Thanks for taking the time to write feedback. I'm just starting out and this was my first serious video. There have been lots of comments about the background audio being too loud. I've taken this feedback on board and hopefully fixed this in future videos. You can mute the video and use my custom captions 👍
The nice thing about autodesk cutting options for personal users is that it will raise the need for Freecad to become a better software, exactly like autocad's Maya did to blender, in few years with enough demand this software will be fantastic!
I think Blender has done more to pressure Maya to become better than vice versa. When you have a tool that is free, and improving on a monthly basis, it makes your expensive software with infrequent updates look bad. On the other hand, I don't think FreeCad has the organization, funding and user base to offer much competition to F360.
Stick with Freecad - there's a massive number of us that are moving over to it from F360 and there will be massive more the next time Autodesk does the next round of crippling the software. With the increasing numbers of people moving to FreeCad the deficiencies are going to be corrected with accelerated development and new releases. Many people that have FreeCad channels on RUclips are seeing huge increases in subscribers lately too, so the awareness will increase that way as well. Great video - and I'll be subscribing in the hopes there's more Freecad content coming in the future !
Thanks for the comment. I will continue to use it alongside F360. I had a look at Lars's video ruclips.net/video/r7U5Pky6EIo/видео.html and I hope they deliver on what they are saying (Personal/Hobbiest licence to be around for a long time ahead). I'm keen to see how FreeCAD develops over the coming months and years, as there are many features that I found clunky that just simply worked intuitively in F360 (eg adding fillets to a model). I under no illusion that I'm a newbie to FreeCad, and I could be using it totally wrong. But that's learning right :)
I stared three years ago with CAD and had to choose between FreeCAD and Fusion. I new Fusion would get restricted in the future and I wanted it to work on Linux, so FreeCAD was the choice. It came a long way from 0.15 to the latest 0.19 and I hope the push caused by the Fusion fallout will make it even better.
I wont be. I just installed to convert some files to a later version so they will open in Inkscape. Freecad opened the files perfectly but wont export them without the objects being selected. Why, just export the whole file in the format requested, every other piece of software does that. So I draw a box round the objects to select them. But that doesnt work. WTF!! What drawing software wont let to select by drawing a box round items? So going to move to something that was designed with users in mind, something more intuitive, something that uses basic principles that are shared by every other software and doesnt require research for simple tasks like selection objects.
I strongly believe, FreeCAD going to be in a position in 3 to 5 years, as Blender right now in spare of 3D modeling/animation software sphere.. I'm using FreeCAD personally for over a year, and its evolving so rapid way that it will outperform other paid 3D parametric software very soon. In some cases it already done.
Thanks for taking the time to write feedback. I'm just starting out and this was my first serious video. There have been lots of comments about the background audio being too loud. I've taken this feedback on board and hopefully fixed this in future videos.
Welcome to FreeCAD, as any software, despite your vast experience in other CAD software, it has a learning curve, Im sure you will get to enjoy it. A couple of tips. Instead of using regular lines, it is best to use polyline, and try pressing M letter on each point, it will change to arcs, and other ways to continue with the sketch, without having to change to other tool. Also, if you are making a part that is symmetric, you can do only half of it, and then just with a symmetric operation, complete the other part. This means, less constraints to fight with, less work.
Thanks for the tips I will keep them in mind. You're right. With any new software, there are learning curves. The intent of this video was to show that learning curve to others that were migrating from another application cold. Other than the audio feedback from other users, I hope I did a good job
The branch of freecad that RealThunder maintains is also worth looking into. It is experimental and has some bugs but it packs lots of improvements that are not in the main freecad branch.
Text support is weak in Freecad. The community is very strong and supportive. The latest release has in-built threads capability where it was a minor career, before. I have been able to print everything I've needed to design in Freecad.
Thanks for taking the time to write feedback. I'm just starting out and this was my first serious video. There have been lots of comments about the background audio being too loud. I've taken this feedback on board and hopefully fixed this in future videos.
Current Fusion user here. For many reasons the new license restrictions can't work for me. And the poor design of their subscription services put the nail in that coffin. Trying to learn FreeCAD now. Hopefully the 'diaspora' will bring new energy/motivation to FreeCAD project. There is a thing called an anchor bias. I remember cursing fusion back in the early days as I was trying to learn it as an alternative to sketchup. I think it's important that those of us thoroughly displeased with the state of affairs stick with alternatives and help them grow. Otherwise it is a voice of consent for all the 'bovine fecal matter' thinking over at autodesk right now. Thanks for the vid
Left Fusion too and am trying to get a grasp of Freecad but it's soooo diff than the other cads I'm used to. You know how to add lobes to the outside of a circular part? I'm stuck.
glad the video is of help. fusion360 remains my primary tool as it works for me and the restrictions are not a problem for my workflow... currently. I'll continue to learn freecad... just in case I need it 👍 im interested to know what restrictions are blocking you using F360
@@IQWorkshop Recently needed to print out something 1:1 scale as a template for manual cutting a pattern out of steel plate. Turns out to do that with any hope of dimensional accuracy, I have to print to PDF out of F360 first. Also turns out that is now a paid feature. I can't justify 80$ cdn to buy a month subscription ( the minimum cost ) to print a template for one part for a personal project. I suspect the future will only hold more feature squeezes as they try convert more 'personal' licenses to 'subscribers'. I actually did bite my tongue and purchase a month sub at 80$. Figured I'd just cram in a whole bunch of F360 time in that month and then doodle away with the personal license. However after giving them my money, and struggling for several hours to figure out why it didn't 'work', and then spending another 2 hours online with support, it turns out I need to relinquish my personal license before the one month non reoccuring subscription license would be recognized. After which I'd have to re-apply for a new personal license in order to continue using F360 as a personal scratchpad. I just don't want these types of headaches for what is supposed to be a happy personal fun time activity. Plus spending the last decade in high level IT, I'm quite allergic to SaaS and am more or less convinced ( despite the clever salesmanship ) that it is intrinsically anti-consumer.
@@nobiggeridiot I have not used the print to pdf feature, or the sheet metal workflow, but I do use fusion for laser cutting which needs dimensional accuracy. To do this I create a sketch that captures the geometry I need and the export as a dxf. If you are able to create this in the sheet metal workflow, which I'm assuming may need flattening, you could then use a vector drawing app like inkscape (free) or Adobe illustrator to print. Hope you find a solution to you problem
Thanks for taking the time to write feedback. I'm just starting out and this was my first serious video. There have been lots of comments about the background audio being too loud. I've taken this feedback on board and hopefully fixed this in future videos.
Jeeze, such an excellent intro vid BUT the informative narration is DROWNED OUT by a totally unnecessarily annoying as utter HELL silly-music backing track. Oh suck a pity!
yeah... sorry about that. this was my first serious video and..... made a few mistakes. but if you mute it you can take advantage the custom captions I did... just saying
As others have said, music was too loud and it was difficult to hear you. Also, a lot of license free music is frankly annoying to listen to at this point.
Yes, UI design is one of the areas where you tend to see deficiencies in open source software. The problem seems to involve three things: ignorance of design guides (& research), no money to run independent trials on actual end users and most annoyingly for me as a programmer with an interest in UI design, stubborn "it works for me" syndrome. Good video though; looks like I'm going to stick with FreeCAD as I'm only doing some fairly simple things for 3D printing.
Thanks for leaving a comment. I'm trying 👍 I'm reasonably new to making content and want to help people get started. I know what it's like starting from 0. Hopefully my journey can help and or inspire
I heard a lot about Fusion 360 from both the RUclipsrs (such as the awesome This Old Tony) and the engineer's where I work. I need a rendering software now since I bought a 3D printer so I immediately went to the Autodesk website. At nearly $500/year (which is Glock money) I think I will just learn FreeCAD. Thank you for the basic review video. I think I will follow this rabbit hole and see where it goes.
When you say rendering, what are you looking to achieve? Fusion360 can render, but the personal licence only allows local rendering, not cloud. As long as you have a reasonably modern pc, it should be more than ample. Just remember the personal is for non commercial use 👍
FreeCAD doesn't require your sketch to be fully-constrained, but it does need you to have a definite interior and exterior - you can't do the thing you were trying to do where you have intersections in the sketch. But it's fine to leave things under-constrained.
Thanks for taking the time to write feedback. I'm just starting out and this was my first serious video. There have been lots of comments about the background audio being too loud. I've taken this feedback on board and hopefully fixed this in future videos.
Try version 0.19 of FreeCAD its miles better and more stable. (When we get 0.20 with the Linkstage3 branch as default at the end of this year. Then FreeCAD is going to be quite a competitive software.)
Fully defining your sketches becomes necessary when there are dependencies between components in an assembly. Professional CAD-Tools force you to do it because it's best practice and will ease the workflow later when changing bits and pieces within assemblys.
Thanks for taking the time to write feedback. I'm just starting out and this was my first serious video. There have been lots of comments about the background audio being too loud. I've taken this feedback on board and hopefully fixed this in future videos.
