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Fusion 360 vs. Sketchup

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Jan 28, 2021
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So awhile back (5 years probably) I started to learn Solidworks. I got the basics of it down but I didn't get super far, and didn't keep up with it so what I learned I pretty much forgot.

I'd like to get back into 3D modeling for wood working projects and trying to figure which I should invest my time into. I started with Fusion 360 since the interface seemed cleaner compared to Sketchup's toy'ish interface and thought Fusion would just be be better in long run. I kinda got frustrated in Fusion though just doing the basic stuff, it seems harder to pickup than I remember Solidworks being so I thought I'd give Sketchup a solid effort. I have a few hours into Sketchup now and have more less successfully created my first project (a set of bookshelf speakers) and it works pretty well and is pretty intuitive but the interface seems a bit like a toy for lack of a better word, and pretty basic things seem to hidden away from the free version in comparison to what the hobbyist license gets you Fusion.

My question is should I stay with Sketchup (I'm using the last free desktop version for what its worth) or should I try Fusion 360 again? I think Sketchup will work for me but like I said above Fusion might be the better tool to learn in the long term? To anyone out there thats used both; is what I'm learning Sketchup going to translate to Fusion?
 
No comments worth a shit sorry but I am interested the answer.
 
I think Sketchup will work for me but like I said above Fusion might be the better tool to learn in the long term

It seems like you answered your own question right here.
 
It seems like you answered your own question right here.
Pretty sure I didn't and was actually asking a question.....

Specifically I'm looking for opinions from people that have used both. Is Fusion 360 worth the learning curve? Did I just not give it enough time?
 
Pretty sure I didn't and was actually asking a question.....

Specifically I'm looking for opinions from people that have used both. Is Fusion 360 worth the learning curve? Did I just not give it enough time?

You definitely did tho, from looking around at the multiple comparison of the 2 programs online it states exactly what you stated. Sketchup provides a non-cad/beginner user with a usable interface, while fusion provides a much more in-depth tool. So if you plan on only using it for basic stuff you can probably get by just fine with sketchup, if you're looking for "professional" level application than fusion seems to be the way to go.
 
I have used multiple solid modelling packages including Sketchup and will avoid Sketchup like the plague.
It is a child's toy that's great for making something with zero prior experience.

I genuinely like Solidworks the most, but legal copies of it are prohibitively expensive.
Fusion 360 isn't something I have a lot of time on but what you learn there can be transferred over to several other packages like 3DS and our modelmaking department recommend it as a good springboard for other things.

If you're modelling to get into 3D printing, take a look at Cura and (Materialise) Magics, too. It's what the pros I work alongside actually choose to use day in, day out, having tried pretty much everything on the market since before the days of 3D printers.
 
You definitely did tho, from looking around at the multiple comparison of the 2 programs online it states exactly what you stated. Sketchup provides a non-cad/beginner user with a usable interface, while fusion provides a much more in-depth tool. So if you plan on only using it for basic stuff you can probably get by just fine with sketchup, if you're looking for "professional" level application than fusion seems to be the way to go.
I've watched friends who use it for living knock our things similar to what I'm doing in Sketchup at about the same pace I can do things now in Sketchup. Though what I'm doing is still pretty simple.

I've seen people use Fusion for super simple stuff and people create all kinds of crazy shit Sketchup. My reason for posing this question is that I feel like someewhere along the line Fusion would be more efficient to use, its just getting past the initial learning curve, and honestly neither one made any sense right away. That and idk how much I really trust Sketchup's business model; for a product coming from the big established player Fusion lets you do a lot more and gives you more features compared to what Sketchup hides away for "reasons".

I have used multiple solid modelling packages including Sketchup and will avoid Sketchup like the plague.
It is a child's toy that's great for making something with zero prior experience.

I genuinely like Solidworks the most, but legal copies of it are prohibitively expensive.
Fusion 360 isn't something I have a lot of time on but what you learn there can be transferred over to several other packages like 3DS and our modelmaking department recommend it as a good springboard for other things.

