I was a professional technical trainer for over 15 years. Your simple, straightforward approach separates your effort from all others that I have found. I am conversant (not expert) in several other CAD environments, but was struggling with FreeCAD. I am now confidently moving forward. Thank you.
I am new to freecad and after watching several basic videos I almost gave up. No one seems to cover the fist steps. Your tutorial is the first real beginner video showing the very basics and this is what I needed. Thank you very much and I'll be keen to see the next one.
I've played around with various 3D cad systems, very hard to get started. Lots of videos by very generous and smart people, but the greatest majority of them seem to lack the fine details you put into your teaching. I'm almost 90 yrs old and need a little help getting stuff to stick, you Shure fill that bill. MANY THANKS for your great efforts. Keep up the great work.
I'm brand new to CAD software and it was very overwhelming at first. This video made much more sense of things, you are an excellent teacher. I can't wait to dive into the rest of your videos.
I'm an electronic engineer and never used these mechanical CADs, only used PCB CADs. It's been very fun following this tutorial and learning about FreeCAD, thank you so much. You are an excellent teacher!
Not kidding, software where you cant even draw a box round the components to select them really needs some sort of course. But to be honest, I will be using something else a little more intuitive. This is the problem with so much open source, it's almost unusable for the average user.
@@Graeme758 actually, this is what's great about open source, it's built for purpose. Sure, you need to put in some effort to learn the interface but don't expect to hop from Paint to FreeCAD and retain all the MS point and clickyness.
Why not? But I don't now, which is why I am looking at other software, software that has put effort into usability and recognises that the goal of some users is to produce work, not play with software.
Flowie, you're a indeed very good teacher. To be able to simplify a seemingly complex tool, a good teacher not only needs to have the necessary experiences but most importantly the ability to clearly show and explain its hows, whys and when.
I have been doing woodwork since I was 18, I'm now 65, I have tried to learn CAD so many times, but given up and returned to my scraps of paper. I decided that before it was too late, I would try again, and have just completed my first 3/4 cylinder... not sure how useful that is in woodwork, but it has given me the incentive to keep going, the only difficulty is finding all the commands now we are on v.0.20.2 but I'll get there! Many thanks
I'm just starting on my FreeCAD learning journey and was completely bewildered by the whole thing - then I found your tutorial and you have connected the dots to show me that this isn't scary at all! Thank you so much for taking the time to demonstrate your knowledge of this amazing platform!
An Excellent video. As a professional editor, I find many people do not know how to deliver information in a logical, simple but comprehensive manner. You have done so very well!!!
Your tutorial was easy to follow and straight forward. As both a native English speaker and an experienced user of AutoCAD and SolidWorks, I will say that your English is very good and you are showing thesoftware's many commonalities with both of the softwares I am used to using. It's a matter of finding everything and you are doing an excellent job of explaining the navigation.. Thank you for this video.series.
It's wonderful to see this! I used AutoCAD 2000 (Back in 1999) when in school and it would have been awesome if a free version was available. I'm now getting into QGIS, and happy that the barrier with ArchGIS has been removed and the quality of software is getting better with each update. I imagine that it won't be long before FreeCAD will surpass AutoCAD because Free and Open-source software is 100x fundamentally better than 1 corporation holding back creative development. I guess that there might be some overlap with QGIS for the drawing presentation since it's a representation of the smaller scale vs the larger scale work environment.
I have been using FreeCAD as a hobbyist for about 6 years now. I taught myself how to use it from UA-cam tutorials and asking questions on the excellent FreeCAD forum. This is definitely one of the best tutorials I have viewed - bravo. I suspect you are a CAD professional who decided to look into this great free open source programme and as a result discovered how powerful it is. I have subscribed to your channel👍
I have an extensive background in Cad. I started with Autocad when it first came out (St. Paul's Cathedral / Space Shuttle for those who remember!). My shop went through almost every type of cad program from Autocad/Inventor, Solidworks, Surfcam, Catia, Pro E, and other mind-bending programs. Most of us needed to be helped along by vendors who didn't even know their own software. Needless to say, it was a tough road. Having you explain Freecad is a breath of fresh air. I had assumed that it was a "toy" like some of the things that are out there for entry level users. Seeing what can be done with this, and with your expertise, I think that this will have a solid place in our workflow. Thank you. I look forward to more of your tutorials.
I've been trying to construct a few cabinets and remodel my hallway and I thought CAD could help but CAD software always intimated me. After watching this I feel extremely comfortable messing around with it and can see myself mapping out my projects much more efficiently than with pencil and grid paper. Really love this tutorial you did a great favor for us newbies!
I am a mechanic who has decided to learn FreeCAD with no prior CAD experience. This first tutorial was exceptionally well done. Flowwie, thank you for the effort you put into this video and the resources you chose to make available as teaching tools. Looking forward to starting the intro to sketching!
As a total newbie I would really like a visual tour through the tools in the toolbars, in parts design as well as sketch. Looking forward to the next tutorial!
This is exactly what will follow in the upcoming lessons☺️ first a detailed explanation of the Sketcher tools and Workflows and then Part Design. Thanks for your support!
I feel obligated to leave a comment to boost your luck in the algorithm here. You are hands down the best tutorial creator I've watched on any subject. I have tried so many times to learn so many different skills via video tutorials, and it almost never works. You explain everything perfectly adequately. I never felt over or underwhelmed by the info, but I've walked away from this half hour feeling much more confident in a program I was previously unable to get working at all. Especially valuable is your explanation of the workflow and concept of how basic features/operations "stack" to create a complex shape. I'll admit I haven't had and formal training in any CAD software, but they all seem so obtuse and over-engineered for no real reason. Understanding this was critical to me grasping the workflow as a whole. I will definitely continue to watch this series.
Thank you Florian for your interesting videos and for the knowledge you transmit to us. I understand that the possibilities that Free Cad covers are so many that it is difficult to stage the thousands of possible projects. Thanks also to all those who contribute with their comments facilitating the work of others.
