Learn FreeCAD: #1 Introduction - Tutorial

[@Rhannock]

Well, I just made my first cube model in CAD, exported it in STL, sliced it in CURA and 3d printed it............IT WORKED.....the power.......I can feel it!

[@mihailazar2487]

I'd actually recommend Blender for 3D printing proper CAD is more adecvate for CNCs, turntables, etc 3D printers have a macro accuracy that's not high enough to justify the accuracy of NURBS

[@agnichatian]

yeeeessssss.....

[@IamNeighborlee]

@@mihailazar2487 Actually no, while blender is amazing in may ways, its 3d printing can't compare to MeshMixer, by AutoDesk and its also FREE.

[@DJPhilTBCollins]

Phenomenal Cosmic Power! (itty bitty printing space) - Aladdin's Genie (paraphrased)

[@kdvprasad1939]

which version u r using

[@TheRaven078]

Thanks for these Tutorials. I am an old school 2d CAD guy for 20+ years. Trying to bite the bullet and learn 3d parametric CAD. I appreciate you.

[@dawsonrichards6363]

I was almost scared away by the mic quality, but I'm really glad I stayed! This tutorial has been extremely helpful, as I've had to make the switch from Fusion 360 because of all their free plan jank going on.

[@RobertShaverOfAustin]

Same here. Thought it was recorded by a fast flowing stream in the country or near a water fall. But the white noise is better than some tutorials with annoying music playing all the way though the video. I give all videos a *LIKE* just because they made it and posted it.

[@LarsMakesStuff]

Same reason for watching the tutorials here. How do I pay to edit more than 5 files in FreeCAD? :D

[@sleepyjoe911]

the best tutorials have the worst sound/accent

[@kevinj9059]

I was using Fusion 360 until the recent NERF. So I'll finally be switching over to FreeCAD. I'll hit up all your FreeCAD videos for the algorithm.

[@AdnanRobyn]

This series is possibly the very best FreeCad Tutorial in the Internet.

[@pinklady7184]

I take your word for it. I am just starting to learn FreeCAD. I have been using Blender for a long time, but now I would like to know FreeCAD.

[@RexR256]

Thank you Chris. I just bought a 3D printer and I'm excited about making my own parts but didn't know where to start. I sourced the Program out "FreeCAD" now I need to do is learn how to use it. With your Tutorials I believe I can accomplish this. I wanted to take the time to tell you how much I appreciate the time and effort it took to make such videos to help people like me wanting to learn. Thank you so much for sharing.

[@inventboxtutorials1898]

I'm so glad that these are helpful to you! I do have a little experience with 3D printing, so I might be able to answer any questions you may have while getting set up.

[@originalhotrodder4337]

I started with Onshape then moved to Fusion 360 when Onshape changed their business model. I enjoy using Fusion 360 to model the 3D objects I print but I would really like to have the freedom of not being tied to the web. Your introduction for FreeCAD is excellent. Covering the navigation steps it takes to start a drawing saves anyone first using the program immense amounts of time. I'm looking forward to going through all your tutorials on FreeCAD. Thank you.

[@brandontolley8242]

I am trying to learn free cad because I want to design my own rc aircraft.It might be a stiff learning curve,but I am here to stay.Ty for your free instruction!

[@michaelrust1159]

I want to thank Chriss for making these videos they are help full , informative and well appreaciated, you cant make every body happy

[@avoidtheherd7066]

"Create a body." Dr. Frankenstein would have loved FreeCad! Thanks for starting with the basics, the best place to start. Easy to comprehend. I appreciate it.

[@fitzg9470]

Christopher I have used Solidworks in 2012 with work in the past but since then have not been involved in design. I decided to download Freecad to make parts on my CNC micro milling machine at home and didn't know where to start. Your videos are well made and I'm now hooked ! I'll definitely bookmark your site... thank you !!!

[@victorwestmann]

I have downloaded FreeCAD many times but never used it. I decided to change this this week and I am now actually learning it! Thank you for your introductory video. Quite helpful.

[@burnte]

I tried three or four different "beginner" 3D modeling apps tonight, I want to create a simple case for an electronics component, a hollow box. I wasted two hours on those apps just trying to find out how to draw a damn box. I downloaded FreeCAD, and in 6 minutes I already have a solid body I can start boolean operations on. THANK YOU.

[@Donzi23]

Your FreeCad turtorial is the best i founded on internet.I really enjoy watching your videos about FreeCad.Your other videos are really inpresive too but for me the best videos are about FreeCad

[@fungibulscooter]

Big thanks! This video is exactly what I needed to get started. Nothing was over explained. It's just the simple tools and where to find them.

[@JasonRobards2]

Excellent and efficient first tutorial. Takes into account first usage of the CAD program, but doesn't waste time too much time on it.

