FreeCAD = Kopfweh

[TitusADuxass]

So I thought I'd give FreeCAD another try, bloody hell it's quirky!!

I've been using Onshape for the last year - mainly because it's browser based so I can use it on my Work's laptop.

Then, by accident, I found out that I can install FreeCAD without needing Admin rights.

So lunch times are now FreeCAD training.

But...and it's a big but, FreeCAD is counterintuitive (I had to google the spelling, I've been in Germany too long!).

[atrushing]

I would really like to use FreeCAD but you really have to learn and follow their 'best practices' or it goes wonky very quickly.. I have also found that it isn't very friendly with larger projects.

[SuperBoppy]

I've used FreeCAD for a few years now, and yes, it can be very wonky. The topological naming problem is one of the biggest problems, but there can also be problems using fillets, for example. 

Rules to follow: Keep sketches simple. All related sketches have to be in one body (there is a function called shape binder, but that is another topic). Do not reference sketches directly to any surfaces - relating to other sketches within a body is okay

The best thing about FreeCAD is - it's free and open source. And it can work marvelously well as long as you keep in mind some of its quirks. Hopefully, the development team will work out some of the kinks in the near future. Also, there are plenty of YouTube videos that will help you to learn FreeCAD. Some of my favorites are MangoJelly Solutions for FreeCAD, CADZiS - there are many others as well.

As frustrating as it is, when it works, FreeCAD is wonderful. 

[McCosch]

Hello,

I don't know FreeCad because I use Fusion360 and I'm very excited about it. It is relatively easy to understand and you can use or export many different file types. It is freely available and is only available with small restrictions. If you want more, you can take out a subscription, which costs around 500 euros.

[Penatr8tor]

On 3/6/2024 at 1:55 AM, TitusADuxass said:

So I thought I'd give FreeCAD another try, bloody hell it's quirky!!

You should try Ondsel.

It's a fork of Freecad where they've reworked the user interface to operate more like raditional feature base sold modlers

It's way less quirky.

 

[Titus A Duxass]

17 hours ago, Penatr8tor said:

You should try Ondsel.

It's a fork of Freecad where they've reworked the user interface to operate more like raditional feature base sold modlers

It's way less quirky.

Thanks

I will give that a try, Freecan and me are not meant to be.

[Ducky4546]

On 3/9/2024 at 9:33 AM, Penatr8tor said:

You should try Ondsel.

It's a fork of Freecad where they've reworked the user interface to operate more like raditional feature base sold modlers

It's way less quirky.

Sweet that looks very interesting! I'll check it out. I've been on Fusion for the last 6 years. The cloud Storage, and Direct Modeling are its strongest features. It's great to see other options. Coming on line.

[Penatr8tor]

@Titus A Duxass and @Ducky4546 Bear in mind it's not going to be even close to the user experience you're getting with Fusion but... it's definitely more useable than the stock FreeCAD UI.

[TitusADuxass]

I'm having a play with Blender now.

Ondsel is a non-starter for me - if you're going to "improve" something at least make it easy for a numpty like me to get it up and running. I downloaded ondsel but gave up trying to find how to open it after 5 minutes. 

[7milesup]

I tried FreeCad when they came out with version 19.  It was still God-awful, in my opinion.  Fusion is certainly better and probably fine for most.

I have been using Solidworks education version for a number of years now.  I have a really hard time with any other CAD program due to the robustness of Solidworks.  I seriously considered buying Alibre CAD because once you pay the money it is yours forever, but even with that, there were still a few odd things that I couldn't get past.

[Penatr8tor]

Guys, I hear ya, TBH, I could care less about FreeCAD or even the Ondsel variant as they have nothing beneficial over what I'm currently using. Solidworks is good software, I first started using it in 1999-200 and used it as a design tool for work daily from around 2005 to present. Before that I used Pro/E and AutoCAD before that. One thing I learned is that there is a curve you have to get over regardless of what you're moving to and that software with potential will always take some time to catch up to the competition.

@7milesup, trust me when I say... people gave Solidworks a really hard time for years before it finally became capable enough to garner the respect of CAD designers. The Solidworks you call robust today was in the same place as Fusion back in the day. Of course, like all CAD software, once they become popular... they also become un-affordable to the consumer/hobbyist.

I guess the bottom line is and has always been...

Cheap stuff ain't good - Good stuff ain't cheap. 

FWIW, I recommend Fusion 360 to everyone. I have used them all professionally and once you learn it, I mean really learn it, you quickly find out that it's the most capable CAD that's still affordable. Plus, I got in early and only pay $300 a year for a full version for life.

[SuperBoppy]

Fusion 360 may be great, and highly recommended if you run a business, but home hobbyists don’t have $680 per year for a subscription. 

FreeCAD may be a PITA at times, but it’s free and open source. The only CAD program I know of that is, except for OpenSCAD, which is a good program as well. There are lots of YouTube support for FreeCAD. Any problem or question I have was always answered with a quick search.

 

[Penatr8tor]

@SuperBoppy Agree, It wasn't always that much. When I first paid for Fusion it was a black Friday deal where you got 2 years for $300. Then they had a deal where if you renewed you could lock in your price forever or at least until they decide forever is over LOL. I get it, $680 is a lot but, it's also a lot cheaper than SolidWorks. I think the base cost of SW is at or near around $7000 and if you want support and bi-annual updates you have to shell out another $2K per year every year. And ya know... compared to Pro/E SolidWorks isn't a bad deal. I remember back in the early 90's one seat of Pro/E was $27K and you needed a $25K SGI Workstation to run it.

I'm not saying FreeCAD isn't a good solution for those that have limited resources, just saying that what you save in cash you might very well pay in frustration.

1 hour ago, SuperBoppy said:

Fusion 360 may be great, and highly recommended if you run a business, but home hobbyists don’t have $680 per year for a subscription. 

 

[7milesup]

2 hours ago, SuperBoppy said:

Fusion 360 may be great, and highly recommended if you run a business, but home hobbyists don’t have $680 per year for a subscription. 

That is only if you want full functionality.  The hobbyist version is free, and it is very capable. 

The limitations of the free Fusion 360 are the number of files that can be "editable" (I believe that is ten), no CAM support (which we don't need for 3D printing), and some other restrictions. I don't really care much for Fusion 360, but only because I have been molded into the Solidworks ecosystem. As @penat8tor mentioned, it is a very solid program and available for free. 

The bottom line is Fusion 360 is free if you do not want full functionality, which I believe most folks living in the 3D printing world would be fine with.

[claudermilk]

I'm using the free version of Fusion 360 for my 3D printing stuff. The two limitations I notice are the file saving--I just "export" as my Save As--and importing STL files where the really high quality conversion isn't available. 

Keeping in mind I'm the IT guy just supporting Solidworks, but with my dabbling, Fusion 360 has been every bit as capable as full SW (I even usually get a Premium license from the server when I open it). The main thing that trips me up when switching between the two now is moving the 3D view around; the mouse inputs are just different enough to require reorienting my brain when the view doesn't do what I expected.