FreeCAD is quite interesting - it has some tools even Fusion does not like blend curves - But and this is a big BUT for modeling FC lacks a lot specifically for surfaces and then the naming topology issue …
Thanks for taking the time to write feedback. I'm just starting out and this was my first serious video. There have been lots of comments about the background audio being too loud. I've taken this feedback on board and hopefully fixed this in future videos.
That was a good video, but I found the audio mix made it hard to follow. The background music was a good level when you weren't speaking, but as soon as you started explaining it was hard to follow, I would suggest decreasing the background music to a much lower level during speaking scenes for maximum clarity, ideally it would be just barely audible so as not to be distracting, you can always ramp it back up for any B roll and then back down for speaking sections.
Thanks for taking the time to write feedback. I'm just starting out and this was my first serious video. There have been lots of comments about the background audio being too loud. I've taken this feedback on board and hopefully fixed this in future videos.
FreeCAD is nice. But I think that needs a complete refactor (lot of crashes and unexpected behaviours) and a dev approach similar to Blender from 2.8 (a better and user friendly GUI). Implementing the Vulkan API could be nice also, despite being complex due OpenCascade stuck in the past.
If you had used the perimeters spread sheet it would of helped. Free CAD once used correctly is very good although can have a steep learning curve. Stick with it
thanks for that. My aim going into this video wa to show the experience of someone going in cold, demonstrating that it is a viable replacement, but carries a learning curve.
For threads in FreeCAD take a look at the fasteners workbench it makes it very easy. - I am in the same boat as you moving from Fusion360 to FreeCAD and to be honest, I haven't found anything that I want to do that I can't make happen in FreeCAD. The Fusion360 interface does make some things easier but I am hoping with a little bit of Python it will be possible to mimic some of that stuff in FreeCAD.
thanks for the feedback, and I will definitely take a look at the fasteners workbench. I hope the freeCAD development team can step up seeing the movement of many makers is in their direction. Not that I think they need to make a F360 clone, but make the UI more intuitive. For example I had so many issues adding fillets as i had to cycle through the list to find the ones I wanted to apply it to. I couldn't just click the edges. But admittedly that could just be down to my lack of knowledge, which Python also falls into that category ;)
You can just select edges. If you are in the part design work bench select one edge and add a filet then when the dialogue pops up select add. Now you can select edges until your heart is content. The only issue I have had with that is if your original sketch wasn't fully constrained sometimes it will refuse to add filets to certain edges.
@@Adventuresincreation I'm so glad I made this video, not only did I learn a ton about a new application, I also connected with like minded people who are also willing to share. Thanks for taking the time to respond.
as many have stated. This was my first serious attempt at a YT video, so there are a few rough edges. I include custom captions for all my videos, so feel free to mute the video and enable CC
Thanks for taking the time to write feedback. I'm just starting out and this was my first serious video. There have been lots of comments about the background audio being too loud. I've taken this feedback on board and hopefully fixed this in future videos.
Hi there Thanks for the recommendation and for the question Freecad can import step files, as this is a common format to exchange geometry between cad programs. As for stl, I would anticipate that it will as it exports, but if you can, stick to step as the verticy and face count with stl can be problematic outside of 3d printing
Congratulations for creating your design in FreeCAD. (I have not tried FreeCAD yet; I actually have a paid Fusion 360 subscription.) But based on what you said about sketching, I would make one recommendation to you: Instead of putting most of your design in one sketch, try using several simple sketches to make your design. For example, in this case you could have made one sketch with the general outline of the part, and then you could have extruded your base profile(s) from that sketch. Then, you could have made another sketch for the cutouts, and then extruded that, etc. The great advantage of this method is that since your sketches our simple, your constraints are also simple. I believe this is the preferred way to design when using a 3D history-based CAD software; at least, this is how I learned to design in SolidWorks, Alibre Design, and Fusion 360. Thank you very much for this video.
Thanks for the feedback. I hear what you are saying. I have arrived at this methodology from using fusion and trying to not have a timeline from hell, only for it to break (yellow and red warnings). I have trouble finding a balance between the two. But I guess thats what I need to focus on my development 👍
@@IQWorkshop FreeCAD works pretty well. There is definitely a learning curve but that is with any new CAD software. You can make very complex things. I then export them as a mesh for printing but there are other ways. Not a huge Autodesk fan.
I think the advice of using more individual sketches is part of a better workflow in FreeCAD. I've used Fusion 360 for years now and it still infuriates me on occasion. The "where the heck did that go?" and "what hidden thing makes it not work today" in Fusion are giant hold ups. Just like anything is gets better as you practice.
I'm trying to switch away from fusion 360. I started using it 3 years ago and it just clicked for me and I picked up really fast. I can design any part I can imagine in Fusion 360 but they double charged me and the price keeps going up so I want to move to something else. Using FreeCAD feels painful and slow to use in comparison. It's entirely the fault of the sketching and extruding system they chose to use. 3-6 step opperations in fusion 360 are 15-100 step opperations in freeCAD because of how limited and bad freecads sketching system is. You basically have to work around it. In fusion I can make 1 sketch and extrude selected areas and the extrusion can perform boolean opperations and I can use the same sketch over and over again defining different extrusion opperations for each area, in freeCAD each pad has to be on a separate sketch. It's slow and painful...
Agreed. I love the concept of FreeCAD and the ethos behind it. Unfortunately (for me) the UI, let it down. I've been using f360 on the startup and now the personal license since 2016 and gave FreeCAD a try on the transition. I have recently done a video looking at alibre atom3d, which has a similar feel to f360 . If that's something that interests you, take a look at my latest video 👍
Many comments have been made around this. The issues was that the shape was not fully connected in spite of them being defined that way. There is plenty for me to learn, but this was an honest view of me coming into this application cold from f360.
In my job everything is defined. Not doing so leaves you open to failures down the line. Learn it, with practice you'll never not fully define your drawings
repitious practice of good habits make things happen automatically. whe you work on autopilot you can free up the brain cycles for more focused development
There are a few alternatives out there, but FreeCAD was one that will drive all 3 workflows I interested in, and the UI is quite close to F360. I'm going to continue to use it, just so I have another application at hand..... should I need it 👍
For more videos like this, why not check out some of my other content:- Making a 3D printed cable management system with FreeCAD - ruclips.net/video/BTajvEz4Z6A/видео.html Making a Overhead Camera Setup for Livestreaming - ruclips.net/video/MoA0B2CthiY/видео.html Making a Leather Wallet with Lasers - ruclips.net/video/M4Btz64IlgI/видео.html
I've never tried Fusion 360. To me it looks a lot like blender or 3D Max. I've used Inventor since Series 9 and my thought process for creating part and assembly models is closely tied to the way Inventors work flow works. I also, very early on learned to use Inventor with a 3D motion controller. Two questions I've never had answered about Fusion 360 is 1. Does it support the use of a 3D motion controller. And 2. Does Fusion 360 have a API like iLogic in Inventor. Thanks for you time. God bless and stay well.
Inventor is f360s bigger brother in my opinion. From what I have seen the user interface is very similar and transferable. I "think" all of the HIDs are compatible across the apps, but worth checking. F360s scope is limited to objects, where inventor can handle more geometry and deals with things on a much larger scale scale. I think of it this way. I would design multiple objects in f360 and then bring them into inventor. Give it a try on the free hobbiest license if you're on the fence
I agree, freecad is definitely not ready. I was trying the assembly addon (which is necessary if you do complex parts) and it's definitely not there. I couldn't undo things for example, and colors were not copied, very slow and crashes.
I agree. It's something I'm learning slowly in the background just in case something changes again with personal licence of fusion360. But if enough people contribute to support freecad it will get better. Often open source is a passion project that goes away when the developer doesn't have time or wants to move on. Enter commercial software, stage left!
@@IQWorkshop I would say if freecad doesn't get better, and Fusion 360 changes the terms, we're f**** lol I don't see any nearly cheap alternative to Fusion 360
@@Gumball_W I tried the assembly module already and it was crashing non stop. I don't think assembly in a CAD program should be an Addon but rather a builtin feature. Not sure about this realthunder's version, I never heard of it.
Thanks for taking the time to write feedback. I'm just starting out and this was my first serious video. There have been lots of comments about the background audio being too loud. I've taken this feedback on board and hopefully fixed this in future videos.
Use some its addons, the screws and other fastener components are a breeze, no need to design those yourself, any more than machining and making them yourself in reality. The auto matically created parts can be industry standard items or if desired can be 3D printed too as suits. The range of addons are great. Also there are instances where a not fully constrained sketch can be extruded, pocketed etc. In reality if not fully constrained the software can only proceed making assumptions based on placement on screen, like the default dimension that pop up as you place fixed dimensions. These may or may not work in reality. Originally I had major problems finding what is not constrained, many time with 1 or 2 missing constraints. Poking around trying to move bits sometimes still failed. Now I learned by clicking the missing count will highlight where the Freecad shows a unconstrained item, by green marking the faulty section. Often it was a point not fully joined to another, that on poking around was not seen as always the constrained point got picked. Other times to me all dimensions seemed in place, but actually some small detail was not there. With time you will get quite comfortable getting constrained fully. A good practice is to keep fully defined as you enter the design, not try to fix up the entire thing when all is there to confuse the work. Using relationships and equalities also helps, avoiding the past habits of 2D drafting of dimensioning all details independantly, rather than related to already defined details. See the methods demonstrated by Joko engineering videos, he covers several great parametric design systems and appears very skilled in all his activities.
