Hello community,
I am looking for the right software to practice modeling “3D things” by myself.
the well-known 3D “puzzle” things that you can find on the Internet alot for free
The goal is to design something 3D and then output it in 2D to use it as a vector in lightburn.
after spending some time on googel i found stuff like
SolidWorks
AutoCad
SketchUp
but wanted to see if there is anyone here with experience and can recommend something.
Thanks in advance
Greetings
Take a look at Vectric software.
I use it exclusively.
You can download a full version to tryout for free.
I’m a fan of OnShape.
Browser based 3D Modeling, and free to learn.
Yeah…
I don’t use any software that’s tied to the internet.
I’m a control freak that way.
SolidWorks and AutoCad are families of softwares, but the main ones are commercial and quite pricey, they are for enterprises. The learning curve can be complex too.
SketchUp is commercial too, but less costly, and they released a free version (2017) that is still available and quite popular among makers. It has the reputation to be relatively easy to use.
If you want to go the parametric design way (like SolidWorks), there are free alternatives, like FreeCad. SolveSpace or OpenScad, among others.
Otherwise, there are lot of alternatives, like Art of Illusion or Blender.
See for example https://all3dp.com/2/best-open-source-cad-software/ for a little overview (but you can find lot of similar articles easily).
Thanks for the quick answers 
I like the homepage of vectric very much.
Also the prices and the sample model seem really fair to me.
I think I’ll start with it and then work my way through your answers.
@PhiLho unfortunately googel germany has not shown me any satisfactory articles and I did not want to struggle through hours of reading, if I can ask here already filtered qualifiertere opinions 
and your answer has also directly convinced me to refrain from what I have thought so far 
I use and reccomend solidworks, as I have access to a license for it at work… but i am sure that there is a version called ‘solidworks for makers’ that is quite cheap
Check out Blender.
It’s in more of an artistic direction than the cad programs.
It’s also free… and doesn’t run on a proprietary type platform, like Windows only…
You can find many youtube videos on how to do things with all of these software applications … watching a few videos will help you get what they can or can’t do.
I run Linux, so I can’t use most of these and if I did have Windows, I probably couldn’t afford most of them…
Good luck
I still use Vetric (I have a CNC) at times to build things to cut in Lightburn. I’m more familiar with it and there are things that are just easier to me. I build it, export it SVG and drag it in to burn. I’m getting more and more familiar with Lightburn though and for 2D stuff, it’s pretty close. For 3D, Vetric is very good, but I typically do 3D stuff in Fusion 360, again, mainly because I’m more familiar with it.
There is! I use it for car parts and 3D print modelling. It’s cloud based and seems very non-local.
I started using Tinkercad which is purely website based and managed to get some good results. I then moved on to Fusion360 which is free for hobby use. It can be a steep learning curve, but once underway after a few youtube videos, I find it quite easy to knock up any design stuff.
Fusion360 is my current 3D package. I love being able to take design from scratch or use an existing flat pattern drawing to check the fit by adding thickness and tolerance. I can also make the thickness a variable so it will automatically scale based on my chosen material thickness. I can take my model to the laser to test in 1/8" ply and then to the CNC table to make it in 3/4" (more like .700"). In Fusion I put in the exact thickness measured with my calipers for supreme accuracy. Fusion has a “personal” version here
https://www.autodesk.com/products/fusion-360/personal
I have been taking the free Learn Fusion in 30 day course on YouTube from Kevin Kennedy. Very informative and easy to follow.
I used to use sketchup a lot for work (5 years ago - it did not do solids very well.
I tried FreeCAD and found it buggy - 4 years ago, so maybe it’s better now.
I presently use Fusion360 and I’m a huge fan. The hobbyist (aka personal license) version is free and is the pro version with some things that only big company and specialty users would need disabled, so it’s a really a full featured parametric design system. Two things are great about it. First, it’s parametric, which means it’s driven by numbers (like, this hole is X distance from this other hole) and you can change those numbers any time. I design a lot of laserable items where the thickness of the material is a parameter. I can change that one thing and the whole design works with, say 3mm or 5mm material. The second great feature is called the timeline. Fusion keeps track of all the steps you made in your design and you can back up to any previous step, change something, then let Fusion “replay” the rest of the design. When you think "I wish I had done something 50 steps back, you can go back and move a hole, add a new hole, eliminate a step, insert a whole bunch of new steps. Then at the very end, you can take a “snapshot” of a part you want to laser and export it as a dxf file. The learning curve is steep, but I tell people I’m tutoring to remember that bicycles also have a steep learning curve, but once you get the hang of it, adventure awaits!
Try Onshape!
I use it for everything I build. It is 3D Parametric software that is FREE for Hobbyists. It is Cloud Based, and with the FREE versions, your work can be viewed by others. But it is FREE (I may have said that), and it is very powerful. It was designed by the previous owners of SOLIDWORKS, and so a lot the syntaxes are similar.
There is lots of online tutorials to guide you through, as well as a large ‘User Group’ that is very helpful when you have an issue. Look it up and give it a shot - see how you like it. It exports Drawings (pdf), DXF Files for 2D work, STL files for 3D work, and there is a CAM component coming to generate NC files.
Shuswap Pat
Kevin Kennedy is amazing. I became a patreon as a way to say thanks and joined his community. Super helpful guy.
Thanks for all the suggestions.
I tried all of them and found my way in fusion 360
If you’re looking to practice modeling 3D objects and convert them into 2D vectors for use in Lightburn, there are several software options you can consider. Here are a few recommendations based on your needs:
SketchUp is great for creating 3D models quickly, which can be exported to 2D formats for further processing. It’s particularly useful for interactive 3D furniture visualization projects where ease of use and quick prototyping are key.
Fusion 360 tool offers extensive capabilities for both 3D modeling and converting designs into 2D vector formats. It’s ideal for more complex interactive 3D furniture visualization projects, leveraging its robust feature set.
Widely used in engineering and architecture, AutoCAD excels in precise 2D drafting and can handle 3D modeling tasks as well. It’s a robust choice for projects requiring detailed interactive 3D furniture visualization and technical accuracy.
Perfect for mechanical design and engineering, SolidWorks provides advanced tools for 3D modeling and efficient export to 2D vector formats. It’s suitable for interactive 3D furniture visualization where precise dimensions and manufacturing details are crucial.
For designing in 3D and outputting in 2D for Lightburn, SketchUp or Fusion 360 would be excellent choices due to their versatility and user-friendly interfaces. They both support exporting designs into vector formats suitable for laser cutting or engraving, making them ideal even for interactive 3D furniture visualization projects.
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