![](https://i0.wp.com/www.almostfamousdave.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/05/Hot-Wire-Foam-Cutter-v9.png?resize=294%2C300&ssl=1)
Hot Wire Foam Cutter (underside – v9 unfinished).
But there are a few reasons I’m shifting to Fusion 360:
- Fusion 360 is free for me to use; Autodesk has made the full-featured software free for hobbyists like me to use.
- I need to use software that goes from concept (3D CAD) to production (CAM) in order to use my CNC Router; Fusion 360 does that extremely well.
- The projects I’ve been designing require me to outsource many of the parts to fabricators; they all use Autodesk software and Fusion 360 allows me to be compatible with their workflows.
- To be honest, Fusion 360 does 2D drawings much better way than Sketchup with Layout. It cuts down on the time it takes me to go from design to building.
- It has more materials and renders more elegant images of my models. When I show them to people it’s much more impressive and requires less imagination on their part to understand the concepts I’m presenting.
Here is a model (with a comparison photo) I made in Fusion 360 of the main transformer for the Hot Wire Foam Cutter.
![](https://i0.wp.com/www.almostfamousdave.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/05/IMG_8196.jpg?resize=266%2C300&ssl=1)
Photo of Main Transformer.
![](https://i0.wp.com/www.almostfamousdave.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/05/Main_Transformer_120240_x_2448_2017-May-13_07-43-38PM-000_CustomizedView10528567893.png?resize=286%2C300&ssl=1)
Model of Main Transformer.