Why Tinkercad is the best option for CAD and 3D Printing beginners...
If you’re new to CAD design for 3D Printing, Tinkercad is definitely the program to start with. It’s a very powerful, user-friendly platform for CAD beginners and entry-level 3D Printing enthusiasts. By manipulating shapes and then adding or subtracting them from other shapes, you can create a lot of unique things or recreate existing objects in the world. 3D Printing has done a lot for me throughout my professional career and this resource is my way to give back to the aspiring tinkerers of the CAD and 3D Printing community.
New and UpdatedTinkercad TutorialSeries for Educators, Students, Tinkerers and Beyond!
In this video we cover the view cube, orbiting, panning, moving shapes, settings, grid preferences, rotating and duplicating objects, and so much more!
In this video we cover changing shape dimensions, radius and bevel features, modifying shapes, scaling, text manipulation, and unique objects!
In this video we discuss grouping and ungrouping objects. We also cover the Align tool, and Mirror tool, as well as the Cruise With Objects feature!
In this video we cover everything you need to know about using the the workplane tool, ruler tool, cruising with shapes and beyond!
In this video we cover everything you need to know about linear and circular patterns as well as slicing objects and why you would need to do so!
In this video we cover importing files such as .OBJ and .STL (3D files), and SVG (for lasercutting), exporting files, and collaborating
Keyboard Shortcuts
Moving Object (s):
- ←/ ↑/ →/ ↓ = Move an object along ground plane (X/Y Plane)
- ctrl+ ↑/ ↓ = Move an object up or down (Z plane)
- Shift+ ←/ ↑/ →/ ↓ = Move an object 10X faster along ground plane (X/Y Plane)
- ctrl+ Shift+ ↑/ ↓ = Move an object 10X faster up or down (Z plane)
- Shift + drag = moves object in only one direction
- D = Drop selected object(s) to workplane
Press and Hold the keyboard keys and then click/drag mouse for the below shortcuts…
- Shift + Right click = Pan view
- Alt+ left mouse button = Duplicate object(s)
- Shift+ left mouse button = Select more than one object
- Shift+ hold while rotating = 45 degree rotations
Helpful object action shortcuts…
- ctrl + C = Copy an object or selected objects
- ctrl+ V = Paste an object or objects
- ctrl+ Z = Undo action or actions
- ctrl + Y = Re-do an action or actions
- ctrl + A = Select All
- ctrl + D = Duplicate object or objects in place
- ctrl+ G = Group objects
- ctrl+ shift+ G = Un-group grouped objects
- Del = delete an object or objects
Object Options:
Select object(s) and then perform the following action(s)…
- T = Make Object Transparent
- H = Make an object or objects a hole
- S = Make an object or objects a solid
- ctrl + L = Lock or unlock selected objects
- ctrl + H = Make an object hidden
- ctrl + shift + H = Make all hidden objects visible again
Change the size of an object:
- Alt + click and drag side handle = Scale in one direction
- Alt + click and drag corner handle = Scale in two directions
- Shift + click and hold corner handle = Uniform Scale
- Alt + Shift + click and hold corner handle = Uniform scale from center
Tools and Views
- W = Create new workplane
- W + Shift = Place a Flipped Workplane
- L = Align tool
- R = Ruler tool
- M = Mirror tool
- F = A better view of selected objects
- Ctrl + A = select all visible shapes
I’ve been a 3D Printing enthusiast and an entrepreneur for many years now and it all started with Tinkercad for me. By learning the ins and outs of Tinkercad, you will not only be skilled in this particular program, but you will also have the foundational knowledge to progress and be successful at other 3D Printing programs. I currently work with Fusion 360 which is an advanced 3D Printing computer-aided design program. It also happens to be developed by Autodesk (the same company that bought Tinkercad in 2013) which is awesome because the progression from Tinkercad to Fusion 360 is a relatively smooth one.
Want to see how 3D Printing is applied in various industries all over the world? Check out the below videos!
On a business level, the 3D Printing space is a competitive one, but it can still be a lucrative one. The purpose of this resource is to provide aspiring entrepreneurs and 3D Printing enthusiasts with various ideas on proven ways to make a profit using CAD and three dimensional printing machinery.
Check out the video or visit the full article here.
My 3D Printing Journey...
The Original Video Set from 2018-2019!
A comprehensive discussion about the Tinkercad interface and shape movement
Diving deep into shape manipulation and scaling of objects in the design environment
A discussion of the hole, group/ungroup feature, the align tool, and the flip tool
A discussion of the workplane and ruler tools as well the brick and block environment
An instructional video on circular patterns, linear patterns, and slicing of objects.
Everything you need to know about importing, exporting, sharing, and downloading files