Hi Flowwie. This is my absolute first time using FreeCAD or any 3d drawing software. It always seemed so intimidating doing these drawings but your video makes it easy to understand and get into it. Thank you very much for taking the time to make it. Regards Isaac
I'm moving from Inkscape for 2d designs for my Glowforge laser to 3d designs for making things with my lathe and milling machine.. While neither is computerized I want to design parts that are true to scale and allow me to view the design from multiple directions. At a recent MakerFaire Freecad was recommended to me. I found your tutorials to be incredibly well structured and clearly explained. It will take me a few times stumbling around to implant the parametric components into my head and the object properties and how they relate, but I don't see this as a problem based on the first tutorial. The most important thing (for me) is a tutorial that stays on target with no parenthetic comments that the instructor inserts when they think of something related. I subscribed midway through the first tutorial as I trust the others will be as well structured. Vielen Dank, dass Sie so umfassende Tutorials erstellt haben. Es erfordert Hingabe und Zeit, gute zu schaffen.
Hi Flowwie-I'm proficient at 2D Autocad and new to Freecad so it is like learning a new language after 30 Years, but I love it. I always have more questions and the end of a tutorial I am looking forward to the next one.
It's cool you make the transition to 3D CAD. I'm not proficient with 2D CAD by the way, so I'm strictly showing the things I have learned in 10 years of 3D CAD in various systems.
A "God send" tutorial for me as well. You stay on topic long enough to make your point understandable. You don't have that almost impossible to understand accent like most tutorials created in India have. You have good voice deflection and also don't speak in a total monotone style, (so you don't put me to sleep like thier's do !!) which is also something I'm very thankful for. Call me any name you wish but I don't waste my time trying to make sense of an instructor who speaking characteristics and extreme accent make learning a technical subject IMPOSSIBLE to comprehend ! Good job !!
Really useful. i have been put off using freecad because i found it so hard to convert from Sketchup to using freecad. Please complete the series as soon as possible :-) I have a LOT to design!!
Danke schön! I'm an Engineer and I'm thinking about getting back into cad design for a personal project. I didn't want to pay for Catia. This video series will literally save me thousands of dollars!
A great introduction to Freecad. I have already used freecad for some time so I already knew most of the things in the video. But one thing that I really appreciated, was that you showed several situations where the user accidentally breaks the user interface (closes the combo view for example) and you explain how to restore it. I have definatly done all of those mistakes before and been quite stumped. I am no totaly sure that I would remember such details if I were using freecad for the first time, but I certainly appriciate that you mentioned it. :)
Used Onshape on my iPad just to get a grasp of CAD until I got back a laptop, technical drawing experience from high school really helps, good thing I was attentive. Got my Laptop today, downloaded freecad before even updating the OS👍
I do like the content. And it would be great to see a full course on modeling. It is also would be nice to go over some basics on "design" itself (like principles and stuff). Also having some info on working with materials and how to do simulations to see if the integrity of the thing is good enough. And last but not least how to design large complicated things like structures and mechanisms.
I am a Solidworks and Inventor user draftsman ready to retire Well done Flowwie with your tutorial on getting started .... you nailed it I'm going to stay with you and make FreeCad and Flowwie my solid modelling package for home use ... thank you ... Bob
This was great, my only real tangling with CAD was with SketchUp and MoI, I still felt a barrier to entry but this video eased me right through the initial familiarizing of the interface and how the CAD workflow goes. It's not nearly as intimidating as it seems initially and really an amazing efficient way of being able to go back and make large base changes non-destructively, I think it's almost more freeing than box modeling in a way. Thanks for the nice theme setup in the start too.
Oh my goodness, Flowwie, this is wonderful! I am now only 15 minutes into your first tutorial and needed to stop the vid and say a huge thanks. I have tried at least five free softwares and could NOT work any of them out, despite watching tutorials. Many creators assume a certain level of familiarity with the concepts and the language of engineering...and as a complete beginner, I've been halted many times by that. This is just fantastic - it's so well-explained in familiar terms, and I finally feel as though I may be able to design my own patterns after all!:) Sooo grateful, thank you! Subscribed.
Hi Flowie - this is great - I'm going to watch this as soon as I get back to the computer. I'm on my phone and I'm no teenager when it comes to my eyes with this small screen !
Just watched it - I am sort of a little bit beyond noob status now with FreeCad, and most things I already knew, but I did pick up a few things I had not seen before. The use of the start page to get to the current activity with FreeCad development was one. The other was accessing the sketch constraints by highlighting the sketch in the tree and then going into the combo view to tweak them. Excellent video - not too long, not to short, not too fast and not too slow. Can't wait to see the next one. It's great that you are "mirroring" the german videos in here, cause I have tried to pick my way though the german ones in desperation but that didn't work out too well as the only German word I know is Achtung (From the old U2 album cover - LOL). Keep up the great work !
Great tutorial! I am an avid CAD fan, and this product appears well worth the dive in to learn it. Especially with training of the caliber you provide. Training takes a great deal of prep and knowledge, not just about the subject matter, but in how to deliver information so others can absorb it. Cheers!
Awesome! I'm not familiar with FreeCAD or CAD programs in general at all. Found this video, watched it one time, then gave it a try. It took me about two hours to go through the entire video again and replicate all steps (including installation) explained here plus playing around on my own a bit. Often these beginner's tutorials leave out some steps and you get stuck and have to google or spend hours reading the manual, but here everything worked like a charm. And if you just follow the instructions for the settings, without trying out everything immediately, you can do it much faster. That was a great appetizer for the series!
As a native English speaker, I found this TOTALLY understandable! You have a slight accent, but nothing that detracts from the knowledge you are trying to impart. Regarding the content, very straight forward. I've been using FreeCAD for a few months, learning as I go, but I learned a couple valuable things here in this short video. One thing I realized is that I need to spend more time just clicking on icons to see what actions they represent. DUH!! Keep creating. I'm a subscriber, I'll keep watching. :))
Agreed but, one, the version, the preferences, I have 018, not nine, many of those weren't available. Two, finally getting to the point, he mentioned the file he downloaded, I had to stop, and rewind, four times to get the fact that it's "grindplate". He's going too fast when I'm trying to follow along. I've got my mouse, TRYING TO FOLLOW ALONG. And it's driving me INSANE. THx
@@TheJacklwilliams One thing that often helps me when I'm trying to follow mouse flow is to slow the video down. It messes with the audio, so I have to watch it first to know what the desired goal is, but if I can follow the cursor, it sometimes helps.
