A definite quality of life improvement in FreeCAD was to set the sizes of the points in a sketch a LOT bigger. The default is 5 px which on my 4k screen was about 0.2 mm and almost impossible to hit. Trying to set up constraints was so bloody frustrating as lining up the mouse pointer on a point took ages. Much better now, could go even bigger than 20 px.

I created a ramp for my robot vacuum to overcome a big step between rooms. While many ramp models already exist, I needed one which is higher on the left side than the right.

So I designed a parametric #FreeCAD model where you can set the length, width, and both the right and left heights.

You can find it on #Printables:

https://www.printables.com/model/1414077-robot-vacuum-ramp-parametric-freecad

For running my #HamRadio portable setup from solar power, I made a power distribution box. I didn't know where to stop, apparently, and now I have a beast that weighs 1.2kg. It has two isolated battery busses, each of which has an XT60M, PowerPole, and 5.5x2.1mm barrel connector to choose from, supporting the batteries I have and that friends might have. It has four other circuits that can each be switched dual-pole (no shared ground) between the two battery busses, or isolated/disconnected:

• Solar charger, which is only connected if the charger is switched to an active battery bus with battery voltage present. If enabled, it charges the connected battery and provides USB-A 5V output. It also displays solar and connected battery voltage. The solar panel is connected via XT60M.
• USB-C PD 65W and USB-A QC 3.0 with voltage display.
• Two independent device busses, each of which has 4 XT60F, one PowerPole, and one 5.5x2.1mm barrel connector. On each, one fuse is shared between the barrel connector and the PowerPole, and pairs of XT60s share a fuse.Internally, the primary buses have 75 mix ferrites on them as common-mode chokes, and many other places including all the XT60 connectors have diminutive FT50-43 ferrites for the same purpose.

Additionally, the solar panels that can be connected to this also have both USB-C with PD and USB-A QC.

My main regrets are:

• I modeled all the hardware to make sure it wouldn't interfere, but didn't model all the wiring and ferrites. It was a tight squeeze.
• I wish I had used rocker switches instead of toggle switches; I'm concerned these will be damaged in transport
• Am I really going to use this beast?

This project becomes more funny because I do most of my portable operating QRP, and could run for hours off a USB-C power bank that weighs less than the power distribution box alone. (So really I should make a few octopus cables.)

Modeled in #FreeCAD and 3D printed using yellow ABS filament.

It's #FreeCADFriday once again! What are you all working on in #FreeCAD? #CAD #CAM #BIM

It's pleasently surprising to me, that with the incredible amount of #3dmodel out there, there are still many instances where just quickly designing a fitting part in #FreeCAD turns out to be faster and better than sifting unsuccessfully through all the staff already out there.

#3Dprint

Conclusion: learn CAD, it will enrich your life

FreeCAD Foray: Good Practices - Last time, we built a case for a PCB that handles 100 W of USB-C power, an old pro... - https://hackaday.com/2025/09/11/freecad-foray-good-practices/ #hackadaycolumns #freecad #tips

Forged in FreeCAD (and KiCad): Community Bike Sound System Solutions!

A lovely story of a #community #bike group ride solving some audio problems using #FreeCAD and #KiCad. Thanks to @MCQN_Ltd for sharing their story. #biketooter #opensource #CAD #3Dprint #KiCad

https://wp.me/pe9Jyy-Td

Je me suis acharnée. Vraiment.
Mais ça veut pas.

Vidéo du bug, si ça intéresse du monde, c'est à partir de 3min.

Moi j'abandonne pour de bon, et j'en suis bien triste, parce que si ça avait voulu fonctionner ce logiciel me semblait vraiment génial.

One thing that has always bugged me about Allied Leisure's cocktail cabinets is the absolutely horrible heat they produce. The thing is easily closer to 40°C+ by the end of the night, the electronics probably aren't lovin' it. They obviously knew they have a problem, as this is one of the rare pins to have a cabinet fan. It blows directly to the 5V regulator's heat sink, but the air flow is so measly it does nothing for the heat problem. Also the vent is pointing downwards about 1/3 from top of the cabinet.

I made a drop-in replacement for the vent with #FreeCAD with the change that this one has a fan on it. Today was the first full day the thing was on after the modification and now the playfield glass is cool to touch. What a difference! I'm still going to also replace the intake fan, it's making dying fan sounds but I needed to order a centrifugal fan for that.

Doing cutouts without dimensioned drawings (apparently a luxury feature) was surprisingly not that bad, but still kinda bad.

Protocase Designer is also struggling to display text while running under wine, which is mostly funny, but some text does need to go on there at some point.

In contrast, #FreeCAD is excellent now! Post-1.0, it has everything I need to be productive, is more responsive than OnShape, and it hasn't crashed yet, which is a pleasant upgrade. The new measurement tool is also exceptionally smooth!

oh cool, I never realized #FreeCAD symmetrical tapered extrusions will taper in both directions. Could have used that once or twice...

FreeCAD Foray: From Brick To Shell https://hackaday.com/2025/09/09/freecad-foray-from-brick-to-shell/ #OriginalArt #3Dmodelling #Featured #freecad #Skills #howto

FreeCAD Foray: From Brick To Shell - Over a year ago, we took a look at importing a .step file of a KiCad PCB into Free... - https://hackaday.com/2025/09/09/freecad-foray-from-brick-to-shell/ #originalart #3dmodelling #featured #freecad #skills #howto

I've been using #FreeCAD for years, and I learned several things about box selection in FreeCAD from this video. I expect I'll use it more now than i have in the past.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Om77YAcBjDE

Had a bit of success live streaming some development work earlier this year so going to give it another run, trying to hit the same time each week. So starting this Wed I'll be streaming for a couple hours starting at 10am Pacific time. This week I'll be working on #FreeCAD, #BarbackV2 and trying to get #KiConnect v1.0 released.

https://stream.oit.cloud

It’s not complicated but it’s really fun how quickly I can scribble something like this in #freecad as I’ve been gradually learning more. Took less than 5 mins. #BellCrank