[@predragsupurovic2148]

This is great tutorial serial. I just got into the world of CAD and did not know where to start. This helped me a lot to understand how it is done.

[@rainsburysb]

Thanks Chris, that was the simplest intro to a CAD system I have ever seen :-)

[@zacrosamond3128]

Thanks for taking the time to do this, it's a massive help. I'm pretty competent with Solidworks but my student licence has just run out and I needed this so much! I can say there are many similarities but from my first impressions FreeCAD has a few more complexities to it, to achieve the same things Solidworks does. Please keep making more of these videos!

[@onaolapoolufowokan]

Thanks

[@accountid9681]

Great tutorial, coming from autodesk inventor, and I was lost until I found this guide

[@doc-holiday]

Great video, as a beginner in freeCAD i didnt have not one issue. I understood everything. Thank you.

[@samuelsanchez2311]

Thank you for taking the time to put this tutorial together

[@titorj4498]

I’ve use skethup and it was easy to use, now I want to learn freecad I found this video easy to follow, please keep them coming

[@mrmoxley]

Good video. Explained it nice and simple. Straight to the point.

[@Dani-xe3rz]

Thank you for this. I'm learning FreeCAD to try and build an architectural portfolio for university. I'm not techy by nature but you've made this really simple to follow along.

[@travismadison2469]

Great job, very informative. I've never used any type of CAD before and Im thrown into this for my work so these tutorials are very helpful. Thanks!

[@chrischris6399]

It's perfect time to learn to use freeCAD ! Thanks!

[@arielkalon]

Great place to start ... clear instructions ... very informative ... Thanks!

[@Braindazzled]

Thanks for this! So far, this is the best tutorial I've found for this program. I'm familiar with a lot of other graphics programs and with traditional drafting and design, but FreeCAD has been frustrating and none of the other tutorials are logical or consistent.

[@marklowe7431]

Nothing but gratitude for your help. Nice one.

[@nikokauppi4581]

Coming in from Blender... Gotta say it's completely different so I appreciate the well made tutorials. I need a proper cad program for CNC milling, otherwise Blender would be a lot faster to model in but exact measurements are not the primary focus on Blender.

[@tonyhabib7203]

great 1st introduction to freeCAD!!!

[@adamwhite1920]

Thanks for a good start to FreeCAD. This is my first CAD software, so I'm kind of depending on your tutorials to help me get started. Cheers.

[@nothing_is_real_0000]

Very good tutorials. Thank you!

[@draginikolic3996]

thanks for the introduction to freecad. will watch more of your tutorials.

[@christopherstephenson2119]

Thank you for this tutorial series. It is great. I've used SolidWorks but am now retired and was looking for something to use for hobbies. This is perfect for me and I am excited to get proficient with FreeCAD especially with the help of your tutorials. Just finished the first lesson and it is very helpful.

[@Stefan_Boerjesson]

The "Start" select option is not present here. However I managed to select a work place, work space, and got its tools displayed. A great progress in this darkness.

[@TomLeg]

Delighted to discover when it asks for a measurement, you can put in a calculation. So if I'm in metric but have to make something a quarter-inch thick, I can say it is "25.4/4", and it converts it to "6.35mm"

[@doug3458]

Thanks Chris, that the clearest introduction to FreeCAD for a newbie like me that I have found. It would find it helpful if you could tell us what you are going to do with the mouse, it is sometimes hard to follow the pointer; find myself rewinding to see what you have done. Looking forward to trying this out and to your future tutorials.

[@disposablebasterd]

Liked and subscribed, thank your the Tutorial! I really appreciate it

[@jaysand363]

how do I manually enter object coordinates or value. example a rectangle x0,y0 - x10,y12? instead clicking mouse on grid.

[@marksholcomb]

First of all , thanks for doing this! This is maybe my 10th or 12th software package, CAD, CAM or whatever. I find that the biggest stumbling block is there is no lesson 0. How to you maneuver in the environment. The cntrl key is very critical to this package. Without lesson 0 most people will move on .. It took me a while to discover the secret control key ;)

[@tomspotterychannel]

are you making your tutorial outsite in the rain and wind

[@peterbonnell4775]

Great tutorial, I need a free alternative to Autodesk Inventor. Most of my stuff is pretty basic and this seems like it will be an easy transition. Very much appreciate your taking the time to do this.

[@piotrgaecki551]

Great tutorial, slow-paced to give the viewer a chance to follow along. I'll be following this crash course, let's see what the end result will be :]

[@Stefan_Boerjesson]

Being a complete newbie I'm lost somewhere in Freecad and have a completely differet screen from somewhere.. How to come back to the start page You show in the video?

[@brucewilliams6292]

Thank you for the lesson! Great introduction!

[@steveu235]

why do you jump into the extruding before we learn sketching? Isn't everything dependent on a good sketch?

