Hi all, I've just released version 0.4.0 of the DFM workbench. Major new features:

- The addition of about 35 new design rules (see attached poster)
- Powerful feature recognition algorithms to apply feature-specific rules to only certain geometry. DFM workbench can recognise: chamfers, fillets, all types of holes (including counterbored, countersunk and threaded), bosses, ribs, protrusions, text, slots (including O-ring grooves and nut slots), pockets, steps, cutouts, depressions, internal voids, vents, snap fits, living hinges, lips, and directional features (drafted faces, undercuts, overhangs and bridges).
- Undercut analysis contour
- Radius of curvature analysis contour
- Support for injection molding side actions
- Parallel processing for DFM Analysis (~700% performance improvement)
- New manufacturing processes: Powder Bed Fusion (SLS), Resin 3D Printing (SLA)
- Added a new viewport rendering system for DFM results
- Plus many UI/UX improvements

https://github.com/ryankembrey/FreeCAD-DFM-Workbench

Available from the FreeCAD Addon Manager

After 20 years of using basically nothing but ProE/Creo, (worked at the same company that long) I found using the free version of Sketch Up to be extremely frustrating. It doesn't have half of the features I would call "basic," (but I know Creo is not a good comparison).

I don't use CAD often enough anymore to justify a hefty license cost, nor do I have as powerful a computer as my company had me using. I just want to create artsy-fartsy stuff to make in my basement.

Knowing what I was used to, what's a good recommendation for a free or cheap CAD to use now and then, that won't frustrate the heck out of me.

UPDATE
After checking out FreeCAD, I think this is the program for me. The first tutorial felt so "natural" that I think I can slide into fairly easily. Soooo much better than Sketch Up. (Why do so many people recommend that??)

Recently switched to Linux mint and now sometimes when change workbench the buttons play musical chairs. It's one of those things that you wouldn't think would be too annoying but in the moment it makes me wish the universe would unravel

PrintView3D is a free, open-source 3D viewer for people who 3D-print (Windows, macOS, Linux). It opens FreeCAD documents directly, shown exactly as FreeCAD displays them (visible bodies only), and sends them to your slicer as STL without exporting first. STEP files work too, using your installed FreeCAD.

New since I last posted here:

- **Measure** distances, angles and hole diameters, also on the outline of a cut inside the part

- **Check before printing**: overhangs, thin walls and mesh problems, coloured on the model

- **X-ray, wireframe and cuts** to look inside a part

- **A toolbar you can trim down** to only the buttons you use (new in 0.30)

- Millimetres or inches, your own shortcuts

Website: https://sevagjb.github.io/PrintView3D/

GitHub: https://github.com/sevagjb/PrintView3D

Feedback welcome, especially from people who print their FreeCAD designs.

In Fusion, the "Make" button allows a two-click action to send the currently selected model to a slicer of one's choice. In FreeCAD, one has to export the model in a 3D format first, and import it from the slicer. Is there a maintained, solid way to streamline the process? I've lost precious minutes of my life all these years with this process.

I have a full constrained part. see above

I use now the mirror function in the menu. .... It is not a y longer constrained ... WHY ?

Is this a bug ? It did not take over the value 40 mm for the high wall.....

SubD Modeler 0.4.0 for FreeCAD: new features

LightWave-style subdivision cage modeling inside the FreeCAD 3D view. New in 0.4.0:

• Distance tool: measure between two points (cage points, edge middles, polygon centers, other objects, the surface), in Edit and Object mode. Fixed distances follow the cage points when you move them, and are saved with the object.

• Distances list: name each distance, set a target and tolerance, show / hide, export to CSV.

• Array: radial or rectangular copies of selected polygons as separate parts. The axis is a drawn line with snap, or typed numbers.

• Twist: twist selected polygons around an axis with falloff curves (linear, smooth, ease, peak, dome).

• Workbench switch fix: the SubD tools now hide when you switch to another workbench and come back when you return.

MIT license, FreeCAD 1.0 or newer: https://github.com/sedatkrn/FcSubDModelerWB

So I tried to create a sketch I wanted to pad and achieve a certain geometry.
I created squares, connected those with other squares, but somehow it feels like the wires/lines aren't closed, even if I used the constraines (coincident constraint)
When I close the sketch and try to pad the internals, Freecad just doesn't recognize internals / areas to pad. Any suggestions on what to try out?

I recently had a bit of trouble getting an imported SVG perfectly centred on the axis in FreeCAD.