If you're modelling to get into 3D printing, take a look at Cura and (Materialise) Magics, too. It's what the pros I work alongside actually choose to use day in, day out, having tried pretty much everything on the market since before the days of 3D printers.
So what I'm hearing is just get past the learning cure?

Yeah, I liked Solidworks too. More so than Fusion from the bit of time I've put into it. Maybe I shouldn't have uninstalled my special version of Solidworks....

I don't have access to now but I'll post a pic of my current Sketchup model thats pretty representative of type of thing I'll be using it for. Pretty much design and building loudpeakers and maybe some furniture. Maybe incorporating some CNC fabrication but I don't see a need for 3D printing for any of the stuff I have in mind.
 
idk how much I really trust Sketchup's business model
Sketchup was great under Google. Everything good about Sketchup is being eroded by Trimble, and too often I find myself having to install the latest Sketchup just to downgrade the model I've been given to a prior Sketchup version that plays nice with other software.

Pretty much design and building loudpeakers and maybe some furniture. Maybe incorporating some CNC fabrication but I don't see a need for 3D printing for any of the stuff I have in mind.
Fabrication of any kind will be easier with Fusion360, simply because the geometry and meshing it produces is cleaner and closer to what the fabrication software (of the fabrication hardware) is likely to want.

We dread dealing with Sketchup models because whilst they can look nice, rendered, the quality of the underlying geometry is pretty suspect. Sketchup really doesn't play well with anything else, and that's not a problem if it does what you want it to and never intend to get more out of it than 2D sections and 3D renders.
 
Here is the current project I'm working on, a simple two way monitor. Not knowing the program at all this took me probably two hours to do in Sketchup. Then I realized I made the cabinet the wrong size so I'm currently re-doing it. 2nd time round its going 2-3x faster now that I know how to do things.
Sketchup.png


Frankly I don't really need to model it, its simple enough that I could just give my wood worker the dimensions and describe the design ideas but I have plans to build potentially more complex things and I figured this would be a good place to start and learn. I know Fusion and Solidworks are the pro tools and that Sketchup is garbage for real design to actual product work but I won't ever need that level of precision. I'm mostly looking at it from the perspective of which will be easier to use in the long run once I'm fluent in with it. That and which platform will be better supported, I'm already using an outdated free version of the desktop app since most people seem to recommend that over the current web app. Trimble just feels kinda garbage to me and that they are pretty much just coasting on the userbase that Google established when it was their product.
 
Something that simple is a no-brainer for sketchup.
I can tell you now that if you start doing boolean operations on the curved surfaces in sketchup, the underlying geometry is going to be a Google DeepDream wireframe nightmare but as long as the end result still renders cleanly that's not something you will have to care about.
 
I genuinely like Solidworks the most, but legal copies of it are prohibitively expensive.

I love solidworks as well, but sadly I don't have access to this software anymore...
Also I unfortunately haven't found any good software solidworks a-like.:(

Some of my simpler designs with solidworks:

des01a-aa.jpg


X1CCDES.png
 
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Something that simple is a no-brainer for sketchup.
I can tell you now that if you start doing boolean operations on the curved surfaces in sketchup, the underlying geometry is going to be a Google DeepDream wireframe nightmare but as long as the end result still renders cleanly that's not something you will have to care about.
I'll probably stick with Sketchup for now then and keep playing in Fusion 360 and see if I want to transition off to it. I was able to do things in Solidworks I just didn't stick with and never used it build anything but Fusion shouldn't be that much harder to grasp.

This isn't my design, its something I pulled from the Parts Express Techtalk forums but its something I'd like to replicate and probably represents about the most complex thing I'd do. This is what I'd be using a CNC for.
image_20904.jpg

I love solidworks as well, but sadly I don't have access to this software anymore...
Also I unfortunately haven't found any good software solidworks a-like.:(

Some of my simpler designs with solidworks:

View attachment 212426

View attachment 212427
Thats pretty sick. Are those actual products you worked on or just renders for funzies? I'd be interested to know about the speaker if its a real thing and you can talk about it.
 
Thats pretty sick. Are those actual products you worked on or just renders for funzies? I'd be interested to know about the speaker if its a real thing and you can talk about it.

These were just renders for fun. :)
 
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