[@Omlet221]

Can you tell us what you did for preferences? My 3d looks weird and also i want the tools to stack not be an endless bar.

[@rinumariya6404]

how do we do the rotating if we are doing it in a laptop since we don't have a mouse ? I meant the part where you used the middle button of the mouse to do it. It would be nice if you cleared that part for me. the tutorial is actually helping me. Thanks a lot.

[@bucktaylor9178]

good video i'm new to this so it was a big help

[@davidbase1824]

Hi I’m just starting off with FreeCAD 0.18 but cannot find how to set up Preferences as it does not appear in the Edit function - can you please point me in the right direction - thank you. By the way looking forward to the rest of your tutorials.

[@curtokay8046]

do other people have access to what you designs?

[@L3dprinting]

@inventboxtutorials can you do a tutorial video on tinkercad?

[@AntalvanHassel]

First time user here... using version 0.18... I see some differences, but nontheless very informative, Thanks for the Tutorial!!

[@gzcwnk]

I cant even see how to start with this and 0.18 :(

[@decoater72]

Hi sis it’s not a app for iPad or MacBook is it safe downloading from the Internet notify where it’s all

[@lincolnreidmusic3222]

Good job !!

[@bakemore32]

Does a "Create body" button exist in version 0.16?

[@BigBurgerBoy557]

How did you get that window on the left?

[@Appregator]

View ---> Panels ----->Combo View

[@JosephMassimino]

Trying to do something simple, make a box with an open bottom, and front, plus a cut out on the back for a cable to pass. I'm not getting there fast, but I have the shape, and measurements correct.

[@TheAndylaja]

Not able to draw in the sketch. Just keeps turning the plane when I left click and hold to another point to draw the square. If I just click in two separate corners for the square it does nothing.

[@jessegravende8980]

can you get a pop-fiter?

[@cwschoonbeek]

hi. that startpage i don't get. i hace Freecad 0.18 now. how do i get it?

[@AMTheTinkerer]

Thanks for making such excellent tutorials! I come from another 3D Modeling software who recently decided to kibosh the Maker movement by imposing limitations. An alternative option for a parametric design software was needed. I agree that FreeCAD looks more like a Java program than a polished modeling software, but besides that I think a little bit of elbow grease is required to get started and getting used to. I'm new to FC, and please ignore my comment as it stems out of pure ignorance, but I wish there was an easier way to make the Origin point, and the points on the ends of the lines more prominent. Most times I start off my designs by snapping the first corner to the Origin and today I realized after going through your tutorial that the corner of my box unsnapped from the origin as soon as I imposed dimensions on the sketch. I'm still struggling to snap the next line to the end point of the previous line.

[@theglitcher8553]

You can also rotate by doing middle click and left click

[@teddypreston5525]

The first creation of a [ Create a body ] Body doesn't really create a solid body per se. This seems to be just a place holder in which the "Sketch" will build with "Pad" (function) a solid body. Correct?

[@seanlinzy2654]

can you export the files as fbx or obj?

[@billmusket2301]

Mac iOS not available???

[@feraudyh]

I lost what's on the left part of the screen: It looks like this Combo View Model | Tasks .... Anyone have any suggestions to bring it back into appearance?

[@CoopKeith1]

In the view tab there is an option to get it back.

[@Appregator]

View ---> Panels ----->Combo View

[@kusumkandari6218]

Help I closed my model tree how to reopen

[@kvnptl4400]

Thanks for this useful video tutorial.

[@cptray-steam]

If you need a good mic I can highly recommend the Neewer NW-8000-USB mic.

[@paslechta]

Please help. How do I move the object in sketcher? How do I select multiple points when I want to create constraint? No tutorial tells me that and I cannot find it. Thank you.

[@Academician_33527]

Sir, how to change font ? while i am doing dimensioning, say write 50 mm, the number displayed in other than normal font type. i am unable to change it.

[@ramtek2702]

Maybe you could provide a link to the Freecad download???

[@kdvprasad1939]

sir I installed freeCad 0.18 ,but in part design it is showing only rectangle type only,no other shapes are visibe

[@jefftyrrell9085]

Very good tutorial, i have used Solidworks very good and very expensive. I also use PDMS but that is not real solid / parametric modelling, more like sketchup. I intend to persevere and learn it after all why not it's free.

[@timcollins1131]

Just a tip - remember your audience may not speak English as their first language so its a good idea to place an exaggerated gap between words and longer gap between major mouse selections

[@0623kaboom]

or eat the mic while speaking ... rather listen to a cow chew its cud it has less smacking of lips ... headset mics are NOT good for video recordings like this ... the mic is always in your mouth .. get a proper directional mic that stands in front of you and away from your face so you speak in the direction of it ... not swallow it

[@phil57chev]

i need help,the disc dvd that came with my 3018 cnc is in chinese ? anyone have copy would help ?

[@navaho5430]

Anyone know if this is the easiest cad to start on ???

