I use the free version of fusion for all my 3d printing and it's mostly adequate. I use both depending on what I need and the complexity of the model. stl and it uses a local program and runs way faster. Or you can select individual bodies to export to. stl which uses a cloud service for translation and it takes forever. So think of a fusion file as the entire project and design accordingly. Moving components from one fusion design to another is kinda clunky as there isn't really any assembly tools to create things like mates and concentric constraints between parts.

You can create parts (fusion calls them components) but the design feature history is shared across multiple components in the same linear tree. In fusion it's all at once in the same design space. Unlike other cad programs, you don't create part files and then create an assembly of those parts. However coming from other cad software, the big difference for me was that a fusion design file is like one big integrated assembly. I'm adding my feedback because I came into fusion with professional experience in creo, inventor, and solidworks.įusion works just like the other cad programs, you're fine once you learn the various tools and ui. Pretty much everything all the other commenters said is spot on. Use cura or whatever other slicer you want instead of anything built into fusion. Use meshmixer to modify existing files you don't have a design history tree for. Use inkscape or similar for text details to import into fusion. Use Blender for sculpting, organic shapes, and texturing. Tl dr Fusion is fine for solid modeling, some disadvantages over other expensive cad programs but they're not a show stopper.

Download fusion 360 for personal use