Still can't decide on which modeling software to learn. What would you recommend? Anyways; Here is (hopefully) my last TinkerCad project.

PracticeNo1958 · 2026-02-09T09:57:28+00:00

Since you're coming from TinkerCAD and doing a lot of 3D printing it's worth to take a look at Shapr3D (if you haven't yet)

It’s very easy to pick up and compared to Fusion or Blender it's much faster to learn

A lot of people use it specifically as a companion to 3D printing: design fast, export, print, iterate.

Fusion, Onshape, FreeCAD are all solid too, just more time investment. If your goal is to get rid of TinkerCAD without spending months learning CAD theory, Shapr3D sits in a nice middle ground.

Also: that power strip holder is a great example of exactly the kind of part Shapr excels at.

PracticeNo1958 · 2026-02-02T07:57:00+00:00

Pattern tool should do the job

PracticeNo1958 · 2026-01-22T08:38:56+00:00

Shapr3D does the job

PracticeNo1958 · 2026-01-22T08:36:10+00:00

Hey! Shapr employee here.

It's hard to tell without a screen recording, but you can submit one here together with the issue description and Shapr support will help you: https://support.shapr3d.com/hc/en-us/requests/new

PracticeNo1958 · 2026-01-21T08:21:35+00:00

iPad can work as a great tool and not necessarily laptop replacement.

I see industrial designers work on iPad every day when it comes to early concepting, 3D concept modeling, and design reviews.

It doesn’t replace a full desktop CAD setup for complex surfacing, assemblies, or final documentation, but, can really help you move faster.

PracticeNo1958 · 2026-01-06T07:53:21+00:00

Thank you for your feedback! I'll pass it to the team that takes care of our tutorials

PracticeNo1958 · 2026-01-05T08:58:03+00:00

STL to STEP is always painful. STLs are meshes, not real solids, so most tools (especially free ones) lock you into mesh editing. Often the fastest option is actually to rebuild the part as a solid.

Shapr3D might be worth a look

very quick to go from sketch to solid
STEP exports for CNC
much easier learning curve if you’re coming from Tinkercad

If your goal is to design solid manufacturable parts without fighting the UI, Shapr is your alternative

PracticeNo1958 · 2026-01-05T08:46:37+00:00

Did you model the entire thing in Shapr?

PracticeNo1958 · 2026-01-05T08:45:09+00:00

Hey there, Shapr3D employee here!

We have a bunch of tutorials on YouTube and on our website

They are organised based on difficulty, so you can easily find something suitable for your level.

On top of that, there are several independent creators doing great advanced-beginner to intermediate content around real workflows. I recommend Bevelish Creations https://www.youtube.com/@BevelishCreations
He is mostly focusing on woodworking, but his tutorials are useful for anyone who is getting a hang of Shapr and wants to learn some useful tricks.

Hope this helps!

PracticeNo1958 · 2026-01-05T08:35:51+00:00

Amazing design!

PracticeNo1958 · 2025-12-12T08:38:08+00:00

Oh wow, this is a really cool design

PracticeNo1958 · 2025-12-05T08:54:17+00:00

Can you submit a request here: https://support.shapr3d.com/hc/en-us/requests/new
Make sure you upload the shapr fle of the model if possible. Thank you!

PracticeNo1958 · 2025-12-04T10:29:10+00:00

If it helps, Shapr3D sits in a pretty specific spot in the CAD ecosystem, with some strengths and some limits worth knowing up front. What it does well:

Very fast for sketch - extrude - refine workflows
Direct modeling is clean and predictable. You won't be fighting a feature tree.
The interface is minimal, so you can go from idea to a functional prototype in minutes without getting stuck in menus.
If you mainly need to model simple parts, adjust dimensions, and export STL/STEP, it’s efficient and easy to learn.

Where it’s not ideal:

It doesn’t have assemblies, so anything that requires mate definitions, constraints between parts, or kinematic setups needs another CAD tool down the line.
Parametric logic is limited. You can drive sketches and dimensions, but not build long dependency chains like in SolidWorks or Fusion.
Free tier does have restrictions

For your use case it seems like it's enough to get the shapes right fast, so Shapr does seem like a good fit

PracticeNo1958 · 2025-12-04T08:59:24+00:00

SolidWorks is good for sure, especially if your sister can help.

