Rank 8 - Deluxe Member
As someone who's used to using Creo and CATIA, there aren't many cheap/free CAD packages that don't irritate me to tears.
having said that I think 123D is something I could get used to if I spent enough time on it, and it's fairly powerful. A lot of students use it.
Rank 3 - Basic Member
I basically want a simple, bare bones program.
What I am seeking is a program that allows you to build shapes by simply dragging shapes onto the screen, then altering the size/appearance by grabbing onscreen handles.
I don’t need anything more complex then that, since I’m just sculpting a 3D object virtually.
The main problem with Blender, as far as I could see, is it was geared for computer game animation and had too many controls/features to support that.
My quip is I’m not looking for a program that can launch space shuttles, but one that folds paper airplanes.
The KISS (Keep It Simple Stupid) principle applied to programming.
Rank 8 - Deluxe Member
I can't help you with that.
my advice is to google search 'best free CAD modelling software' or something along those lines and try a few out. I tried a few non-parametric CAD packages several years ago and hated them all.
Rank 9 - Board Staff
Just got a couple of prints from Shapeways and the results are pretty good. There's still a bit of cleanup to do but all the detail is there and nicely defined.
The blurry thing is a 10 cent coin for scale.
Rank 9 - Board Staff
That's some nice modeling!
Are you modeling in Studio Max?
Which brings us to where we are today...
Rank 8 - Deluxe Member
Anyone ever bought 3D printed LEGO train track? Or printed their own?
I really want a wye point or double crossover but I am balling at the $70 price point that some companies want to charge for what seems to be something I may be able to print for about 1/3of that.
Looking For: Wreckers Saga TPB Collection (with Requiem)
Rank 9 - Board Staff
Coming from you thanks! Yeah I'm using 3dsMax.Originally Posted by Tober
That's some nice modeling!
Are you modeling in Studio Max?
Rank 8 - Deluxe Member
The detail on those looks amazing, especially given the size. Nice.Just got a couple of prints from Shapeways and the results are pretty good. There's still a bit of cleanup to do but all the detail is there and nicely defined.
The blurry thing is a 10 cent coin for scale.
Rank 3 - Basic Member
I looked that item up on Shapeways out of curiosity:
https://www.shapeways.com/marketplac...o+train+tracks
They're quite costly, averaging around 50-60 AUD.
I'm still looking to find a simple program for 3D modelling.
Preferably something specifically designed for 3D printing.
The reason why I want a program for that specific purpose is to avoid something like Blender with additional functions for ingame animation, texturing, scaling etc.
All of that is unnecessary for 3D modelling.
Rank 9 - Board Staff
Cheers. They turned out better than I expected though they still need a fair amount of cleanup straight from the printers.
From what I understand Blender is very similar to 3dsmax so it's a very capable program and there's a bit of a learning curve. That said my modeling skills were at a really low level when I started using max and now I feel that I can model anything I need to print, however complex the shape. You can go simple and use primitives as starting blocks or go straight to poly modeling. All the other functions like animation etc you can just easily ignore or move off the screen.
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