I have never really paid much attention to FreeCAD until my main machine failed to output display. On a Pi4 now and love to tinker with CAD. I had no idea that there FreeCAD had so much to offer! What software and community! Vielen Dank! Ich schätze all Ihre Hilfe und Anleitung!
I love this! A series like this is exactly what I needed to get started with using FreeCAD! I've used Solidworks & Fusion 360 before, but I really want to separate myself from proprietary software as much as possible, and you have started me on my journey to using libre software for engineering work! THANK YOU! Keep this up! If you have a patreon, I might consider leaving you some cash for your work. Again, thank you!
This presentation is 100% Excellent. This is the most understandable CAD learning I've ever seen. Continue exactly as you are going with this. I will be observing everything you present. The intricate details for setup and controlling the sketch backward and forward are perfect. I was trained in engineering 50 yrs ago on drafting tables long before computers, and have never seen a presentation that was understandable to do it with these CAD programs on a computer since they have first been developed !. Others with FreeCAD training videos jump over and around with the user not telling you all they are going through with the object and leave you wondering since they know what the program does and don't get into the intricacies they way you do in the proper sequence and progression..
Great tutorial! Thanks for the effort you've put into this. I'm looking forward to viewing the entire series. Will you be doing an explanation of the Part/Body/Sketch relationship? When do you use multiple bodies or multiple parts? Also, what would be helpful as you go is to explain when there are a couple different ways of doing something, why it's better to use operation A rather than B. BTW, I just threw 25 Euros in the tip jar. As a software engineer, I know how much effort it takes to create these instructional videos. Keep up the great work.
What can toy improve??? You're doing fine!!! I have watched other videos, but you are explaining the minutest details which is fantastic for a newbie like me. As for the language thing. The fact that you are speaking clearly and taking your time due to the fact that English is NOT your native language has actually turned into a plus. Thank you.
Excellent video, I will watch it again and duplicate what you are doing. I did the colour changes you suggested, and then when I got to the last step, found out that a lot more changes were required that I did not wish to tackle. That meant I had to go back and change everything back to the defaults. I was not interested in making wholesale changes to the colours at this time. I think I am going to learn a lot, and look forward to going over this again.
I found your video a perfect temperament for my learning style. I only started CAD learning this past month and have watched a dozen or so CAD tutorials, this is the first time I that I was actually able to remain focus on the ENTIRE video. I found others too busy and confusing so my brain would shut down.. not sure if it is a learning disability or just old age. Thanks again for the inspiration.
Very helpful! Only comment is to please pause a bit when you select a new tool so we can see which tool is selected and also find it on our screens. This would save replaying little segments of the video. Remember that our toolbar layouts may be a bit different from yours, and we might have to hunt for the tool. Also, we are not as familiar with the toolbars are you are. If you've already progressed by the time we find the tool, then of course we have to replay a segment. This can get frustrating because there are so many tool picks.
I really appreciate you for putting this out on your English channel. You are a great teacher and having a git repo ready to go with files in hand makes this a very valuable tutorial. Thank you.
I'm planning to release Sunday July 25th. Should work for me but I'm kinda busy the next days. I'll do my very best to release as soon as possible. Thanks for the support
I learned two dimensional in the 60is. Technical school in Amsterdam. . Later on I learned two draw on a simple turbo cad program in the 80 is. Now I have the need to go to a three dimensional drawing. Thanks for doing this class.
Hey dude. I just downloaded freecad a few days ago and was looking for some tutorial after looking at it as if it were an ancient chinese document. Your set of videos were amongst the first to pop up and so far, as a beginner, I think your style is very effective. I am jumping onto part 2 now. Thanks a lot!
Probably Freecad didn't automatically set the constrain to set the origin of circle to the origin of the plane axes. You have to select the two points by left clicking with ctrl pressed and then click on "Create coincident constrain on the selected item".
Thanks for your efforts, much appreciated. I've been "tinkering" in Tinkercad but time to move to the next level and after watching more than a few videos chose to go with open source software. Took a peek at Blender but decided to learn FreeCAD first. In 2019 I bought a 3D printer, just a few days ago I decided to try my hand at CNC woodwork. I do like the idea of designing my own projects. I'll be retiring this year from 40 years in the social work field and want something totally different; being a creative maker really is totally different and a new venture for the newly retired. Plan on taking one step at a time and work through your lessons.
I just found this program and this tutorial was amazingly helpful. A program like this could be overwhelming and this has made it easier to get started. There were a few times I got off track due to mistakes I made but I was able to just delete some things and get back to a starting point then move forward. The only thing I want about to resolve was using the space bar to turn the object off as demonstrated towards the beginning of the tutorial
Man this program is so confusing.. I model in blender now I used to use cinema 4d a long time ago... Cad makes me feel like I am starting from scratch :(
It is just a completely different approach to 3D design. It's parametric design and not direct 3D modeling. If you don't need the type of 100% accurate 3D models for machining (like mechanical engineering parts or something like that) and you don't need technical drawings, then modeling in Blender with polygons is absolutely fine.
It's a great tutorial for me a beginner. 6 months ago I started to learn FreeCad but could not find a tutorial that can get me started. This one does. Thanks so much.
After taking a stab at it myself coming from Fusion 360 I can do nothing but thank you for this video, you have given me the knowledge needed so I can even do just the basics!
I've been using FreeCad for over a year and just found out I don't know much about the program at all. Also I've been checking out Design Spark Mechanical and was going to switch to that but now am having second thoughts. Well done video.
Flowwie, many thanks for this first Tutorial, I have tried CAD a few times over the years, but your tutorial has been a huge help in getting started, in the hope of mastering FreeCAD and then trying 3D printing. Because I have left this late in life, I run the video at 75% speed and go back if necessary. I am very encouraged so far, and thank you again. And now - Turorial 2!
Thank you so much for taking the time to make this video, my first time using this software and I see that has a lot of cool feature, I just finished with Inventor, too expensive, and I can't afford to pay their license, the job you are doing to help community is awesome !!! Thank you, and can't thank you more.
I need to start a project, one that will not be easy to develop. Most of which is going to be CNC production, so learning CAD is essential as dental cad is not new to me but I now need to proceed to metal engineering to produce parts to improve dental options. This was a well-presented and excellent, presentation tutorial. Clear and precise. Educational videos are not easy to make and how they are made and how someone can absorb the content without confusion is a must. You did this really well. Extremely helpful. Looking forward to following this education. Thank you.