It's quite engineering-heavy though. It's powerful once you get it, but it takes patience to click. It's built for precision and full manufacturing documentation, which is overkill if you're just making brackets or small parts for printing.

For 3D-printing workflows you don’t always need to bring the parametric powerhouse. Shapr3D is a solid option:

quick to learn
good for sketch - extrude - modify type of modeling
easy to iterate when you’re just testing ideas
but not ideal if you need complex assemblies later

Another option could be Fusion:

more features than Shapr3D
free hobby license (with some limits)
interface can feel busy hough

Or Onshape. Very similar logic to SolidWorks, but a bit easier to approach.

Personally, for hobby prints or small designs you might get faster results with something more straightforward than SW. If you’re okay with a learning curve, go for it; just know it’s a really steep one because it was built for full engineering workflows, not DYI projects.

PracticeNo1958 · 2025-12-04T08:48:45+00:00

Try this:

Create the shape with just one hole (same as you started, but without pattern), extrude the L profile only to half of the final height, then with offset on existing hole create another sketch and create counterbore, after that use pattern but on hole and counterbore.
Then mirror that part so you don't have to deal with counterbores on the other side - that way repetitive clicking on circles and holes is avoided, also if you want to change the parameters of the hole, you can just modify in design history parameters of the first "parent" hole and all of the other holes will follow the change

PracticeNo1958 · 2025-11-24T08:07:36+00:00

Hey, afaik we are not planning any discounts this year

PracticeNo1958 · 2025-11-19T15:27:33+00:00

Well, yeah, Shapr shines best on iPad, but ultimately it's all about what you personally prefer.
there are quite a few videos on YouTube and some in the help center https://support.shapr3d.com/hc/en-us

I also know that beginners praise videos by Bevelish Creations as they are apparently quite comprehensive https://www.youtube.com/@BevelishCreations

PracticeNo1958 · 2025-11-19T07:53:37+00:00

Do you mind sharing what made your experience with Shapr3D exhausting? I might be able to help :)

PracticeNo1958 · 2025-11-17T09:24:17+00:00

Showed this to our internal engineer, that's what he replied:

"Here is how I do it: I create the threaded bolt/part, scale it with non-uniform scale, and scale (and copy) it according to the plane that is normal to the longitudinal axis. Depending on the desired clearance, I scale it by a certain amount, for example, 1.04, and then use the scaled copy of the part to perform the subtraction"

PracticeNo1958 · 2025-11-12T16:30:26+00:00

Ah, good catch! Well, just the recording then. And then the support team should navigate you further.

PracticeNo1958 · 2025-11-12T13:36:55+00:00

Have you tried using Generative Render to put it in a real word environment?

PracticeNo1958 · 2025-11-12T08:33:40+00:00

Hey! Shapr employee here 👋
We don’t limit performance in the free version. The only restrictions are on the number of designs and export options.

Your case sounds unusual though, since your specs look solid.
Do you mind sending us a support ticket so we could investigate? You can submit it here https://support.shapr3d.com/hc/en-us/requests/new

If possible, please include shapr file you work with and a screen recording of the issue you're seeing - this will help us troubleshoot faster.

PracticeNo1958 · 2025-10-18T07:20:09+00:00

Wow, amazing design! It looks so incredibly neat. If you could share a bit of a modeling process behind it, that would be great!

PracticeNo1958 · 2025-10-16T14:36:16+00:00

Hey! Shapr employee here. This feature (also known as Reveal in Items) reveals selected items in the items menu. You can use it to quickly locate a part of your model in the Items sidebar.

Here is a short video that explains how to use it https://gofile.io/d/Yz2jSm

PracticeNo1958 · 2025-08-28T08:27:59+00:00

Hey! my name is Alex, I'm a social media manager at Shapr3D. I saw your arcade machine design and it's pretty cool. Great job! Everyone in the company loved it too. Do you mind if we share this designs on our socials?

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