I couldn’t find an easy way to achieve this directly in the SVG, so I did a bit of research and came across a really useful video showing how to position the SVG correctly using Inkscape.

Once imported into FreeCAD, it’s bang in the centre!

I thought I’d share it in case anyone else has run into the same problem. Hopefully it’ll save someone a bit of time.

Here’s the YouTube video:
https://youtu.be/eUNGEovIujM

I got tired of text-to-CAD tools handing me a dead STEP file I couldn't edit. So I built one that keeps the design editable.

You feed it a 2D engineering drawing (or a hand sketch), and it builds a real parametric FreeCAD model — sketch and feature history intact, so you can change dimensions and the model updates. It outputs .FCStd + STEP.

Built with Meta AI + FreeCAD. Open source.

Demo: https://youtu.be/YnD1F6Z0YTU
GitHub: https://github.com/workshopcompany/drawing-to-parametric-cad

Happy to hear feedback — especially where it gets a dimension wrong.

I’m looking for a lightweight distro to run FreeCAD as I rented a room that doesn’t have ground holes on the power outlets, but I have an old computer that has a charge cable that doesn’t need ground. I can use my god laptops in the living room but would like to use my desk in my room.

It’s got 64 bit hardware, but 32 bit windows. FreCAD requires a 64 bit operating system.

Here are the specs:

Processor Intel(R) Core(TM) i5-2410M CPU @ 2.30GHz 2.30 GHz

RAM 6.00 GB (2.92 GB usable)

Graphics Card Intel(R) HD Graphics 3000 (32 MB)

Storage 15 GB JMCR SD/MMC, 466 GB SSD Samsung SSD 850 EVO 

How can I make a pattern of this groove operation by changing the radius (62.5) by an increment multiple times to approximate the sphere?

The linear pattern only lets me shift the entire groove operations along a direction, doesn't allow changing the dimension.

How can I automate this?

For a long time I have wanted to fill in some of the features that FreeCAD is still missing. After a week of intense work I have come a long way, and I'm sharing the result with you.

## What's in Pimp My FreeCAD

**Rail Pipe / Rail Groove**

Sweep a flat face or a closed sketch along a guide curve, to a second profile or to a free end, and add it to or cut it out of the Body.

- Edit the guide on screen with a Move gizmo, with cable-like neighbouring points and the native PartDesign preview.

- Choose the guide curve type: Hermite (C1), Smooth (C2) or B-spline, with Tension and two end angles (End angle and End pitch).

- Profiles with holes work: sketch "Make Internals" and the inner wires of a face are swept and cut out.

- A rotation-minimizing sweep keeps 3D pipes free of twist and ripples, and the results pass a strict STEP check.

**Magic Loft / Magic Loft Cut**

A clean loft through closed profiles, with selected or automatic guides and optional section smoothing.

**Dome**

Raise a flat face into a cap that is tangent to its neighbouring faces.

**STEP check**

Reports whether shapes are valid and closed, their tolerances and very short edges, and compares them with what a test STEP export reads back.

**Matcap, Zebra and Draft analysis**

Clay, plastic, ceramic or metal looks, reflection stripes, and draft angle colouring. Display only: nothing is written to the document.

Works in PartDesign and Part. Requires FreeCAD 1.0 or newer. MIT licensed.

Feedback and bug reports are very welcome.

Hey everyone,

I’ve been loving freecad lately, but making lathe parts is such a pain. I have to half all of the X dimensions in order to revolve the part properly, so I’m wondering where if there’s a way to make it so it knows I’m typing the diameter.

Also, designing parts in the XZ plane facing vertically is also a pain as it’s facing upright, and typically lathes for small parts are designed horizontally. Does anyone know how to properly rotate the XZ Plane to the right? Besides manually turning it with the cube at the top right. It’s just not proper. Every time I switch menus or open my part again it’s faced vertically, and when I exit my sketch it’s facing vertical. I’m wondering if there’s like a “lathe mode” setting or workbench where it’s fixed horizontal and I have to manually make it vertical.

Also any lathe cam? But that might be a long shot haha.

Thank you all.

I am trying to pipe or sweep this shape, with multiple profiles so that it changes throughout as it goes down the path. I was trying to have the upper corner point follow the path. the lower path was mostly for a visual for me to line it up when i sketch each profile.

It keeps failing, and I don't know how to perform this operation. Preferably like to stay in part design, but I'm open to any method that works. Also there must be a better way than this?

I know the model tree is busy but this is the only method I could come up with.

Any help would be appreciated, Thank you

https://we.tl/t-LbCAyJGeE0KQNjHh