THIS IS AWESOME SO FAR. THANK YOU VERY MUCH. I HAD USED AUTOCAD IN THE PAST AND SOME OTHER AUTO DESK PROGRAMS BUT THAT WAS OVER 8 YEARS AGO LOL. JUST GETTING A 3D PRINTER AND FOUND OUT THERE IS FREE CAD NOW SO I WAS VERY EXCITED BUT NAVIGATION POSED A BIT OF A STRUGGLE. SO FAR YOUR VIDEOS ARE EXTREMELY HELPFUL. IM FROM THE U.S.A. AND I GREATLY APPRECIATE IT. THANK YOU SO MUCH.
Excellent introduction! I really appreciate your taking the time to cover things like how to recover "lost" menus and items. This sort of thing usually leads to a lot of frustration when using new software.
Excellent sir. Your English is fine, and your method of teaching is paced just right. I don't have much patience for steep learning curve software. You have got going on FreeCad with a minimum of frustration. Much better than any other series I have seen so far.
I come from Mechanical Drawings and the early Autocad eras, but I am very pleased with this tutorial. I must admit that I may have to go a couple of more times to commit to memory. Thank you from an Old Dog.
Excellent video, THANK YOU!! I actually found your Part 3 vid quite by accident and it was so good that even though I am less than a week into FreeCad, I could understand everything on there. So much so that I searched for your previous videos and have not been disappointed!
Good job Flowwie! I'm glad you extended your course for english auditorium. Your explanations are methodic and clear. I came from Solidworks and Fusion 360. When I downloaded FreeCAD for my kitchen project, I was confused how to start. Interface is so different! Now I see the light in the tonnel end 🤓
Wow. Literally all I needed. A cylinder. I spent 8.5 hrs yesterday trying to make a damn cylinder. A cylinder with a hole in the centre to act as a tank shim for my non-lethal launcher. Between comments like "FreeCAD is easy" to Amazon reviews like "these Creality printers are super simple for beginners", I am starting to feel like a dang troglodyte. I've even written my own Android program to control a 5 tent cannabis grow (temps, humidity, light times, feed timers etc) using a tablet as the brain, and my personal phone as the main control centre. I can see all my temps, humidity, and light times and adjust them from the phone on the go, override the fans and leave them on continuously etc etc. I've been pulling my hair out ever since buying this 3D printer. Either print problems, or I'm staring aimlessly at FreeCAD. Part of me is starting to wish I never bought the darn thing lol
Much appreciated - I have not done CAD work for 15 years, when I did modelled in ProE, so I'm quite rusty. Your tutorial is spot on and easy to follow. Looking forward to the next one. Danke schön.
Hi Flowwie I went back to your first tutorial and found the links to both your video and also downloaded the colour settings pdf. Following the completion of the settings, I closed down and restarted FreeCAD and all went well😊. I cannot thank you enough for you superb starter video and now I shall run through it again before moving on to the next chapter in the series.
You were my first! And quite gentle I might add Really outstanding presentation. You R the "FreeCAD Whisperer". Thank you for the impeccable english for us mono-speakers. Cheers from So.Ca.USA 3rd house on the left.
Thanks for putting this together. For me, it feels like Part 10, not part 1. One thing I think a super-experienced guy like you does is just click or otherwise do 'something obvious' to you, but to a rank beginner, it's quite mysterious. Or at least, "eh?". One example is how you move the 60 mm dimension line (near the end) out of the way, so that it is not sitting on the X axis. I could not duplicate that motion on my setup (Yes, I also have 0.19). For a beginner, every single thing is mysterious until it is explained. I know this can be tedious for someone who 'knows what they are doing' however, otherwise, it leaves us students frustrated because we cannot duplicate what you show. Thank you, great first cut, and I hope you continue to add parts. Lastl comment, this one is probably covering too much for one lesson. Thanks again.
Thanks for the videos. I have been using Sketchup for years and this is just so different. Will still use Sketchup for my woodworking stuff, but want to learn FreeCAD for creating 3D print objects.
I guess thousands of people must have been waiting for this series of tutorials. I can't thank you more
I'm one of them. As a Blender user I want to explore possibilities of Freecad for years, but comprehensive tutorial series missing
@@BattleMachines hundreds of thousands
sorry replied to wrong guy
Yes, that is true.
me too
I was a professional technical trainer for over 15 years. Your simple, straightforward approach separates your effort from all others that I have found. I am conversant (not expert) in several other CAD environments, but was struggling with FreeCAD. I am now confidently moving forward. Thank you.
I am new to freecad and after watching several basic videos I almost gave up. No one seems to cover the fist steps. Your tutorial is the first real beginner video showing the very basics and this is what I needed. Thank you very much and I'll be keen to see the next one.
he rea;;y does begin at the beginning - also a gripe of mine about other videos
I've played around with various 3D cad systems, very hard to get started. Lots of videos by very generous and smart people, but the greatest majority of them seem to lack the fine details you put into your teaching. I'm almost 90 yrs old and need a little help getting stuff to stick, you Shure fill that bill. MANY THANKS for your great efforts.
Keep up the great work.
I'm brand new to CAD software and it was very overwhelming at first. This video made much more sense of things, you are an excellent teacher. I can't wait to dive into the rest of your videos.
I'm brand new as well! Looking forward to mastering this software😤😎
hehe, hea, overwhelmed but I know I can do it, just seems daunting right now
I'm an electronic engineer and never used these mechanical CADs, only used PCB CADs. It's been very fun following this tutorial and learning about FreeCAD, thank you so much. You are an excellent teacher!
This video series is LONG LONG LONG overdue. Thank you so much for starting it.
Not kidding, software where you cant even draw a box round the components to select them really needs some sort of course. But to be honest, I will be using something else a little more intuitive.
This is the problem with so much open source, it's almost unusable for the average user.
@@Graeme758 actually, this is what's great about open source, it's built for purpose. Sure, you need to put in some effort to learn the interface but don't expect to hop from Paint to FreeCAD and retain all the MS point and clickyness.
@@daveymg Going from Tinkercad to Freecad is a bit like going from MS Paint to Photoshop. If you haven't done CAD, you'll need a lesson.
Why not? But I don't now, which is why I am looking at other software, software that has put effort into usability and recognises that the goal of some users is to produce work, not play with software.