Thanks for this. I'm, just now, looking into RS DesignSparks Mechanical ... looking good, for my purposes ... then, once I'm "up to speed" on the CAD thing, I'll come back to FreeCAD!?!
its good to know a few different tools, but the core sketch principles are a solid foundation and will ease the transition from one application to another
i lile free cad a whole lot more because i am not confined to there bs licensing. i like free cad i can have it on a junp drive and put it wherever i want do what i want with it and make prints.
Hi, Thanks for this review. Initially I want a CAD system to import and modify .dwg files into for Architectural purposes but would like to get into 3D modelling and design. What's it like for basic architectural 2D drawings?
I have only used freeCAD in a limited capacity and not used it to import drawings yet. But if it can do this, I would say there shouldn't be too much trouble with it
@@IQWorkshop I first tried Freecad many years ago struggled and gave up for F360. Last year I had to design something for a HNC project, struggled with F360 and succeeded in FreeCad, complete with FEM and fluid dynamic representations. Now loving and persevering with FreeCad.
Prior to making this video I had no freecad experience and was not installed on my pc. I only became aware of freecad when the announcement was made about the fusion licence changes, which prompted me to investigate alternatives. In my summary of the video I did state I made 3 to 4 attempts and making the model. So this video documented my first use of freecad 😉
You mean Linux (ahhhhh.. heavenly sounds), Mac (quack!), And also that other OS, what's it called? You know the one that crashes all the time and ruins your day.
Thanks for taking the time to write feedback. I'm just starting out and this was my first serious video. There have been lots of comments about the background audio being too loud. I've taken this feedback on board and hopefully fixed this in future videos.
Nice video, but the music is far to loud compared to the music. Also it is not required to full constrain a sketch in FreeCAD, however it works better when you do. Especially when changing measurements FreeCAD sometimes moves non constrained lines in unwanted ways.
Hey, thanks for taking the time to comment. I'll keep the music feedback in mind for future videos. Ok To be fair, I'm a newbie to freecad and intentionally did limited research on to see how bumpy the transition would be. I could not get the pad to extrude without having a fully defined sketch and all the faces resolved. I've still got a along way to.go learning freecad.
@Paolo G thanks for the feedback. This is the first time using freecad, so there are plenty of things I need to learn. I think the reason I had issues with extruding was there was a break in the line and the face wasn't fully formed, even though it was defined
Thanks for taking the time to write feedback. I'm just starting out and this was my first serious video. There have been lots of comments about the background audio being too loud. I've taken this feedback on board and hopefully fixed this in future videos.
Just illustrates that you need to actually learn how to use a piece of software rather than assume all your prior knowledge translates. If FreeCAD worked the same way as Fusion 360 there would be no Fusion 360. Fusion 360 is a little like "loss leader" products at the supermarket, once there sufficient numbers are persuaded to actually pay for extra functionality to make AutoDesk a profit. The changes instituted are a gamble that more people will upgrade than drop out and their backtracking on some of the changes indicates the original gamble was a losing proposition.
thanks for the feedback. This is exactly why I made this video. to demonstrate what would happen if f360 just went away and users switched. there is a barrier to entry before being productive and a lot of comments I have seen is they are abandoning f360 with an apparent lack of thought as to the implications. I like both applications for different reasons and I continue to learn freecad to deepen my overall understanding.
Thanks for taking the time to write feedback. I'm just starting out and this was my first serious video. There have been lots of comments about the background audio being too loud. I've taken this feedback on board and hopefully fixed this in future videos.
Thanks for the question. If you are talking about during the printing, this is a BLTouch bed levelling sensor. It is used to measure the flatness of the print bed and adjust for any inconsistencies to make sure the layers stick. It can be the difference between a successful print and failure.
fusion 360 and sketchup are more or less forcing casual users to either use pirated software or just leave their platforms. (i know sketchup free is now browser based but i don't see the benefit of learning their new interface.)
I don't understand why these tools like F360 and FreeCad make it nearly impossible to just freely sketch an idea out, and once you have settled on an idea then add all the constraints and dimensions. It makes them really bad for designing unless you know all the specifics ahead of time.
If you haven't settled on an idea yet or don't know the specifics, you probably don't need 3D CAD. Just pencil and paper will do in that phase. CAD programs are not really tools for artistic design processes. But rather for industrial/product design (like in the video), mechanical design, architecture etc.
@@olavl8827 That is just nonsense. The difference between sculpture, architecture and product design is a slim one. I do almost all my sketching in Adobe Illustrator, and combining that with Blender, Sketchup or even Tinkercad, I can get things roughly where I want them, but there is no path for refinement from there. As artists and engineers have proven for millennia there is no actual need for CAD, but when it comes time to manufacture something it sure is handy, especially when you need to make variations on a design.
Yes, parametric CAD software are not design software. Design software is more something like Rhino and MOI, but they are not parametric, so it can be difficult to change the sizes later too. It's more like sketching in 3D. I think these two approaches, freeform and parametric, are at odds with each other, since the construction of an object imposes a particular hierarchy of operations that are baked into it, and that object can be reconstructed again by following the same, because your sizes that you build something from and that you can measure are not necessarily the final sizes, this is what sketch constraints and construction lines allow you to express. I don't have a good example right off the top of my head, but maybe you know what i mean? As material gets removed or added successively it can make fundamental measurements no longer accessible. Fundamentally parametric design is exactly there to solve the problem that you don't know the size YET. You can go up the construction tree and change the sizes later, and if you're lucky, the object will recompute. But you need at least something for a start. A particular issue is weak topology, that depending on the sizes, not only the dimensions of the final object can be different, but also the topological geometry. like depending on where things intersect, there can be a different number edges between parametric surfaces. Imagine intersecting a cylinder with a cube, and then think, is cylinder taller or shorter than the cube? Is the diameter of the cylinder smaller than the size of the cube, or are they between that and the diagonal of the cube, or larger than diagonal of the cube? These all generate different topology, not only different sizes. Then you have built something on top, something that depends on generated surfaces and edges, and if the number of surface patches and edges isn't the same, there's now way it can match and reapply. Even when number is the same, the "topological naming" problem can cause a reconstruction failure, where there is no way to identify which edges and surfaces are the "same" after reconstruction. You can actually go in FreeCAD create a Spreadsheet and define your variables there, your named sizes, and you can then change them later anytime. But it only underlines the inefficiency of FreeCAD at freeform design and you end up putting extra effort in to account for your size uncertainty. And i'm not sure how this problem can be solved? If you have any thoughts - i might be compelled to create a CAD software eventually, but thing is, i don't have the whole picture and i don't have a solution, and i have related experience with developing graphics engines and graphics tools but not nearly enough CAD and freeform design software experience myself; so i'd like any possible input. I'm not sure that i will embark on this journey to write a CAD yet, i lack crucial insight of how i can make something different and better, there is little value in doing a sub-par job. Since there hasn't been an actual solution that i know of or that is widely known, it's been an essential skill of product designers to go as far as possible before hitting the software. Sketching pencil on paper, mocking things up from cardboard, styrene, foamcore, plasticine, etc. By the time you end up in software, you already have the topology in front of you so you can focus on constructing parametrically with just enough flexibility built into the construction to fine-tune the sizes.
@@macrumpton It's great that you are proficient with Adobe Illustrator, Blender, Sketchup and Tinkercad. But none of those programs are what say a mechanical engineer would use. One category of users just wants to be able to freely draw what's in their heads. Another needs to be able to work to very exact dimensions. CAD software like Fusion360, SolidWorks, FreeCAD and such (mostly) cater to the latter category.
