FreeCAD v1.0 tutorials

[SillyOldDuffer]

On SillyOldDuffer Said:

[…] The difference is presentational:  though the task panel is on the left it still works as I describe.  Click on XZ-plane and then the OK button. […] Reconfiguring the display is liable to confuse beginners! Advanced users can change it if they want.     Possibly the mac version is tweaked on delivery because the packager likes it that way, and didn’t realise the layout might disconcert beginners following a tutorial.    […]

Thanks for doing that, Dave …

I actually changed my screen layout specifically on the advice in the video tutorial; in the hope of making it easier to follow.

Incidentally: There is no problem with ‘real estate’ … I am sitting fairly close to a 32″ monitor, and the drawing area is adequate.

MichaelG.

 

[Michael GilliganParticipant @michaelgilligan61133]

Extra thanks to Keith and Jason, whose posts I missed whilst faffing-about !

MichaelG.

[John HaineParticipant @johnhaine32865]

Thanks for the Linux confirmation and that it will work on a Pi.  Is that the 500?

[Michael GilliganParticipant @michaelgilligan61133]

A first interesting grab, for Dave

This notification appears every time that FreeCAD is opened on the Mac

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It’s a known issue, and of course the lost milliseconds will vary according to the spec of the machine.

… I have no intention of dabbling with Font substitutions !!

MichaelG.

[John Haine]

On John Haine Said:

Thanks for the Linux confirmation and that it will work on a Pi.  Is that the 500?

I have a Pi5 8GB with the Raspberry NVMe SSD so probably a little faster than the 500 but I think it should be fine on that. It is usable on a Pi4 but the Pi5 is noticeably better. I also have a 27 inch 2560×1460 screen which helps a lot.

[John HaineParticipant @johnhaine32865]

Thanks Roger.  I’m intending to divorce myself from Microsoft and an option is to use a Pi5 as the regular “desktop”.

[BazyleParticipant @bazyle]

By the way just remembered that there is a version of Freecad developed by a commercial enterprise (but still free versions) that is said to have a ‘better’ user interface which might be of interest to some. Unhelpfully I can’t remember the name at the moment. Probably mentioned on one of the previous threads on CAD.

[Andy StopfordParticipant @andystopford50521]

It was called Ondsel and is now no more. Some of the UI changes have apparently been incorporated into FreeCAD 1.x:

https://ondsel.com/blog/goodbye/

[John Haine]

On John Haine Said:

Thanks Roger.  I’m intending to divorce myself from Microsoft and an option is to use a Pi5 as the regular “desktop”.

I do exactly that. Not used my Windows box since I bought the Pi5.

[Roger Woollett]

On Roger Woollett Said:

On John Haine Said:

Thanks Roger.  I’m intending to divorce myself from Microsoft and an option is to use a Pi5 as the regular “desktop”.

I do exactly that. Not used my Windows box since I bought the Pi5.

That’s encouraging!

[Michael GilliganParticipant @michaelgilligan61133]

As proof of learning !

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The perspective is rather misleading, but this stepped tube has a constant diameter almost to the bottom, where the iris aperture is formed by the [virtual] 118° tip of the drill.

An enormously expensive little bit of plastic tube, thus far … but I’m on the way

Drawn in FreeCAD, Imported into Bambu Studio, printed on the P1S

MichaelG.

[Michael GilliganParticipant @michaelgilligan61133]

This little thing is the result  of a lot of work, a lot of mistakes, and a lot of lessons learned today:

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Nominal dimensions are:

Major OD= 27.1mm … Length =6mm

Minor OD =25.1mm … Length =6mm

Bore = 24.1mm … Length =11.6mm

This leaves a thin diaphragm on the end, as a good base for printing, which will be removed manually.

In case it’s not obvious ; it’s a simple adapter to mount a small camera.

The general principle will serve me well, now I know how to model it !

MichaelG.

Per Ardua ad Astra

 

 

 

 

[Russell Eberhardt]

On Russell Eberhardt Said:

I’ve always found MangJelly’s Youtube tutorials to be very good.  […]

Thanks again, Russell … I like his style

MichaelG.