Flowie, you're a indeed very good teacher. To be able to simplify a seemingly complex tool, a good teacher not only needs to have the necessary experiences but most importantly the ability to clearly show and explain its hows, whys and when.
Abso-blooming-lutely.
Not being fluent in German, I watched your earlier tutorials without sound. I can now understand the 'why' as well as the 'how'. Thank you.
I have been doing woodwork since I was 18, I'm now 65, I have tried to learn CAD so many times, but given up and returned to my scraps of paper. I decided that before it was too late, I would try again, and have just completed my first 3/4 cylinder... not sure how useful that is in woodwork, but it has given me the incentive to keep going, the only difficulty is finding all the commands now we are on v.0.20.2 but I'll get there! Many thanks
I'm just starting on my FreeCAD learning journey and was completely bewildered by the whole thing - then I found your tutorial and you have connected the dots to show me that this isn't scary at all! Thank you so much for taking the time to demonstrate your knowledge of this amazing platform!
An Excellent video. As a professional editor, I find many people do not know how to deliver information in a logical, simple but comprehensive manner. You have done so very well!!!
Your tutorial was easy to follow and straight forward. As both a native English speaker and an experienced user of AutoCAD and SolidWorks, I will say that your English is very good and you are showing thesoftware's many commonalities with both of the softwares I am used to using. It's a matter of finding everything and you are doing an excellent job of explaining the navigation.. Thank you for this video.series.
Yes, much more like SW than I thought after first opening FC.
It's wonderful to see this!
I used AutoCAD 2000 (Back in 1999) when in school and it would have been awesome if a free version was available.
I'm now getting into QGIS, and happy that the barrier with ArchGIS has been removed and the quality of software is getting better with each update.
I imagine that it won't be long before FreeCAD will surpass AutoCAD because Free and Open-source software is 100x fundamentally better than 1 corporation holding back creative development.
I guess that there might be some overlap with QGIS for the drawing presentation since it's a representation of the smaller scale vs the larger scale work environment.
I have been using FreeCAD as a hobbyist for about 6 years now. I taught myself how to use it from UA-cam tutorials and asking questions on the excellent FreeCAD forum. This is definitely one of the best tutorials I have viewed - bravo. I suspect you are a CAD professional who decided to look into this great free open source programme and as a result discovered how powerful it is. I have subscribed to your channel👍
I have an extensive background in Cad. I started with Autocad when it first came out (St. Paul's Cathedral / Space Shuttle for those who remember!). My shop went through almost every type of cad program from Autocad/Inventor, Solidworks, Surfcam, Catia, Pro E, and other mind-bending programs. Most of us needed to be helped along by vendors who didn't even know their own software. Needless to say, it was a tough road. Having you explain Freecad is a breath of fresh air. I had assumed that it was a "toy" like some of the things that are out there for entry level users. Seeing what can be done with this, and with your expertise, I think that this will have a solid place in our workflow. Thank you. I look forward to more of your tutorials.
I've been trying to construct a few cabinets and remodel my hallway and I thought CAD could help but CAD software always intimated me. After watching this I feel extremely comfortable messing around with it and can see myself mapping out my projects much more efficiently than with pencil and grid paper. Really love this tutorial you did a great favor for us newbies!
I am a mechanic who has decided to learn FreeCAD with no prior CAD experience.
This first tutorial was exceptionally well done. Flowwie, thank you for the effort you put into this video and the resources you chose to make available as teaching tools. Looking forward to starting the intro to sketching!
All the best, brother!
As a total newbie I would really like a visual tour through the tools in the toolbars, in parts design as well as sketch. Looking forward to the next tutorial!
This is exactly what will follow in the upcoming lessons☺️ first a detailed explanation of the Sketcher tools and Workflows and then Part Design. Thanks for your support!
Freeccc
Cad
No by
Freecad
I’m missing small dr
I feel obligated to leave a comment to boost your luck in the algorithm here.
You are hands down the best tutorial creator I've watched on any subject. I have tried so many times to learn so many different skills via video tutorials, and it almost never works. You explain everything perfectly adequately. I never felt over or underwhelmed by the info, but I've walked away from this half hour feeling much more confident in a program I was previously unable to get working at all.
Especially valuable is your explanation of the workflow and concept of how basic features/operations "stack" to create a complex shape. I'll admit I haven't had and formal training in any CAD software, but they all seem so obtuse and over-engineered for no real reason. Understanding this was critical to me grasping the workflow as a whole.
I will definitely continue to watch this series.
Thank you Florian for your interesting videos and for the knowledge you transmit to us. I understand that the possibilities that Free Cad covers are so many that it is difficult to stage the thousands of possible projects. Thanks also to all those who contribute with their comments facilitating the work of others.
Even as an experienced FC user I find this video pleasing to watch - clear, informative and concise. A great addition for those starting out in FC.
Hi Flowwie. This is my absolute first time using FreeCAD or any 3d drawing software. It always seemed so intimidating doing these drawings but your video makes it easy to understand and get into it. Thank you very much for taking the time to make it. Regards Isaac
I'm moving from Inkscape for 2d designs for my Glowforge laser to 3d designs for making things with my lathe and milling machine.. While neither is computerized I want to design parts that are true to scale and allow me to view the design from multiple directions. At a recent MakerFaire Freecad was recommended to me. I found your tutorials to be incredibly well structured and clearly explained. It will take me a few times stumbling around to implant the parametric components into my head and the object properties and how they relate, but I don't see this as a problem based on the first tutorial.
The most important thing (for me) is a tutorial that stays on target with no parenthetic comments that the instructor inserts when they think of something related. I subscribed midway through the first tutorial as I trust the others will be as well structured.
Vielen Dank, dass Sie so umfassende Tutorials erstellt haben. Es erfordert Hingabe und Zeit, gute zu schaffen.
Hi Flowwie-I'm proficient at 2D Autocad and new to Freecad so it is like learning a new language after 30 Years, but I love it. I always have more questions and the end of a tutorial
I am looking forward to the next one.
It's cool you make the transition to 3D CAD. I'm not proficient with 2D CAD by the way, so I'm strictly showing the things I have learned in 10 years of 3D CAD in various systems.
A "God send" tutorial for me as well.