I tend to sketch on paper and then once I've settled on a design, think about the orthographic views. that when I start using cad software no matter.what version it is
@@IQWorkshop when it comes to youtube videos, audio is more important than camera quality. Look at "gamers" and others of the like on here. they don't upgrade their camera stuff untill way later in there career like markiplier for ex but always have had decent audio. if you don't have a good audio does that mean your videos are bad? No. it's only a technical recommendation. you videos are actually nice. I hope the platform suits you well. im sure ull do fine. ^w^
I think I have improved the audio in the 2 videos after this one. I will probably invest in a good lav mic at some point, but mixing levels is sometimes can fix in the edit, so ill keep a close eye on this 👍
Hi there, This was my first serioous video and sadly I cannot edit out the music on a video that has been uploaded ☹ On the plus side, I have done custom captions for the video so you could watch it with the sound off. Hope that helps 👍
With practice comes proficiency. I've been using F630 for a good number of years and I'm OK at it. When I say OK - I mean I can achieve what I need to in it. I need to get to a similar level in FreeCAD just in case I need to make the switch
This is an easy to follow video for a noob like myself. Quite hard to hear your voice over that stupid tune though....hmm. If it needs to be there turn it down a bit.
thanks for the feedback. I tried to show an honest view of a user going onto freecad cold. this was my first video with any sort of thought, but had a schoolboy error with the audio. I'm hoping all of my other videos are better 👍
Thanks for the question In my limited use I have had very good results from freecad for 3d printing. I have yet to use it for CNC, however what I have seen gives me confidence that it will produce good results. The important thing it to test it with a non essential job and understand the limitations of your setup and your knowledge. Good luck
As a fully BREP based system, i expect that at least export to STEP files to process with other software such as professional CAM will be absolutely precise, i don't believe you need to worry. It seems internal CAM (Path WB) is OK too but whether you'll achieve your results with that depends on like a million things, i don't actually have experience with that.
Hi, I was very interested in your vid, but let me ask you something first, because I take this is kind of a *Tutorial* right ?. So, what do you think is *by far* the most important thing here: What you have to say or the *stupid and completely unnecessary MUSIC* you put on; and the worst part of all *almost at the same volume level than your own voice* Do you get it now ?. We came here *to learn something from you* and NOT TO LISTEN MUSIC, because when is about *Teaching* both things simple *DOES NOT MIX* Thanks.
Thanks for taking the time to write feedback. I'm just starting out and this was my first serious video. There have been lots of comments about the background audio being too loud. I've taken this feedback on board and hopefully fixed this in future videos.
@@IQWorkshop Good for you !. Thank so much for taking this issue in consideration to your next videos. Greetings from Chile, South America. This is John.
I learned a lot of the best practices for fusion 360 from Lars Christensen. I wish there was a similar teacher for freeCad.. I like freeCad and appreciate the effort of the developers. I typically learn the freeCad best practices by making mistakes and then starting over and this process consumes a lot of time.
i hope i can grow into a knowledge store like Lars. until then i will share what i learn as i use the tool and figure out how to translate whqt i know in f360 to freecad. thqnks for the feedback
Oh there is Check out JokoEngineering His videos helped me quite a bit. Switching to FreeCAD is panifull but if you want to do some work related to 3d design maybe it's very welcome addition. It's either that or buy cheaper but more functional cad software. Or just plunder solidworks (not recommended tho).
There are 2 free licences for fusion360. Educational - full access no restrictions, but you have to qualify. Personal - reduced feature set and restrictions. I currently use Personal and have no problems with my 3d printing and laser cutting workflows
@@MrFrisMich you have to demonstrate you are a student. usually this will be confirmed by the use of an email address associated with an educational organisation (e.g. collage/university) Autodesk want to make sure that the educational licence is being used for educational purposes, and not someone trying to game the system
@@IQWorkshop This ha now changed: in order to qualify for an educational license it is necessary to send in documentary evidence that you are actively enrolled on a module-if you're taking some time out of studies because of, for example, some strange illness that might have caught you out recently then an 'appropriate' email address is no longer sufficient. …I discovered this when my license expired earlier this month. :(
@@GeoffRiley Requirements (and licence agreements for that matter) constantly evolve. It's important to keep a regular check on these things to make sure you don't get caught out. I think Autodesk have learnt a lot over the last 12 months since the change. Nothing is ever perfect, but how a company responds to issues is how it should be judged. As a hobbyist, I am grateful there is a licence that I can freely use for my projects.
Sorry, gave up watching as music was too loud compared to voice and I was struggling (have a minor hearing issue). Shame as I think it was good content.
@@IQWorkshop I'll have another go later and maybe use those. Was more about giving you constructive feedback rather than just moving on and not saying anything.
@@forgotrafe thank you. I do appreciate the feedback. This was my first real video so I'm still learning the craft. I hope the 2 videos after this one are better.
I'm sorry for the sincerity, but this is more of the same. There's no need to create a video about FreeCAD saying that you prefer Autodesk products in the end.
Sorry you feel this way! This is one man's view of going into using the application for the first time in an effort to show others in the same situation what lies ahead. I'm not an expert. Just a guy documenting his journey. My opinion was honest and still stands. I still use Fusion360 as my primary application, but it's good to know there is an alternative. I just hope the UI and functionality will improve with the increased focus.
@@IQWorkshop I agree with your initiative itself. What I meant is that the way you conveyed the message had a slightly opposite effect, as if FreeCad was not worth using. This was my first impression, but I apologize for the misunderstanding. Cheers.
![Summer Walker - Heart Of A Woman [Official Lyric Video]](http://i.ytimg.com/vi/SFddctbZzw8/mqdefault.jpg)
This video seem to be very interesting, but the continuous music avoid concentrating on it 😢
Thanks for taking the time to write feedback.
I'm just starting out and this was my first serious video.
There have been lots of comments about the background audio being too loud.
I've taken this feedback on board and hopefully fixed this in future videos.
You can mute the video and use my custom captions 👍
@@IQWorkshop no music at all is totally fine, don't worry about it. the content matters. :)
@@LaurentLaborde Exactly. This is a tutorial, not a musical.
it not a musical.:(
I didn’t think it was all that bothersome, though; those who it bothers might be more tolerant if the volume was lower.
The nice thing about autodesk cutting options for personal users is that it will raise the need for Freecad to become a better software, exactly like autocad's Maya did to blender, in few years with enough demand this software will be fantastic!
i will switch to freeCAD
I think Blender has done more to pressure Maya to become better than vice versa. When you have a tool that is free, and improving on a monthly basis, it makes your expensive software with infrequent updates look bad. On the other hand, I don't think FreeCad has the organization, funding and user base to offer much competition to F360.
Stick with Freecad - there's a massive number of us that are moving over to it from F360 and there will be massive more the next time Autodesk does the next round of crippling the software. With the increasing numbers of people moving to FreeCad the deficiencies are going to be corrected with accelerated development and new releases. Many people that have FreeCad channels on RUclips are seeing huge increases in subscribers lately too, so the awareness will increase that way as well. Great video - and I'll be subscribing in the hopes there's more Freecad content coming in the future !
Thanks for the comment. I will continue to use it alongside F360. I had a look at Lars's video ruclips.net/video/r7U5Pky6EIo/видео.html and I hope they deliver on what they are saying (Personal/Hobbiest licence to be around for a long time ahead). I'm keen to see how FreeCAD develops over the coming months and years, as there are many features that I found clunky that just simply worked intuitively in F360 (eg adding fillets to a model). I under no illusion that I'm a newbie to FreeCad, and I could be using it totally wrong. But that's learning right :)
I stared three years ago with CAD and had to choose between FreeCAD and Fusion. I new Fusion would get restricted in the future and I wanted it to work on Linux, so FreeCAD was the choice. It came a long way from 0.15 to the latest 0.19 and I hope the push caused by the Fusion fallout will make it even better.
I wont be. I just installed to convert some files to a later version so they will open in Inkscape. Freecad opened the files perfectly but wont export them without the objects being selected. Why, just export the whole file in the format requested, every other piece of software does that.
So I draw a box round the objects to select them. But that doesnt work. WTF!! What drawing software wont let to select by drawing a box round items?
So going to move to something that was designed with users in mind, something more intuitive, something that uses basic principles that are shared by every other software and doesnt require research for simple tasks like selection objects.
I strongly believe, FreeCAD going to be in a position in 3 to 5 years, as Blender right now in spare of 3D modeling/animation software sphere.. I'm using FreeCAD personally for over a year, and its evolving so rapid way that it will outperform other paid 3D parametric software very soon. In some cases it already done.
Music is too distracting and upbeat for your subject. You speak at a quiet level anyway, so I’d say lose the music altogether
Thanks for taking the time to write feedback.
I'm just starting out and this was my first serious video.
There have been lots of comments about the background audio being too loud.
I've taken this feedback on board and hopefully fixed this in future videos.
Finally a video that isn’t 3 years old
Thanks Man! 👍
Welcome to FreeCAD, as any software, despite your vast experience in other CAD software, it has a learning curve, Im sure you will get to enjoy it. A couple of tips. Instead of using regular lines, it is best to use polyline, and try pressing M letter on each point, it will change to arcs, and other ways to continue with the sketch, without having to change to other tool. Also, if you are making a part that is symmetric, you can do only half of it, and then just with a symmetric operation, complete the other part. This means, less constraints to fight with, less work.
Thanks for the tips I will keep them in mind. You're right. With any new software, there are learning curves. The intent of this video was to show that learning curve to others that were migrating from another application cold.
Other than the audio feedback from other users, I hope I did a good job
The branch of freecad that RealThunder maintains is also worth looking into. It is experimental and has some bugs but it packs lots of improvements that are not in the main freecad branch.
The exciting one is multiple solid in a body.
need multiple solids just make multiple bodies or use Part workbench .
Next video could you please turn the music up a bit?
