the time, was the most downloaded image on the 3D forum I was on. Did not use dimensions for ANYTHING, just relational sizes, and it all looked correct.
So there IS a difference in approach.
This isn’t exactly true. The underlying mathematics and 3d engines are the same for CAD/CAM as well as for games and animation. It is the cleverness of the programmers that present it to the user in different formats. The premier CAD programs, such as AutoCAD, are not parametric based, even though they have added parametric options over the years. Your polygons are defined by points and lines, i.e. vectors, just like objects in CAD.
Unless you are making animations using GIFs, which is pixel based, you are utilizing vectors, just like CAD objects. Furthermore, for instance, objects created in AutoCAD can be imported into 3D Studio Max and edited and visa versa.
Have you engaged in 3D modeling for stills and animation? Since I’ve engaged in both, I’m giving this info based on experience. I’ve used Lightwave 3D, Cinema4D and now Blender. Have done stills and animation, organic and mechanical modeling in those programs. And BTW, I saw Rhino is a NURBS based modeler. I use one for a short period of time called real3D that just never caught on, and there are even differences in NURB modeling and polygon modeling too.
Is there anyone for hire to design one of a kind objects so I can print? I have the X1Carbon and I need to make small 3D mockups of a construction project detail. I have the 2D planes but I need to make it 3D. I don’t have the time right now to learn the software. Can anyone help or point me to people that can?
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If you want a good answer, you should probably elaborate what you mean by that.
If you mean architectural details like custom like fixtures or the like, there are now a ton of modelling services available for things like that. You supply them with drawings or specifications and they model it out for you.
I used one 17 years ago, and for a flat $200 per year they would do however many models you wanted. The turnaround was usually a day or two.
If you’re truly serious you can message us directly via our website www.protospyre3d.com or DM through our facebook page @ProtoSpyre.
Our website has a contact form at the bottom of the homepage so just provide everything in detail you’d want done.
Hey I’m getting a A1 printer soon and wanted to check out some programs for modelling but have no idea what sort of program to use. I normally stay at home all day because of a medical condition so I have a lot of time on my hands. But I also don’t want to spend forever trying different programs or spending any money. I’m only thinking on having some fun at home printing some simple things first.
After reading some of the replies here I’m thinking on using Fusion. I also understand that though it may have some limitations but that’s fine. I just want to know if fusion is easy to use for beginners? I also hate spending tons of time on trying to use a program that is just too slow and difficult to use, so I could also do with some other recommendations.
Thanks!
Oh and I don’t understand any of the fancy terms you guys use so please keep it simple!
If you are an absolute beginner I would suggest Tinkercad. Web based, free. It looks like it is for kids, but with simple adding and subtracting of objects you can end up with some pretty impressive models. I prefer SolidWorks now, but I started on Tinkecad, and used it to make a great number of things.
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Thank you! I’ll try it out.
I have to second this - I ended up upgrading to the paid Sharp3d after trying the other major players. It is SO much more intuitive and easy to use. Especially with the combo of my ipad and apple pencil/macbook and cloud based files. It’s really meant for industrial engineering and manufacturing but I’ve found it so much more understandable and usable for these purposes. Not a lot of tutorials out there, some decent ones on youtube or their own website.
I guess not many people here use Blender, but it’s pretty much all I use, and I’ve done some fairly complex precise prints already. Added bonus with learning Blender is that it’ll give you a head start if you ever want to do 3D graphics stuff for games or animations, and of course there’s a ton of tutorials out there. There’s a 3D printing extension you can install which has been a big help finding non-manifold edges which Bambu Studio really hates.
Not sure if a true CAD tool would be easier to use for 3D printing.
Being free OSS is nice too.
CAD programs like OnShape and Fusion360 now offer augmented reality features, making it easy to objects in your environment, like furniture placement.
You’ve landed on the correct distinction between sculpting and actual CAD. Don’t let people try and sell you Blender or Maya if you want to build things with dimensioning, joints, polygon-only shapes, etc., that isn’t what those tools are for. Parametric CAD is the only way to go, you WILL need to print that part 3 times to get the design and fit correct, and you will want to be able to adjust complex measurements way back in the history of that design with a single click each time.
Outside this split, the key is honestly less about the CAD, and more about the resources for learning the CAD. The best youtube tutorial support, by a FRIGGIN GINORMOUS margin, is for Fusion 360. This is not even a contest, the volume and quality vs support for other programs is insane. Solidworks and similar ‘industry-only’ programs don’t have the right hobbyist level material available, and the open source tooling while good, is used more often by people who unfortunately suck at communicating, so quality tutorials for them are harder to come by.
https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLrZ2zKOtC_-C4rWfapgngoe9o2-ng8ZBr is fantastic, for example. But there are hundreds to choose from and you can find someone whose style you prefer.
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Everything you mentioned is covered earlier. If people would just be patient enough to read through the posts with suggestions and where posters explained the differences (I did one such post), they would see many of their questions are already answered.
So for those that are looking. Just skim through and look for the informative posts instead of the comments.
As for the one post about “skipping the fancy terms”, well, anyone looking at it from that angle is shooting themselves in the foot , as they won’t be able to make an INFORMED decision. A lot of the terminology is necessary to understand the differences being explained by the people being courteous enough to actually take the time to provide answers.
You can always ask for clarification as most people are willing to be helpful.
AND as mentioned in the quoted post, tutorial quality varies. So look at that as part of the decision. If you are strapped for money, it will take more time to learn the free versions. However, you can ask for suggested channels that have the better tutorials, to increase your knowledge faster (and yes, there actually are some decent ones for some of the free programs, you just need to be led to them).