[@Rubafix989]

Hey, thanks for the tutorial, but it was hard to follow because of the background noise. Maybe you improved since then. Regardless you can use the free tool Audacity to filter out noise in your audio recording. It's fast and easy. Leave some blank in your recording to get noise only sample. With this sample audacity will be able to remove it from the entire recording. It's pretty fast too.

[@LJHuang-jn8bj]

When we are familiar with Python scripts, FreeCAD would show its advantages over Sketch with Ruby. Even the start up might be not so easy as SketchUp.

[@homecats1]

I just want to be able to draw a 2-D floor plan drawing of a house. How do I learn to draw straight lines at a specific distance?

[@0623kaboom]

use a home design cad ... it is easier then ... freecad is more mechanical oriented

[@frankjuager9185]

can i import an images to this from drawing board

[@hifly1929]

Thanks for the upload man!

[@robertwegrzyn9179]

Thank you so much for this :)

[@Stefan_Boerjesson]

Okey. You use version 0.17. I've got version 0.19.... Will the continuation of the video be useful? I'll try.

[@RoyceMunday56]

Thanks. Really useful for me as a bw=eginner

[@furkanoturak]

if you can not sketch and it rotates change right bottom corner OpenInventor to cad

[@GNU_Linux_for_good]

Can someone explain to me why we *have* to create a *body* in the first place? Why can a 2D sketch being extruded, not become a body automatically ? Thanks.

[@inventboxtutorials1898]

Great question. A body acts similarly to a folder. It groups a set of parts or operations. Because of this, you may end up with several bodies. In this case, you would have to specify which body the sketch is a part of. Anyway, I agree that it seems right for it to automatically create the first body. Maybe they will add this in a newer version.

[@marklowe7431]

Great video.

[@8yerbrain]

Helpful. Thank you for sharing!

[@Pghpete5]

This is a great tutorial thank you! I am trying to adapt this to woodworking as I'd like to start using this instead of Sketchup. It is more involved yes, but will also allow me more control. I am wondering if you know of any good tutorials showing the assembly of multiple parts? The shapes I will use are going to be primitive/simple considering my stock material is all dimensioned rectangles.

[@dannytarquinio7812]

Thank you for doing this! I keep receiving the error when trying to pad my rectangle, "Input Error - Linked shape object is empty" I have no idea what I'm doing wrong

[@TheOtherSteel]

When I open FreeCAD, there is no FreeCAD Start Center box and no Getting started link. The menu displayed in the application is the same, but toolbar displayed is different. When I go to the Part Design workbench, I find that the toolbar displayed for me has been rearranged and all the items are greyed out and cannot be clicked (only the open button and the open macro dialog box button are active). There is nothing in the window pane on the left, no "create body" option. I did switch between model and task tabs to search for the option, but nothing is there and the toolbar buttons remain greyed out. I went up the the Part Design Menu. There were Create Body and Create Sketch options listed there, but selecting them produced no results. I'm only 3 minutes 43 seconds into this tutorial and nothing is working. I'm going to go with FreeCAD having moved on to a later edition no longer compatible with this tutorial.

[@ryankisser2442]

we have a newer version so they changed it but the basis with all of the tools is the same but just look it up and you can find it to

[@dannyperkins4220]

I'm sketching a square cube size doesn't matter. I'm cutting 3 holes in it again size doesn't matter. I finally got it done it only took me 3 days to finish it. I was quite elated with my success. I saved it as stl and exported it as a stl. I loaded it into cura and the holes were missing from the model. I go to freecad open the drawing and the block and the holes are there. Is there any way you could just sketch a simple rectangle and cut a few hoes in it explaining how to do it? To me this software is very complicated and I know if i can get the rules down I can sketch what I need. If there is anyone out there who Is willing to help me i would really appreciate it.

[@thedanester4101]

im designing an e bike but whenever i click on the shapes in the sketch tool nothing happens. whats up with that? whatever ill just get fusion 360 ig

[@tjkennedy380]

It won't let me create body

[@henryfitzthum7563]

Hi Chris are you going to do a tutorial on path?

[@dennismarshall5477]

I have been using the tutorials for a couple of days. Last night I started #3 and I got lost when he started confining and adding measurements. I have tried a couple dozens tries and even slowed the video down and I just can't figure out what he is doing. Does any one have any suggestions to hep me through this tutorial?

[@greglyga2988]

hi DM I have no Brain left from strokes but I make do by pausing every word and writing down what is done some times I talk into a digital recorder too. i use head phones to hear. Harry Retired 74yo BSME , Machine shop Owner. You can't beat Free Cad!!! Good Luck....

[@MostlyInteresting]

You do need to always tag your vids with which version you are on as they change. And you might have to a differences video now and then so your videos don't go obsolete. And at least filer and level your audio in your video edit package.