I got the message 😆
Text support is weak in Freecad.
The community is very strong and supportive.
The latest release has in-built threads capability where it was a minor career, before.
I have been able to print everything I've needed to design in Freecad.
music is too loud
Thanks for taking the time to write feedback.
I'm just starting out and this was my first serious video.
There have been lots of comments about the background audio being too loud.
I've taken this feedback on board and hopefully fixed this in future videos.
Current Fusion user here. For many reasons the new license restrictions can't work for me. And the poor design of their subscription services put the nail in that coffin. Trying to learn FreeCAD now. Hopefully the 'diaspora' will bring new energy/motivation to FreeCAD project.
There is a thing called an anchor bias. I remember cursing fusion back in the early days as I was trying to learn it as an alternative to sketchup.
I think it's important that those of us thoroughly displeased with the state of affairs stick with alternatives and help them grow. Otherwise it is a voice of consent for all the 'bovine fecal matter' thinking over at autodesk right now.
Thanks for the vid
Left Fusion too and am trying to get a grasp of Freecad but it's soooo diff than the other cads I'm used to. You know how to add lobes to the outside of a circular part? I'm stuck.
glad the video is of help.
fusion360 remains my primary tool as it works for me and the restrictions are not a problem for my workflow... currently. I'll continue to learn freecad... just in case I need it 👍
im interested to know what restrictions are blocking you using F360
possibly.addin a sketch to the nearest face and do a join operation?
what specifically has made you move away from F360?
@@IQWorkshop Recently needed to print out something 1:1 scale as a template for manual cutting a pattern out of steel plate. Turns out to do that with any hope of dimensional accuracy, I have to print to PDF out of F360 first. Also turns out that is now a paid feature. I can't justify 80$ cdn to buy a month subscription ( the minimum cost ) to print a template for one part for a personal project. I suspect the future will only hold more feature squeezes as they try convert more 'personal' licenses to 'subscribers'.
I actually did bite my tongue and purchase a month sub at 80$. Figured I'd just cram in a whole bunch of F360 time in that month and then doodle away with the personal license. However after giving them my money, and struggling for several hours to figure out why it didn't 'work', and then spending another 2 hours online with support, it turns out I need to relinquish my personal license before the one month non reoccuring subscription license would be recognized.
After which I'd have to re-apply for a new personal license in order to continue using F360 as a personal scratchpad.
I just don't want these types of headaches for what is supposed to be a happy personal fun time activity.
Plus spending the last decade in high level IT, I'm quite allergic to SaaS and am more or less convinced ( despite the clever salesmanship ) that it is intrinsically anti-consumer.
@@nobiggeridiot I have not used the print to pdf feature, or the sheet metal workflow, but I do use fusion for laser cutting which needs dimensional accuracy.
To do this I create a sketch that captures the geometry I need and the export as a dxf.
If you are able to create this in the sheet metal workflow, which I'm assuming may need flattening, you could then use a vector drawing app like inkscape (free) or Adobe illustrator to print.
Hope you find a solution to you problem
Thanks for this. But, I'd vote for making the background music much quiter.
Thanks for taking the time to write feedback.
I'm just starting out and this was my first serious video.
There have been lots of comments about the background audio being too loud.
I've taken this feedback on board and hopefully fixed this in future videos.
how about no back ground music...it's not needed at all and get Very Annoying to what would otherwise be a GREAT video!
Jeeze, such an excellent intro vid BUT the informative narration is DROWNED OUT by a totally unnecessarily annoying as utter HELL silly-music backing track. Oh suck a pity!
yeah... sorry about that. this was my first serious video and..... made a few mistakes. but if you mute it you can take advantage the custom captions I did... just saying
As others have said, music was too loud and it was difficult to hear you.
Also, a lot of license free music is frankly annoying to listen to at this point.
Yes, UI design is one of the areas where you tend to see deficiencies in open source software. The problem seems to involve three things: ignorance of design guides (& research), no money to run independent trials on actual end users and most annoyingly for me as a programmer with an interest in UI design, stubborn "it works for me" syndrome.
Good video though; looks like I'm going to stick with FreeCAD as I'm only doing some fairly simple things for 3D printing.
If it does what you need, no need to change
I get what you mean but it isn't a huge deal because it's foss and you can create a skin for it.
Respect for promoting free software and making good quality presentation. 🙂
Thanks for leaving a comment. I'm trying 👍
I'm reasonably new to making content and want to help people get started. I know what it's like starting from 0. Hopefully my journey can help and or inspire
I heard a lot about Fusion 360 from both the RUclipsrs (such as the awesome This Old Tony) and the engineer's where I work. I need a rendering software now since I bought a 3D printer so I immediately went to the Autodesk website. At nearly $500/year (which is Glock money) I think I will just learn FreeCAD. Thank you for the basic review video. I think I will follow this rabbit hole and see where it goes.
When you say rendering, what are you looking to achieve? Fusion360 can render, but the personal licence only allows local rendering, not cloud. As long as you have a reasonably modern pc, it should be more than ample. Just remember the personal is for non commercial use 👍
FreeCAD doesn't require your sketch to be fully-constrained, but it does need you to have a definite interior and exterior - you can't do the thing you were trying to do where you have intersections in the sketch. But it's fine to leave things under-constrained.
music man, turn it down
Thanks for taking the time to write feedback.
I'm just starting out and this was my first serious video.
There have been lots of comments about the background audio being too loud.
I've taken this feedback on board and hopefully fixed this in future videos.
Why the terribly loud music in the back... ehm... foreground...?!?
Schoolboy error on my first video. This should be resolved for my videos after this
Try version 0.19 of FreeCAD its miles better and more stable. (When we get 0.20 with the Linkstage3 branch as default at the end of this year. Then FreeCAD is going to be quite a competitive software.)
Try realthunders version, it's already miles ahead of 0.19.
Fully defining your sketches becomes necessary when there are dependencies between components in an assembly. Professional CAD-Tools force you to do it because it's best practice and will ease the workflow later when changing bits and pieces within assemblys.
I'm still learning and will continue to do so every day. better every try ❤
In FreeCAD it’s not necessary to fully constrain sketches before extruding/revolving them.
nice video, but your background music is too loud, too repetitive and distracting from the content.
Thanks for taking the time to write feedback.
I'm just starting out and this was my first serious video.
There have been lots of comments about the background audio being too loud.
I've taken this feedback on board and hopefully fixed this in future videos.
FreeCAD is quite interesting - it has some tools even Fusion does not like blend curves - But and this is a big BUT for modeling FC lacks a lot specifically for surfaces and then the naming topology issue …
Fantastic video, always been curious, thanks!
looks good but the music clobber a bit the voice
Thanks for taking the time to write feedback.
I'm just starting out and this was my first serious video.
There have been lots of comments about the background audio being too loud.
I've taken this feedback on board and hopefully fixed this in future videos.
That was a good video, but I found the audio mix made it hard to follow. The background music was a good level when you weren't speaking, but as soon as you started explaining it was hard to follow, I would suggest decreasing the background music to a much lower level during speaking scenes for maximum clarity, ideally it would be just barely audible so as not to be distracting, you can always ramp it back up for any B roll and then back down for speaking sections.
Thanks for taking the time to write feedback.
I'm just starting out and this was my first serious video.
There have been lots of comments about the background audio being too loud.
I've taken this feedback on board and hopefully fixed this in future videos.
I'd love a detailed video on the design and all the considerations that went into it.
I was going to write same comment and also please lower the music...
FreeCAD is nice. But I think that needs a complete refactor (lot of crashes and unexpected behaviours) and a dev approach similar to Blender from 2.8 (a better and user friendly GUI). Implementing the Vulkan API could be nice also, despite being complex due OpenCascade stuck in the past.
Its not without its issues. But is a viable option if f360 is not.
I'm sure that the increased focus an support on FreeCAD will drive improments
@@IQWorkshop Of course. Just need a backing / support "à la" Blender Foundation.
Yet to see the crashes you speak of. We use a number of stations commercially with a extremely stable history.
If you had used the perimeters spread sheet it would of helped. Free CAD once used correctly is very good although can have a steep learning curve. Stick with it
thanks for that. My aim going into this video wa to show the experience of someone going in cold, demonstrating that it is a viable replacement, but carries a learning curve.
@@IQWorkshop well I look forward to more videos, it is a very capable CAD work place with much to offer those who persist not only for 3D printing
Background music is far too loud... can't hear you very well.
For threads in FreeCAD take a look at the fasteners workbench it makes it very easy. - I am in the same boat as you moving from Fusion360 to FreeCAD and to be honest, I haven't found anything that I want to do that I can't make happen in FreeCAD. The Fusion360 interface does make some things easier but I am hoping with a little bit of Python it will be possible to mimic some of that stuff in FreeCAD.
thanks for the feedback, and I will definitely take a look at the fasteners workbench.
I hope the freeCAD development team can step up seeing the movement of many makers is in their direction.
