I am new to this and have run into a problem. I am working on the Basic Part Design Tutorial. I get as far as transferring the lines from the front pad to the back, but can not close them to move to the last step. I get the red lines and then stuck. Using windows 10 and freecad0.15
Yay! Because you're probably the only person on the forums using FreeCAD, it'll be hard to get much help here
I played with FreeCad briefly, it has good promise but needs more time in the oven I think. I really like Solidworks, but its $$$. I've been playing with Autodesk Inventor and its ok so far, but I'm still learning the workflow and tools. @GregMcFadden has been fiddling with Autodesk Fusion 360 which is free for hobbyists I think, and seemed to think it wasn't the worst thing you could choose. Some people really like SketchUp but I haven't spent much time with it other than to tell my coworker that he keeps sending me files with reversed normals. It seems like a nice drawing program but I don't think it can do any parametric modeling.
for the price I have not found anything better than fusion 360 (free) although it is infuriating if you have ever used a good cad package just because its workflow is kinda asinine at times.
I recently pointed a friend to Onshape.com. He's had lots of success with it over the holiday break. It was created by the same folks that made Solidworks, so I believe it has similar approach and is parametric.
Here's a link with a good breakdown of the best cad software for modeling for 3D printing, ranging from free to high end and/or high cost: http://www.matterhackers.com/articles/finding-the-right-3d-modeling-software-for-you Hope this helps...
hmmmm I was taught solidworks and inventor in school, and it's what we'll be using when I go back (still no where near an expert) but I think I'll give that Onshape a whirl and see what it's about. I have inventor at home but hey always good to see if theres something easier for small simple bits
I will play with Onshape and see if it's more intuitive than Fusion360. Just about everything I've done for 3D printing has been with Sketchup thus far, but Sketchup is not very good for compound curves, like Japanese SS pieces, rounded turrets, etc.
Downloaded Fusion360. Finding it easier to use than Free Cad. I'll keep working with both. Thanks for all the input.
