Modelling program.

[erniehatt]

Hi all, can anyone point me to an easy to use modelling program

[KiLLiN-TiMe]

Have you tried Tinker Cad? It's web based and free, plus it will export to .stl so you can open it with Simplify3d and slice and print it.

http://www.tinkercad.com

Works for me, and did I mention it's free???

[magicwiser]

TinkerCad is nice. All of my high school students love it. I prefer Google SketchUp though which is also free. It does require a few extensions to be added but it is pretty simple. There are lots of YouTube videos on how to use it as well.

[66tbird]

Tinker Cad is fine to get a feel of it all. Sketchup is a more flexible program but you need careful choosing of addons to handle stl files easily. The list of free programs are a google search away. The most powerful of which imo is Blender. But the learning curve for Blender is like running into a brick wall, fifty times, after that your good.

[erniehatt]

Thanks Fella's,
I do have Sketchup pro, had it for things before 3D printing, so what are the extensions I would need.
As for blender I have tried it , but as you say the learning curve is very high, and at my age the brain does not work as well as it used to.

[magicwiser]

The two extensions I use are the 'Solid Inspector 2' and the 'SketchUp STL' extension, which are pretty much required. Perhaps other users can point out other helpful ones that they use because I know there are lots.

Before you dive in and start making things though it is worthwhile to research how to make solid objects in SketchUp if your not already familiar.

[AK_Eric]

For something that is still simple/easy to use, but more advanced than Tinkercad (which I myself use from time to time), I'd recommend Autodesk 123D Design. It's good for hard-surface\product design stuff. If you're looking to go the more organic route, Autodesk Meshmixer has been coming along nicely, and has hooks directly into 3d printing.

If you want a step up from 123D Design in the hard-surface\product design category, both Autodesk Fusion 360 & OnShape are gaining some traction, and both currently free I believe.

I don't recommend Blender unless you're ready to really 'dive in': While it's the best free 'general purpose cg package' out there, it's not a 'solid modeler' at heart (like the previous software I listed is): Meaning, it's easy to make stuff that won't print without cleanup.

If you want to start paying cash money:
* Hard surface : Autodesk Inventor / Solidworks
* Organic: Z-Brush / Mudbox
* General CG: Autodesk Maya / Autodesk 3DS Max

[smartavionics]

Hi,

Try MoI, it's not free but you can be evaluated for 30 days before you need to buy a licence.

http://moi3d.com/

It's a Windows program but can run on Macs and Linux using Wine.

[erniehatt]

Thanks for all the suggestions, might stick with what I have, Sketchup Pro, I have the suggested extensions but solid inspector doesn't seem to work.

[rforeman]

Autodesk Fusion 360.
http://www.autodesk.com/products/fusion-360/overview

If you are a hobbest or a start up company you can register and use it free. Easy to learn.