Not that I think they need to make a F360 clone, but make the UI more intuitive. For example I had so many issues adding fillets as i had to cycle through the list to find the ones I wanted to apply it to. I couldn't just click the edges. But admittedly that could just be down to my lack of knowledge, which Python also falls into that category ;)
@@IQWorkshop - also look at the addon manager Bolts Macro
You can just select edges. If you are in the part design work bench select one edge and add a filet then when the dialogue pops up select add. Now you can select edges until your heart is content. The only issue I have had with that is if your original sketch wasn't fully constrained sometimes it will refuse to add filets to certain edges.
@@Adventuresincreation I'm so glad I made this video, not only did I learn a ton about a new application, I also connected with like minded people who are also willing to share. Thanks for taking the time to respond.
I am excited by the renewed interest in freecad. I had moved to fusion 360 but I think I am sticking with freecad now.
STOP the music!!
Just needs turned down a bit. Background music is ok.
@@daedulsworkshop probably the problem is he closed the video few days ago
Sadly I cannot do anyrhing about the audio after the fact. If it is too much, then dial bach the audio and use the custom captions I uploaded 👍
music competes with voice - making this tut difficult to watch. thank you for your effort
as many have stated. This was my first serious attempt at a YT video, so there are a few rough edges.
I include custom captions for all my videos, so feel free to mute the video and enable CC
The music noise killed the video.
Thanks for taking the time to write feedback.
I'm just starting out and this was my first serious video.
There have been lots of comments about the background audio being too loud.
I've taken this feedback on board and hopefully fixed this in future videos.
Wow, that LOUD background music is SO annoying! Did not make it to the end, it's horror!
Yeah, this was my first serious youtube video.
Let's just say, changes have been made.
Feel free to reduce the volume and turn on custom captions.
Great video. Thank you!
the music is annooooooooooooyyyyiiiiiiiinnnnnnnnng
Wow... damned good job of including obnoxious annoying music
Sorry about that. this was my first serious video and have made changes since. Feel free to mute and take advantage of the custom captions I've done
Onshape has very good sketching capability, can freecad import step, stl files created in onshape? I want to use freecad for CAM operations only
Hi there
Thanks for the recommendation and for the question
Freecad can import step files, as this is a common format to exchange geometry between cad programs.
As for stl, I would anticipate that it will as it exports, but if you can, stick to step as the verticy and face count with stl can be problematic outside of 3d printing
Congratulations for creating your design in FreeCAD. (I have not tried FreeCAD yet; I actually have a paid Fusion 360 subscription.) But based on what you said about sketching, I would make one recommendation to you: Instead of putting most of your design in one sketch, try using several simple sketches to make your design. For example, in this case you could have made one sketch with the general outline of the part, and then you could have extruded your base profile(s) from that sketch. Then, you could have made another sketch for the cutouts, and then extruded that, etc. The great advantage of this method is that since your sketches our simple, your constraints are also simple. I believe this is the preferred way to design when using a 3D history-based CAD software; at least, this is how I learned to design in SolidWorks, Alibre Design, and Fusion 360. Thank you very much for this video.
Thanks for the feedback. I hear what you are saying. I have arrived at this methodology from using fusion and trying to not have a timeline from hell, only for it to break (yellow and red warnings). I have trouble finding a balance between the two. But I guess thats what I need to focus on my development 👍
@@IQWorkshop FreeCAD works pretty well. There is definitely a learning curve but that is with any new CAD software. You can make very complex things. I then export them as a mesh for printing but there are other ways. Not a huge Autodesk fan.
I think the advice of using more individual sketches is part of a better workflow in FreeCAD. I've used Fusion 360 for years now and it still infuriates me on occasion. The "where the heck did that go?" and "what hidden thing makes it not work today" in Fusion are giant hold ups. Just like anything is gets better as you practice.
A solution woud be to shut the volume off and put the translation on :))
That is exactly why I do custom captions 👍
In the end it’s all about the UI, tried FreeCAD and found it quite frustrating.
@@Goforitmanager agreed. I really like the principle of freeCAD, but it's not quoie there yet for me
I'm trying to switch away from fusion 360. I started using it 3 years ago and it just clicked for me and I picked up really fast. I can design any part I can imagine in Fusion 360 but they double charged me and the price keeps going up so I want to move to something else.
Using FreeCAD feels painful and slow to use in comparison. It's entirely the fault of the sketching and extruding system they chose to use. 3-6 step opperations in fusion 360 are 15-100 step opperations in freeCAD because of how limited and bad freecads sketching system is. You basically have to work around it.
In fusion I can make 1 sketch and extrude selected areas and the extrusion can perform boolean opperations and I can use the same sketch over and over again defining different extrusion opperations for each area, in freeCAD each pad has to be on a separate sketch. It's slow and painful...
Agreed. I love the concept of FreeCAD and the ethos behind it. Unfortunately (for me) the UI, let it down.
I've been using f360 on the startup and now the personal license since 2016 and gave FreeCAD a try on the transition.
I have recently done a video looking at alibre atom3d, which has a similar feel to f360 .
If that's something that interests you, take a look at my latest video 👍
why the pen and paper when the tablet is right there.
Hahaha I never really thought about it 🤣🤣
@@IQWorkshop - never had a pen and paper crash. :)
Not true that you cannot extrude unless you fully define a sketch. You can extrude underdefined sketches!
Many comments have been made around this. The issues was that the shape was not fully connected in spite of them being defined that way.
There is plenty for me to learn, but this was an honest view of me coming into this application cold from f360.
I should make my own cad software
If you have the skills, why not 👍
In my job everything is defined. Not doing so leaves you open to failures down the line.
Learn it, with practice you'll never not fully define your drawings
repitious practice of good habits make things happen automatically. whe you work on autopilot you can free up the brain cycles for more focused development
Thanks for the video, nice to see an alternative to Fusion should I need it
There are a few alternatives out there, but FreeCAD was one that will drive all 3 workflows I interested in, and the UI is quite close to F360.
I'm going to continue to use it, just so I have another application at hand..... should I need it 👍
For more videos like this, why not check out some of my other content:-
Making a 3D printed cable management system with FreeCAD - ruclips.net/video/BTajvEz4Z6A/видео.html
Making a Overhead Camera Setup for Livestreaming - ruclips.net/video/MoA0B2CthiY/видео.html
Making a Leather Wallet with Lasers - ruclips.net/video/M4Btz64IlgI/видео.html
I've never tried Fusion 360. To me it looks a lot like blender or 3D Max. I've used Inventor since Series 9 and my thought process for creating part and assembly models is closely tied to the way Inventors work flow works. I also, very early on learned to use Inventor with a 3D motion controller. Two questions I've never had answered about Fusion 360 is 1. Does it support the use of a 3D motion controller. And 2. Does Fusion 360 have a API like iLogic in Inventor. Thanks for you time. God bless and stay well.
Inventor is f360s bigger brother in my opinion.
From what I have seen the user interface is very similar and transferable.
I "think" all of the HIDs are compatible across the apps, but worth checking.
F360s scope is limited to objects, where inventor can handle more geometry and deals with things on a much larger scale scale.
I think of it this way. I would design multiple objects in f360 and then bring them into inventor.
Give it a try on the free hobbiest license if you're on the fence
Why music?
Because I was new to making videos 🤷♂️
I moved to freecad from fusion 360 by doing draft designs and then converting them into sketches to speed up the design process
But ... but parametrization ? Non destructivity ?
@@mihailazar2487 I needed to produce designs quickly and beginning from a sketch wasn't cutting it
Good video but the music was distracting and made it harder to hear you
I agree, freecad is definitely not ready. I was trying the assembly addon (which is necessary if you do complex parts) and it's definitely not there. I couldn't undo things for example, and colors were not copied, very slow and crashes.
I agree. It's something I'm learning slowly in the background just in case something changes again with personal licence of fusion360.
But if enough people contribute to support freecad it will get better.
Often open source is a passion project that goes away when the developer doesn't have time or wants to move on.
Enter commercial software, stage left!
@@IQWorkshop I would say if freecad doesn't get better, and Fusion 360 changes the terms, we're f**** lol I don't see any nearly cheap alternative to Fusion 360
There’s more than one assembly module available as add-on for FreeCAD. Also, Realthunder’s version might be a game changer.
@@Gumball_W I tried the assembly module already and it was crashing non stop. I don't think assembly in a CAD program should be an Addon but rather a builtin feature. Not sure about this realthunder's version, I never heard of it.
Disco?? Cad don't need extra sound. Sorry can't hearing your comments.
Support thundereal on patreon so that he can make FreeCAD awesome!
Your sound effects are far too loud.
Thanks for taking the time to write feedback.
I'm just starting out and this was my first serious video.
There have been lots of comments about the background audio being too loud.
I've taken this feedback on board and hopefully fixed this in future videos.
Use some its addons, the screws and other fastener components are a breeze, no need to design those yourself, any more than machining and making them yourself in reality. The auto matically created parts can be industry standard items or if desired can be 3D printed too as suits.