You stay on topic long enough to make your point understandable. You don't have that almost impossible to understand accent like most tutorials created in India have. You have good voice deflection and also don't speak in a total monotone style, (so you don't put me to sleep like thier's do !!) which is also something I'm very thankful for.
Call me any name you wish but I don't waste my time trying to make sense of an instructor who speaking characteristics and extreme accent make learning a technical subject IMPOSSIBLE to comprehend !
Good job !!
Dear Flowwie, You have a sweet voice that keeps everyone stick to your tutorials. Thank you for your wonderful tutorials.
Hello, I just downloaded this software and start to love it already. I want to learn this software to the T and will promise to be your A+ student.
Really useful. i have been put off using freecad because i found it so hard to convert from Sketchup to using freecad. Please complete the series as soon as possible :-) I have a LOT to design!!
Danke schön! I'm an Engineer and I'm thinking about getting back into cad design for a personal project. I didn't want to pay for Catia. This video series will literally save me thousands of dollars!
A great introduction to Freecad. I have already used freecad for some time so I already knew most of the things in the video. But one thing that I really appreciated, was that you showed several situations where the user accidentally breaks the user interface (closes the combo view for example) and you explain how to restore it. I have definatly done all of those mistakes before and been quite stumped. I am no totaly sure that I would remember such details if I were using freecad for the first time, but I certainly appriciate that you mentioned it. :)
Used Onshape on my iPad just to get a grasp of CAD until I got back a laptop, technical drawing experience from high school really helps, good thing I was attentive. Got my Laptop today, downloaded freecad before even updating the OS👍
I do like the content. And it would be great to see a full course on modeling.
It is also would be nice to go over some basics on "design" itself (like principles and stuff).
Also having some info on working with materials and how to do simulations to see if the integrity of the thing is good enough.
And last but not least how to design large complicated things like structures and mechanisms.
I am a Solidworks and Inventor user draftsman ready to retire
Well done Flowwie with your tutorial on getting started .... you nailed it
I'm going to stay with you and make FreeCad and Flowwie my solid modelling package for home use ... thank you ... Bob
This was great, my only real tangling with CAD was with SketchUp and MoI, I still felt a barrier to entry but this video eased me right through the initial familiarizing of the interface and how the CAD workflow goes. It's not nearly as intimidating as it seems initially and really an amazing efficient way of being able to go back and make large base changes non-destructively, I think it's almost more freeing than box modeling in a way. Thanks for the nice theme setup in the start too.
I'd stay with both SketchUp and MOI (in particular the latter). FreeCAD is a mess.
Oh my goodness, Flowwie, this is wonderful! I am now only 15 minutes into your first tutorial and needed to stop the vid and say a huge thanks. I have tried at least five free softwares and could NOT work any of them out, despite watching tutorials. Many creators assume a certain level of familiarity with the concepts and the language of engineering...and as a complete beginner, I've been halted many times by that. This is just fantastic - it's so well-explained in familiar terms, and I finally feel as though I may be able to design my own patterns after all!:) Sooo grateful, thank you! Subscribed.
This is EXACTLY what I needed to get started making my own designs - THANKS! I highly recommended this for newbies like myself!
Thank you so much. I'm an accountant with no experience with this. I could have not even started without your video.
Yeah cool that you started with CAD!!
Hi Flowie - this is great - I'm going to watch this as soon as I get back to the computer. I'm on my phone and I'm no teenager when it comes to my eyes with this small screen !
Just watched it - I am sort of a little bit beyond noob status now with FreeCad, and most things I already knew, but I did pick up a few things I had not seen before. The use of the start page to get to the current activity with FreeCad development was one. The other was accessing the sketch constraints by highlighting the sketch in the tree and then going into the combo view to tweak them. Excellent video - not too long, not to short, not too fast and not too slow. Can't wait to see the next one. It's great that you are "mirroring" the german videos in here, cause I have tried to pick my way though the german ones in desperation but that didn't work out too well as the only German word I know is Achtung (From the old U2 album cover - LOL). Keep up the great work !
Are you just like a super polite and supportive friend? I’m sorry, I don’t comprehend your existence.
Finally I can get rid of fusion! Thanks for this!
Great tutorial! I am an avid CAD fan, and this product appears well worth the dive in to learn it. Especially with training of the caliber you provide.
Training takes a great deal of prep and knowledge, not just about the subject matter, but in how to deliver information so others can absorb it.
Cheers!
Awesome! I'm not familiar with FreeCAD or CAD programs in general at all. Found this video, watched it one time, then gave it a try. It took me about two hours to go through the entire video again and replicate all steps (including installation) explained here plus playing around on my own a bit. Often these beginner's tutorials leave out some steps and you get stuck and have to google or spend hours reading the manual, but here everything worked like a charm. And if you just follow the instructions for the settings, without trying out everything immediately, you can do it much faster. That was a great appetizer for the series!
As a native English speaker, I found this TOTALLY understandable! You have a slight accent, but nothing that detracts from the knowledge you are trying to impart. Regarding the content, very straight forward. I've been using FreeCAD for a few months, learning as I go, but I learned a couple valuable things here in this short video. One thing I realized is that I need to spend more time just clicking on icons to see what actions they represent. DUH!! Keep creating. I'm a subscriber, I'll keep watching. :))
Agreed but, one, the version, the preferences, I have 018, not nine, many of those weren't available. Two, finally getting to the point, he mentioned the file he downloaded, I had to stop, and rewind, four times to get the fact that it's "grindplate". He's going too fast when I'm trying to follow along. I've got my mouse, TRYING TO FOLLOW ALONG. And it's driving me INSANE. THx
@@TheJacklwilliams One thing that often helps me when I'm trying to follow mouse flow is to slow the video down. It messes with the audio, so I have to watch it first to know what the desired goal is, but if I can follow the cursor, it sometimes helps.
I have never really paid much attention to FreeCAD until my main machine failed to output display. On a Pi4 now and love to tinker with CAD. I had no idea that there FreeCAD had so much to offer! What software and community! Vielen Dank! Ich schätze all Ihre Hilfe und Anleitung!
I love this! A series like this is exactly what I needed to get started with using FreeCAD! I've used Solidworks & Fusion 360 before, but I really want to separate myself from proprietary software as much as possible, and you have started me on my journey to using libre software for engineering work! THANK YOU! Keep this up! If you have a patreon, I might consider leaving you some cash for your work. Again, thank you!
