FreeCAD : Why you should use it now !

I show the latest improvements of FreeCAD which are a real game changer for the open source CAD program, it runs stable and the workflow is much more easy with the many features like CAM, FEM, assembly, animation, rendering and many more.
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Recent improvements in FreeCAD are a real game changer.I'll show you why you should start using it too.
FreeCAD just got a new update and is now at version 1.1.3.
It has many new features and runs really stable.
I am a professional CNC technician and use CAD and CAM software that costs thousands of dollars every year.
But at home, I use FreeCAD, and here is why…
FreeCAD is open source, permanently free, and runs offline on all operating systems.
No cloud required, and your files stay private.
It is not just a CAD program. FreeCAD has many features built-in, and countless additional extensions can easily be installed.
FreeCAD used to be infamous for its difficult operation, many bugs, and instability.
Version 1.0 made things much better, and the latest version 1.1.3 is a real game changer.
It has become much easier to use, runs very stable, and offers many nice improvements known from commercial systems.
This won't be a tutorial on how to use FreeCAD, but I'll briefly show the basic workflow and present some of the best new features.
You almost always start with a 2D sketch.
This is then fully dimensioned.
Here you can already see one of the most important new features: Make Internals.
It is now possible to create a master sketch made of several closed profiles.
This makes designing and modifying much faster and easier—and creates more robust models.
You can now select and edit the profiles individually or together, for example to extrude them.
This allows you to create simple parts with just a single sketch and modify them quickly.
You'll also immediately notice the new transparent live preview, which instantly gives you a clear idea of your settings.
Various adjustments can also be done very easy using interactive draggers with a transparent preview.
The models look much better thanks to three-point lighting, and the new material system makes the display more realistic also for high quality rendering.
With Additive Loft, you can easily create complex structures that generate elegant shapes with little effort that would otherwise be hard to design.
The same goes for Additive Pipe, where a complex path is created with a few clicks and followed precisely by the contour.
Countless improvements, mainly in Sketcher and Part Design, but also in all other workbenches, make operation much faster and easier.
The Assembly Workbench is now fully integrated and improved, simplifying the assembly of complex parts, animations, or, for example, exploded views.
The new CAM Workbench is now an independent and professional manufacturing workspace.
The new CAM Simulator shows actual material removal.
Tool movements are controllable, wrong step-downs are detectable, and collisions or incorrect Z-depths are clearly visible.
Tool management is completely new and has much improved.
Unfortunately, LibLathe and the Turning addon for lathe CAM still have to be installed manually.
Its status is also still experimental, and not all important operations are implemented yet.
But at the speed FreeCAD is currently evolving, CNC turning will hopefully be better supported soon.
After all this praise, I have to mention that not everything is perfect.
Some things are annoying, and there are still strange error messages and crashes.
But big, commercial CAD systems have the same issues - CAD is just very complex.
The speed of FreeCAD's development is breathtaking, and the upcoming version 26.3 will bring many more improvements.
I see a great future for FreeCAD users.
Please remember: If you use the program, support the developers with a donation or contributions.
That's the only way open source can work and keep improving.
As always, I look forward to your feedback, suggestions, and opinions in the comments, on Discord, or on ownenergy.org.
If you want to support the project even further, a membership on Patreon or YouTube helps a lot.
Every cent goes directly into the main project: developing an open-source thermoacoustic Stirling engine.

Thank you for your interest!


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