The range of addons are great. Also there are instances where a not fully constrained sketch can be extruded, pocketed etc. In reality if not fully constrained the software can only proceed making assumptions based on placement on screen, like the default dimension that pop up as you place fixed dimensions. These may or may not work in reality.
Originally I had major problems finding what is not constrained, many time with 1 or 2 missing constraints. Poking around trying to move bits sometimes still failed. Now I learned by clicking the missing count will highlight where the Freecad shows a unconstrained item, by green marking the faulty section. Often it was a point not fully joined to another, that on poking around was not seen as always the constrained point got picked. Other times to me all dimensions seemed in place, but actually some small detail was not there. With time you will get quite comfortable getting constrained fully. A good practice is to keep fully defined as you enter the design, not try to fix up the entire thing when all is there to confuse the work. Using relationships and equalities also helps, avoiding the past habits of 2D drafting of dimensioning all details independantly, rather than related to already defined details. See the methods demonstrated by Joko engineering videos, he covers several great parametric design systems and appears very skilled in all his activities.
thank you for the suggestions. I'll definitely give them a look on the next project
Thanks for this. I'm, just now, looking into RS DesignSparks Mechanical ... looking good, for my purposes ... then, once I'm "up to speed" on the CAD thing, I'll come back to FreeCAD!?!
its good to know a few different tools, but the core sketch principles are a solid foundation and will ease the transition from one application to another
have u tried ptc creo
No, I've not heard of that application
i lile free cad a whole lot more because i am not confined to there bs licensing. i like free cad i can have it on a junp drive and put it wherever i want do what i want with it and make prints.
Hi, Thanks for this review. Initially I want a CAD system to import and modify .dwg files into for Architectural purposes but would like to get into 3D modelling and design. What's it like for basic architectural 2D drawings?
I have only used freeCAD in a limited capacity and not used it to import drawings yet. But if it can do this, I would say there shouldn't be too much trouble with it
There is an architectural and BIM workbench in Freecad, as well as FEM.
I probably should revisit freecad and see what changes there have been since this videobwas made
@@IQWorkshop I first tried Freecad many years ago struggled and gave up for F360. Last year I had to design something for a HNC project, struggled with F360 and succeeded in FreeCad, complete with FEM and fluid dynamic representations.
Now loving and persevering with FreeCad.
I'm a great believer in "if it works for you, it's right!".
I just like showcasing different options so people can find "their " fit
I doubt it was your first time, Sir:)
Awesome!
Prior to making this video I had no freecad experience and was not installed on my pc.
I only became aware of freecad when the announcement was made about the fusion licence changes, which prompted me to investigate alternatives.
In my summary of the video I did state I made 3 to 4 attempts and making the model.
So this video documented my first use of freecad 😉
@@IQWorkshop Then, Well Done :D
Thanks for sharing!
You mean Linux (ahhhhh.. heavenly sounds), Mac (quack!), And also that other OS, what's it called? You know the one that crashes all the time and ruins your day.
Background music is too loud, I cannot hear a thing
Hi, this was my first attempt at a proper video. I've learnt and moved on. Feel free to mute the video and use the custom captions 👍
Bloody music! Impossible to hear what you are saying.👎🏻
Thanks for taking the time to write feedback.
I'm just starting out and this was my first serious video.
There have been lots of comments about the background audio being too loud.
I've taken this feedback on board and hopefully fixed this in future videos.
Nice video, but the music is far to loud compared to the music. Also it is not required to full constrain a sketch in FreeCAD, however it works better when you do. Especially when changing measurements FreeCAD sometimes moves non constrained lines in unwanted ways.
Hey, thanks for taking the time to comment. I'll keep the music feedback in mind for future videos.
Ok To be fair, I'm a newbie to freecad and intentionally did limited research on to see how bumpy the transition would be. I could not get the pad to extrude without having a fully defined sketch and all the faces resolved. I've still got a along way to.go learning freecad.
@Paolo G thanks for the feedback. This is the first time using freecad, so there are plenty of things I need to learn.
I think the reason I had issues with extruding was there was a break in the line and the face wasn't fully formed, even though it was defined
Annoying when the music is louder then your voice. So I stopped watching. Sad.
Thanks for taking the time to write feedback.
I'm just starting out and this was my first serious video.
There have been lots of comments about the background audio being too loud.
I've taken this feedback on board and hopefully fixed this in future videos.
I think I'll stick with sketchup
If it works for you, don't change anything
Just illustrates that you need to actually learn how to use a piece of software rather than assume all your prior knowledge translates. If FreeCAD worked the same way as Fusion 360 there would be no Fusion 360. Fusion 360 is a little like "loss leader" products at the supermarket, once there sufficient numbers are persuaded to actually pay for extra functionality to make AutoDesk a profit. The changes instituted are a gamble that more people will upgrade than drop out and their backtracking on some of the changes indicates the original gamble was a losing proposition.
thanks for the feedback. This is exactly why I made this video. to demonstrate what would happen if f360 just went away and users switched. there is a barrier to entry before being productive and a lot of comments I have seen is they are abandoning f360 with an apparent lack of thought as to the implications.
I like both applications for different reasons and I continue to learn freecad to deepen my overall understanding.
It is time to try Ondsel :)
I just took a look at their website. Looks really interesting. I'll give it look
Ok your sound effects are WAY over the top loud and distracting.
Thanks for taking the time to write feedback.
I'm just starting out and this was my first serious video.
There have been lots of comments about the background audio being too loud.
I've taken this feedback on board and hopefully fixed this in future videos.
Whats that red bulb? heating device?
Thanks for the question.
If you are talking about during the printing, this is a BLTouch bed levelling sensor.
It is used to measure the flatness of the print bed and adjust for any inconsistencies to make sure the layers stick.
It can be the difference between a successful print and failure.
fusion 360 and sketchup are more or less forcing casual users to either use pirated software or just leave their platforms. (i know sketchup free is now browser based but i don't see the benefit of learning their new interface.)
it's always good to know what alternatives out there, just in case what you are using, commercial or not, goes away.
I don't understand why these tools like F360 and FreeCad make it nearly impossible to just freely sketch an idea out, and once you have settled on an idea then add all the constraints and dimensions. It makes them really bad for designing unless you know all the specifics ahead of time.
If you haven't settled on an idea yet or don't know the specifics, you probably don't need 3D CAD. Just pencil and paper will do in that phase. CAD programs are not really tools for artistic design processes. But rather for industrial/product design (like in the video), mechanical design, architecture etc.
@@olavl8827 That is just nonsense. The difference between sculpture, architecture and product design is a slim one. I do almost all my sketching in Adobe Illustrator, and combining that with Blender, Sketchup or even Tinkercad, I can get things roughly where I want them, but there is no path for refinement from there. As artists and engineers have proven for millennia there is no actual need for CAD, but when it comes time to manufacture something it sure is handy, especially when you need to make variations on a design.
Yes, parametric CAD software are not design software. Design software is more something like Rhino and MOI, but they are not parametric, so it can be difficult to change the sizes later too. It's more like sketching in 3D.
I think these two approaches, freeform and parametric, are at odds with each other, since the construction of an object imposes a particular hierarchy of operations that are baked into it, and that object can be reconstructed again by following the same, because your sizes that you build something from and that you can measure are not necessarily the final sizes, this is what sketch constraints and construction lines allow you to express. I don't have a good example right off the top of my head, but maybe you know what i mean? As material gets removed or added successively it can make fundamental measurements no longer accessible.
Fundamentally parametric design is exactly there to solve the problem that you don't know the size YET. You can go up the construction tree and change the sizes later, and if you're lucky, the object will recompute. But you need at least something for a start. A particular issue is weak topology, that depending on the sizes, not only the dimensions of the final object can be different, but also the topological geometry. like depending on where things intersect, there can be a different number edges between parametric surfaces. Imagine intersecting a cylinder with a cube, and then think, is cylinder taller or shorter than the cube? Is the diameter of the cylinder smaller than the size of the cube, or are they between that and the diagonal of the cube, or larger than diagonal of the cube? These all generate different topology, not only different sizes. Then you have built something on top, something that depends on generated surfaces and edges, and if the number of surface patches and edges isn't the same, there's now way it can match and reapply. Even when number is the same, the "topological naming" problem can cause a reconstruction failure, where there is no way to identify which edges and surfaces are the "same" after reconstruction.
You can actually go in FreeCAD create a Spreadsheet and define your variables there, your named sizes, and you can then change them later anytime. But it only underlines the inefficiency of FreeCAD at freeform design and you end up putting extra effort in to account for your size uncertainty. And i'm not sure how this problem can be solved?
If you have any thoughts - i might be compelled to create a CAD software eventually, but thing is, i don't have the whole picture and i don't have a solution, and i have related experience with developing graphics engines and graphics tools but not nearly enough CAD and freeform design software experience myself; so i'd like any possible input. I'm not sure that i will embark on this journey to write a CAD yet, i lack crucial insight of how i can make something different and better, there is little value in doing a sub-par job.