I have been trying to get to grips with freecad for what seems ages.Your tutorial is a masterclass of teaching.Well done and thank you.
Easy to follow. Being a beginner this is exactly what I need! Looking forward to more videos in the series. Thank you!
This presentation is 100% Excellent. This is the most understandable CAD learning I've ever seen. Continue exactly as you are going with this. I will be observing everything you present. The intricate details for setup and controlling the sketch backward and forward are perfect. I was trained in engineering 50 yrs ago on drafting tables long before computers, and have never seen a presentation that was understandable to do it with these CAD programs on a computer since they have first been developed !.
Others with FreeCAD training videos jump over and around with the user not telling you all they are going through with the object and leave you wondering since they know what the program does and don't get into the intricacies they way you do in the proper sequence and progression..
Great tutorial! Thanks for the effort you've put into this. I'm looking forward to viewing the entire series.
Will you be doing an explanation of the Part/Body/Sketch relationship? When do you use multiple bodies or multiple parts? Also, what would be helpful as you go is to explain when there are a couple different ways of doing something, why it's better to use operation A rather than B.
BTW, I just threw 25 Euros in the tip jar. As a software engineer, I know how much effort it takes to create these instructional videos. Keep up the great work.
What can toy improve??? You're doing fine!!!
I have watched other videos, but you are explaining the minutest details which is fantastic for a newbie like me. As for the language thing. The fact that you are speaking clearly and taking your time due to the fact that English is NOT your native language has actually turned into a plus.
Thank you.
You are the best! And your english is very clear for my russian ears :)
Thank you very much for the feedback, and best regards to Russia!! 🇷🇺
@@FreeCADAcademy when can we expect next video ?
I am a regular user of Fusion 360 but always struggle with FreeCAD workflow. Thanks for making this series, really appreciate it!
I've been struggling with Freecad so this is great.I Can't wait until the next lesson
Excellent video, I will watch it again and duplicate what you are doing. I did the colour changes you suggested, and then when I got to the last step, found out that a lot more changes were required that I did not wish to tackle. That meant I had to go back and change everything back to the defaults. I was not interested in making wholesale changes to the colours at this time. I think I am going to learn a lot, and look forward to going over this again.
I'm back again. You'r english so simple and good right now don't stop well job.
I found your video a perfect temperament for my learning style. I only started CAD learning this past month and have watched a dozen or so CAD tutorials, this is the first time I that I was actually able to remain focus on the ENTIRE video. I found others too busy and confusing so my brain would shut down.. not sure if it is a learning disability or just old age.
Thanks again for the inspiration.
This is amazingly good. Please keep these tutorials coming!
Very helpful! Only comment is to please pause a bit when you select a new tool so we can see which tool is selected and also find it on our screens. This would save replaying little segments of the video. Remember that our toolbar layouts may be a bit different from yours, and we might have to hunt for the tool. Also, we are not as familiar with the toolbars are you are. If you've already progressed by the time we find the tool, then of course we have to replay a segment. This can get frustrating because there are so many tool picks.
Thank you very much. Werde mir auch die deutsche Version ansehen, um diese Sprache zu lernen
Great tutorial, thanks to you I am moving from a free full educational license of Fusion360 to Freecad
Excellent introduction. I can’t wait to learn more.
I really appreciate you for putting this out on your English channel. You are a great teacher and having a git repo ready to go with files in hand makes this a very valuable tutorial. Thank you.
that was just awesome!
thank you
but when the next part is coming out?
i can't wait.
I'm planning to release Sunday July 25th. Should work for me but I'm kinda busy the next days. I'll do my very best to release as soon as possible. Thanks for the support
I learned two dimensional in the 60is. Technical school in Amsterdam. . Later on I learned two draw on a simple turbo cad program in the 80 is.
Now I have the need to go to a three dimensional drawing. Thanks for doing this class.
Perfect English and that was well done, can't wait for the next one. I have one question can you export your file so it can be 3D printed?
Hi! Yes of course. Just select the body element and then select: export -> Stl file and then export it!
@@FreeCADAcademy Thank You so much!
Hey dude. I just downloaded freecad a few days ago and was looking for some tutorial after looking at it as if it were an ancient chinese document. Your set of videos were amongst the first to pop up and so far, as a beginner, I think your style is very effective. I am jumping onto part 2 now. Thanks a lot!
I tried over a dozen times, bout could never fully constrain the circle. I was always off by "1 degree of freedom". Mein Bot!
Probably Freecad didn't automatically set the constrain to set the origin of circle to the origin of the plane axes. You have to select the two points by left clicking with ctrl pressed and then click on "Create coincident constrain on the selected item".
Thanks for your efforts, much appreciated. I've been "tinkering" in Tinkercad but time to move to the next level and after watching more than a few videos chose to go with open source software. Took a peek at Blender but decided to learn FreeCAD first. In 2019 I bought a 3D printer, just a few days ago I decided to try my hand at CNC woodwork. I do like the idea of designing my own projects. I'll be retiring this year from 40 years in the social work field and want something totally different; being a creative maker really is totally different and a new venture for the newly retired. Plan on taking one step at a time and work through your lessons.
Omg omg thank youuuuuu
I just found this program and this tutorial was amazingly helpful. A program like this could be overwhelming and this has made it easier to get started. There were a few times I got off track due to mistakes I made but I was able to just delete some things and get back to a starting point then move forward. The only thing I want about to resolve was using the space bar to turn the object off as demonstrated towards the beginning of the tutorial
Man this program is so confusing.. I model in blender now I used to use cinema 4d a long time ago... Cad makes me feel like I am starting from scratch :(
It is just a completely different approach to 3D design. It's parametric design and not direct 3D modeling. If you don't need the type of 100% accurate 3D models for machining (like mechanical engineering parts or something like that) and you don't need technical drawings, then modeling in Blender with polygons is absolutely fine.
It's a great tutorial for me a beginner. 6 months ago I started to learn FreeCad but could not find a tutorial that can get me started. This one does. Thanks so much.
It is very seldom that you see (and hear) a tutorial on CAD that is so clearly made. Top marks from me!
After taking a stab at it myself coming from Fusion 360 I can do nothing but thank you for this video, you have given me the knowledge needed so I can even do just the basics!