[Keith PetleyParticipant @keithpetley53472]

Hi Michael,

The adapter is looking like good progress. If you didn’t want to put the support diaphragm in the CAD model you can add it in the slicer (BambuStudio). Under the “Others” tab change there is a setting called Brim Type which controls the addition of a single layer around the part to act as a base. It’s probably set to “auto”, but I like to explicitly set it as needed.

Doing it in the slicer keeps the CAD model the same as the final part and a single layer brim is easier to peel off.

Keith

[Michael GilliganParticipant @michaelgilligan61133]

Thanks for mentioning that, Keith

I have to admit that my solution was ‘expedient’

… I did try adding a Brim, but obviously did something very wrong and produced this unholy mess:

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Thank heavens for the monitoring camera !

[Keith PetleyParticipant @keithpetley53472]

Not easy to diagnose from a photo, but the outer ring appears to be still attached to the bed and the rest has lifted.

Is the outer ring actually a brim or is it a skirt? (Skirts don’t attach to the model but simply lay down filament on the bed around the model). If it is a brim is the “Brim-object gap” set – if so reduced it to zero and try again. It sets a small gap between the brim and the object – meant to make it easier to remove – but it also tends to lose its grip on the object during printing.

[Michael GilliganParticipant @michaelgilligan61133]

Aha !  … thanks again Keith … I think it was a Skirt

Must check the terminology more carefully

MichaelG.

[Michael GilliganParticipant @michaelgilligan61133]

The better news is that I have now tweaked the various dimensions, and the latest version of little adapter is a snug fit in both items.

This qualifies as ‘proof of concept’ for me.

MichaelG.

 

[Michael GilliganParticipant @michaelgilligan61133]

All you clever 3D modellers may well laugh, but this video has probably saved my sanity:

https://youtu.be/RVqxMeVGVlk?feature=shared

I have spent hours today, simply trying to fully Constrain a Rectangle, and at last here’s someone who actually explains and demonstrates the process.

MichaelG.

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[Speedy Builder5Participant @speedybuilder5]

I am running freeCAD on a MacBook AIR, the Tutorial1 has more icons on the toolbar than when I run freeCAD on my laptop. Is this because the laptop screen is smaller than a large display ?

[Michael GilliganParticipant @michaelgilligan61133]

FreeCAD seems to be so “Customisable” that almost anything is possible !

MichaelG.

[Speedy Builder5]

On Speedy Builder5 Said:

I am running freeCAD on a MacBook AIR, the Tutorial1 has more icons on the toolbar than when I run freeCAD on my laptop. Is this because the laptop screen is smaller than a large display ?

 

That and the Icon size together. Try smaller.  Icon size is changed from Edit->Preferences->General

Michael said that FreeCAD is customisable such that almost anything is possible.  True!  The facility is for advanced users, best avoided by beginners, because configuration is a complex learning curve in itself.  My advice, avoid messing with the display until basic modelling is conquered.

Most CAD programs are highly customisable and it can be painful!  SolidEdge has a nasty habit of turning panes off for no apparent reason.   Not difficult to turn back on when you know how but cost me an afternoon the first time it happened…

Another problem learning FreeCAD is it supports about 30 workbenches, and it’s not obvious which of them support Mechanical Engineering.  FreeCAD 1.0 reduces the fog by coming with a simplified list of workbenches, so not quite so easy to get lost in hyperspace!  But still not clear that almost all Mechanical Engineering is done in “Part Design”, possibly supplemented by Part, Sketcher, Techdraw, Gears and Fasteners.

Dave

 

[BazyleParticipant @bazyle]

A point about the workbenches – they are not different programs. They are all one bench like the bench in your garage with a pile of tools on it and the model you are working on in the middle. When you switch to another workbench what you are actually doing is just like in your garage. You are putting all the tools neatly back in the toolbox and bringing out a new set but the model is still sitting on the bench all the time. Advanced users can actually make their own workbenches with a selection of favourite tools. However the workbenches offered a just a selection of the most likely useful ones.

I mention this not to suggest you customise things but to hopefully make it less frightening that there are lots of different programs you have to learn.

[Author]

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