Since there hasn't been an actual solution that i know of or that is widely known, it's been an essential skill of product designers to go as far as possible before hitting the software. Sketching pencil on paper, mocking things up from cardboard, styrene, foamcore, plasticine, etc. By the time you end up in software, you already have the topology in front of you so you can focus on constructing parametrically with just enough flexibility built into the construction to fine-tune the sizes.
@@macrumpton It's great that you are proficient with Adobe Illustrator, Blender, Sketchup and Tinkercad. But none of those programs are what say a mechanical engineer would use. One category of users just wants to be able to freely draw what's in their heads. Another needs to be able to work to very exact dimensions. CAD software like Fusion360, SolidWorks, FreeCAD and such (mostly) cater to the latter category.
I tend to sketch on paper and then once I've settled on a design, think about the orthographic views. that when I start using cad software no matter.what version it is
good video but background music is too loud
pay attention to you audio levels. music is too loud and distracting. Other than that that is a really nice video.
Thank you for the feedback. I'm just starting out and I'm always listening for ways to improve
@@IQWorkshop when it comes to youtube videos, audio is more important than camera quality. Look at "gamers" and others of the like on here. they don't upgrade their camera stuff untill way later in there career like markiplier for ex but always have had decent audio. if you don't have a good audio does that mean your videos are bad? No. it's only a technical recommendation. you videos are actually nice. I hope the platform suits you well. im sure ull do fine. ^w^
I think I have improved the audio in the 2 videos after this one. I will probably invest in a good lav mic at some point, but mixing levels is sometimes can fix in the edit, so ill keep a close eye on this 👍
Came here to say the same, the music audio can be too loud but nobody has ever been upset when it's too quiet
@@paulgupta2454 As been fixed in later videos
Could you please edit out that annoying music that takes over your speech? I didn't manage to watch the whole video because of that. ;(
Hi there,
This was my first serioous video and sadly I cannot edit out the music on a video that has been uploaded ☹
On the plus side, I have done custom captions for the video so you could watch it with the sound off.
Hope that helps 👍
@@IQWorkshop at least it was not free to air gagstermubuster RaP or Hippty hop musick .now banjo music that would get folks going
Hahahaha this is true 👍
@@IQWorkshop i hoped you get a lol out of that . ;] be blessed chuck missler and his glory com is a good places n channel to check out may like them
If ur familar with fusion, ok. But with some "free" plugins Freecad is realy powerfull.
With practice comes proficiency.
I've been using F630 for a good number of years and I'm OK at it.
When I say OK - I mean I can achieve what I need to in it.
I need to get to a similar level in FreeCAD just in case I need to make the switch
This is an easy to follow video for a noob like myself. Quite hard to hear your voice over that stupid tune though....hmm. If it needs to be there turn it down a bit.
thanks for the feedback. I tried to show an honest view of a user going onto freecad cold. this was my first video with any sort of thought, but had a schoolboy error with the audio. I'm hoping all of my other videos are better 👍
The music is goddamn awful and way too loud.
Yes it is as many have commented.
This was my first serious video and I have learnt alot since then.
Feel free to mute and use the custom captions
sir. how accurate freecad for machining procceses?
Thanks for the question
In my limited use I have had very good results from freecad for 3d printing.
I have yet to use it for CNC, however what I have seen gives me confidence that it will produce good results.
The important thing it to test it with a non essential job and understand the limitations of your setup and your knowledge.
Good luck
@@IQWorkshop thank you sir
As a fully BREP based system, i expect that at least export to STEP files to process with other software such as professional CAM will be absolutely precise, i don't believe you need to worry. It seems internal CAM (Path WB) is OK too but whether you'll achieve your results with that depends on like a million things, i don't actually have experience with that.
it's accurate, the hang up is whether there is a gcode postprocessor for your machine. i had to write my own
@@SianaGearz oh. thank you sir.
Cut out the background music.
music is distracting and monotonously repetitive! I was looking for some basic how-tos as well. Thanks for the introduction to freeCad.
Hi, I was very interested in your vid, but let me ask you something first, because I take this is kind of a *Tutorial* right ?.
So, what do you think is *by far* the most important thing here:
What you have to say or the *stupid and completely unnecessary MUSIC* you put on; and the worst part of all *almost at the same volume level than your own voice* Do you get it now ?.
We came here *to learn something from you* and NOT TO LISTEN MUSIC, because when is about *Teaching* both things simple *DOES NOT MIX*
Thanks.
Thanks for taking the time to write feedback.
I'm just starting out and this was my first serious video.
There have been lots of comments about the background audio being too loud.
I've taken this feedback on board and hopefully fixed this in future videos.
@@IQWorkshop Good for you !. Thank so much for taking this issue in consideration to your next videos.
Greetings from Chile, South America. This is John.
I learned a lot of the best practices for fusion 360 from Lars Christensen. I wish there was a similar teacher for freeCad.. I like freeCad and appreciate the effort of the developers. I typically learn the freeCad best practices by making mistakes and then starting over and this process consumes a lot of time.
i hope i can grow into a knowledge store like Lars. until then i will share what i learn as i use the tool and figure out how to translate whqt i know in f360 to freecad.
thqnks for the feedback
Oh there is
Check out JokoEngineering
His videos helped me quite a bit.
Switching to FreeCAD is panifull but if you want to do some work related to 3d design maybe it's very welcome addition.
It's either that or buy cheaper but more functional cad software. Or just plunder solidworks (not recommended tho).
Thanks for the suggestion. I'll give that channel a look 👍
Nice introduction to freecad. Can you please recommend a laptop for working with this software.
But fusion 360 costs like 1mill
There are 2 free licences for fusion360.
Educational - full access no restrictions, but you have to qualify.
Personal - reduced feature set and restrictions.
I currently use Personal and have no problems with my 3d printing and laser cutting workflows
@@IQWorkshop what does "having to qualify" mean exactly?
Thx so far :)
@@MrFrisMich you have to demonstrate you are a student. usually this will be confirmed by the use of an email address associated with an educational organisation (e.g. collage/university)
Autodesk want to make sure that the educational licence is being used for educational purposes, and not someone trying to game the system
@@IQWorkshop This ha now changed: in order to qualify for an educational license it is necessary to send in documentary evidence that you are actively enrolled on a module-if you're taking some time out of studies because of, for example, some strange illness that might have caught you out recently then an 'appropriate' email address is no longer sufficient. …I discovered this when my license expired earlier this month. :(
@@GeoffRiley Requirements (and licence agreements for that matter) constantly evolve.
It's important to keep a regular check on these things to make sure you don't get caught out.
I think Autodesk have learnt a lot over the last 12 months since the change. Nothing is ever perfect, but how a company responds to issues is how it should be judged.
As a hobbyist, I am grateful there is a licence that I can freely use for my projects.
From another freecad noob to another: arent 5+ simple sketches easier to manage as one compex.
I guess that comes from my f360 workflow, where I try to keep my timeline as clean as possible.
Either way works, I guess its personal preference
from a lo g time FreeCAD user and an even LONGER CAD user, the simpler then sketch, the better. more sketches are better than less.
😍👌🏻👍🏻
👍
Bloody music - so distracting
This was my first serious attempt at a video, and my levels were a bit off. Feel free to turn down the audio and use the custom captions 👍
@@IQWorkshop I think in tutorials it is important to have relaxing mellow music at a low level. Good luck with your videos moving forward!
Неплохо!
Designspark mechanical is the best
But not fully free.
Sorry, gave up watching as music was too loud compared to voice and I was struggling (have a minor hearing issue). Shame as I think it was good content.
That is a shame. I have custom written the closed captions if that is any help ❤
@@IQWorkshop I'll have another go later and maybe use those. Was more about giving you constructive feedback rather than just moving on and not saying anything.
@@forgotrafe thank you. I do appreciate the feedback.
This was my first real video so I'm still learning the craft.
I hope the 2 videos after this one are better.
@@RajinderYadavthanks for the feedback. I have adjusted this in later videos.
I'm just starting out, so hope to improve things over time.
😃😃😃😃
Music absolutely worthless. project entirely too complex for a first effort. no explanation of how to use freecad, and I had such high hopes
Shame you found no value. it would seem you are not my target audience
Thanks for taking the time to comment 👍
This is unwatchable due to the obnoxious music, which is a shame.
Feel free to mute and use the custom captions instead
bye scammers fusion!! i go to free cad!
I'm sorry for the sincerity, but this is more of the same. There's no need to create a video about FreeCAD saying that you prefer Autodesk products in the end.
Sorry you feel this way! This is one man's view of going into using the application for the first time in an effort to show others in the same situation what lies ahead.
I'm not an expert. Just a guy documenting his journey. My opinion was honest and still stands.
I still use Fusion360 as my primary application, but it's good to know there is an alternative. I just hope the UI and functionality will improve with the increased focus.
@@IQWorkshop I agree with your initiative itself. What I meant is that the way you conveyed the message had a slightly opposite effect, as if FreeCad was not worth using. This was my first impression, but I apologize for the misunderstanding. Cheers.