I've been using FreeCad for over a year and just found out I don't know much about the program at all. Also I've been checking out Design Spark Mechanical and was going to switch to that but now am having second thoughts. Well done video.
Flowwie, many thanks for this first Tutorial, I have tried CAD a few times over the years, but your tutorial has been a huge help in getting started, in the hope of mastering FreeCAD and then trying 3D printing. Because I have left this late in life, I run the video at 75% speed and go back if necessary. I am very encouraged so far, and thank you again. And now - Turorial 2!
This was a really great intro video. It's my first time working with any CAD program so I appreciated the pace and small intro project to get started.
This video is a jewel to give you the first notions of FreeCAD. Says a long term Inkscape user.
Thank you so much for taking the time to make this video, my first time using this software and I see that has a lot of cool feature, I just finished with Inventor, too expensive, and I can't afford to pay their license, the job you are doing to help community is awesome !!!
Thank you, and can't thank you more.
I need to start a project, one that will not be easy to develop. Most of which is going to be CNC production, so learning CAD is essential as dental cad is not new to me but I now need to proceed to metal engineering to produce parts to improve dental options. This was a well-presented and excellent, presentation tutorial. Clear and precise. Educational videos are not easy to make and how they are made and how someone can absorb the content without confusion is a must. You did this really well. Extremely helpful. Looking forward to following this education. Thank you.
THIS IS AWESOME SO FAR. THANK YOU VERY MUCH. I HAD USED AUTOCAD IN THE PAST AND SOME OTHER AUTO DESK PROGRAMS BUT THAT WAS OVER 8 YEARS AGO LOL. JUST GETTING A 3D PRINTER AND FOUND OUT THERE IS FREE CAD NOW SO I WAS VERY EXCITED BUT NAVIGATION POSED A BIT OF A STRUGGLE. SO FAR YOUR VIDEOS ARE EXTREMELY HELPFUL. IM FROM THE U.S.A. AND I GREATLY APPRECIATE IT. THANK YOU SO MUCH.
I cannot possibly thank you enough. I am so glad there are people like you out there. Thank you
Excellent introduction! I really appreciate your taking the time to cover things like how to recover "lost" menus and items. This sort of thing usually leads to a lot of frustration when using new software.
Excellent sir. Your English is fine, and your method of teaching is paced just right. I don't have much patience for steep learning curve software. You have got going on FreeCad with a minimum of frustration. Much better than any other series I have seen so far.
I come from Mechanical Drawings and the early Autocad eras, but I am very pleased with this tutorial. I must admit that I may have to go a couple of more times to commit to memory. Thank you from an Old Dog.
Switching from Fusion 360 since the licensing keeps changing! Here goes, thanks for the guidance!
Excellent video, THANK YOU!! I actually found your Part 3 vid quite by accident and it was so good that even though I am less than a week into FreeCad, I could understand everything on there. So much so that I searched for your previous videos and have not been disappointed!
A lot more to come in the next weeks!!
Good job Flowwie! I'm glad you extended your course for english auditorium. Your explanations are methodic and clear. I came from Solidworks and Fusion 360. When I downloaded FreeCAD for my kitchen project, I was confused how to start. Interface is so different! Now I see the light in the tonnel end 🤓
This video is a like a Christmas present for those who is new to the world of CAD 😊😊
Just getting into FreeCAD for the first time, and this video is extremely helpful to get started and get a good idea of the UI. Thank you!
many have attempted to teach freecad on you tube. you are far superior to all of them. teaching is an art. looking forward to more. thanks
Thank you very much. Vielen dank. Just what I needed. Hard to find tutors who can explain something fully understand. Gratefully, Dadla.
Thank you for this I’m a retired defense engineer and just got a 3D printer and I think I’d rather use this than AutoCAD THANK YOU
Wow. Literally all I needed. A cylinder. I spent 8.5 hrs yesterday trying to make a damn cylinder. A cylinder with a hole in the centre to act as a tank shim for my non-lethal launcher.
Between comments like "FreeCAD is easy" to Amazon reviews like "these Creality printers are super simple for beginners", I am starting to feel like a dang troglodyte.
I've even written my own Android program to control a 5 tent cannabis grow (temps, humidity, light times, feed timers etc) using a tablet as the brain, and my personal phone as the main control centre. I can see all my temps, humidity, and light times and adjust them from the phone on the go, override the fans and leave them on continuously etc etc.
I've been pulling my hair out ever since buying this 3D printer. Either print problems, or I'm staring aimlessly at FreeCAD. Part of me is starting to wish I never bought the darn thing lol
Much appreciated - I have not done CAD work for 15 years, when I did modelled in ProE, so I'm quite rusty. Your tutorial is spot on and easy to follow. Looking forward to the next one. Danke schön.
This is extremely helpful, I just came across FreeCAD and am very grateful for the step by step instructions and explanations, Thank You!
Hi Flowwie
I went back to your first tutorial and found the links to both your video and also downloaded the colour settings pdf. Following the completion of the settings, I closed down and restarted FreeCAD and all went well😊.
I cannot thank you enough for you superb starter video and now I shall run through it again before moving on to the next chapter in the series.
You were my first! And quite gentle I might add Really outstanding presentation. You R the "FreeCAD Whisperer". Thank you for the impeccable english for us mono-speakers. Cheers from So.Ca.USA 3rd house on the left.
Thanks for putting this together. For me, it feels like Part 10, not part 1. One thing I think a super-experienced guy like you does is just click or otherwise do 'something obvious' to you, but to a rank beginner, it's quite mysterious. Or at least, "eh?". One example is how you move the 60 mm dimension line (near the end) out of the way, so that it is not sitting on the X axis. I could not duplicate that motion on my setup (Yes, I also have 0.19). For a beginner, every single thing is mysterious until it is explained. I know this can be tedious for someone who 'knows what they are doing' however, otherwise, it leaves us students frustrated because we cannot duplicate what you show. Thank you, great first cut, and I hope you continue to add parts. Lastl comment, this one is probably covering too much for one lesson. Thanks again.
Thanks for the videos. I have been using Sketchup for years and this is just so different. Will still use Sketchup for my woodworking stuff, but want to learn FreeCAD for creating 3D print objects.
That's cool - I also use FreeCAD mostly for 3D designs for 3d printing!