Products We Love

Computer Mouse for CAD

Having a computer mouse is critical in navigating any CAD package – Autodesk Fusion 360 is no exception. We highly recommend not using a trackpad or mouse alternative. A mouse will give you greater precision, especially when working with sketch constraints, dimensions, and other details of Fusion 360.

• Budget (< $15)
  VicTsing MM057 2.4G Wireless Mouse – Check Price

• Performance (< $150)
  3Dconnexion Cadmouse Wireless for CAD (3DX-700062) – Check Price

• Professional (< $230)
  3Dconnexion Spacemouse Wireless Kit (3DX-700067) – Check Price

3D Printers

First, check out Kevin’s write-up on choosing a 3D printer for hobbyists. He takes a different approach than most websites do while going into more detail about considerations when shopping for a 3D printer. Some of those printers are listed below, but you’ll also find a few other recommendations, including the Bambu Lab printers that we now recommend.

FFF 3D Printers for Hobbyists and Prosumers

• Budget (< $250)
  Ender 3 Pro 3D Printer – Check Price
  Kingroon KP3S 3D Printer – Check Price or Read our Review
  Bambu Lab A1 Mini – Check Price

• Performance (< $1,000)
  Original Prusa i3 MK3S – Check Price
  Mingda Magain X – Check Price or Read our Review
  Wizmaker P1 – Check Price or Read our Review
  Bambu Lab P1S – Check Price

• Professional (< $6,000)
  Ultimaker S5 (Kevin’s original main printer) – Check Price
  Bambu Lab X1C (Kevin’s main printer) – Check Price

SLA 3D Printers for Hobbyists and Prosumers

• Budget (< $300)
  Official Creality Resin 3D Printer (LD-002H) – Check Price

• Performance (< $1,000)
  Creality Resin 3D Printer Halot Mage S 14K – Check Price

• Professional (< $6,000)
  Form 3+ or Form 4 Desktop 3D Printer – Check Price

3D Scanning

Learn more about 3D scanning with our guide using Photogrammetry with a smartphone.

• Budget (Free with Paid Features)
  KIRI Engine Smartphone app for both iPhone and Android.

• Performance (< $700)
  Revopoint POP 3D Scanner – Check Price

• Professional (< $9,999)
  2022 EinScan Pro HD Handheld 3D Scanner – Check Price
  Einstar 3D Scanner – Check Price

3D Printer Filament

Choosing a 3D Printer filament can be tricky. There are many variables involved, including the type of material, your 3D Printer, preferences, color choices, and more.

Below you will find 3 of our favorite filament brands, including some bundles (that save you some money). We recommend you give these brands a try and test them on your 3D Printer. Remember to read all instructions as some filaments require increased temperatures.

• Budget (< $30)
  HATCHBOX PLA 3D Printer Filament, 1.75mm (Assorted Colors) – Check Price or visit Hatchbox Amazon Store
  SUNLU PLA 3D Printer Filament, 1.75mm – Check Price

• Performance (< $150 bundle)
  Amazon Basics TPU 3D Printer Filament, 1.75mm, Bundle of 5 (Assorted Colors) – Check Price
  Bambu Lab Filament, 1.75mm – Check Price

• Professional (< $45)
  Polymaker 10 Pack Starter PolyLite PLA, 2.85mm – Check Price

CNC Machines

CNC machines are seeing tremendous growth in the hobbyist sector – thanks in part to easy access to 3D Modeling and CAM software.

Purchasing a CNC machine is often a big purchase and one that you should carefully consider. A good starting point is determining your standard projects, which will help determine the minimum bed size. From there, you can determine how often you’ll use the machine. For example, if you plan to cut flat-pack furniture often, you may want a machine large enough for a sheet or half sheet of plywood. Of course, shop space is also a factor.

We recommend getting the performance machine (Avid) if you plan to use it a lot, as it offers great room for growth. You can upgrade your kit to a larger size at a later date.

If you’re a hobbyist looking to cut small projects a few times a month, then the budget object is a great place to get your ‘feet wet’ in the world of CNC machines.

• Budget (< $2,500)
  Longmill CNC by Sienci Labs – Check Price

• Performance (< $10,000)
  AVID CNC Machine Kit – Check Price

• Professional (< $30,000)
  Shop Sabre Pro 408 – Check Price

CNC End Mills, Dust Collection, & Parts

CNC end mills or ‘bits’ are an important part of running any CNC machine effectively.

We’re a proud partner of Portland CNC, which sells several quality end mills, collets, tool changers, and so much more. Because we have so many things to list, we’ve listed this by category instead of by budget.

Dust collection

• 5-inch x 10-ft Flexible Dust Collection Hose
• 5-inch wire clamp
• 4-inch wire clamp
• Duct Wrap
• Dust Boot
• Dust Boot Brush

End mills (CNC bits)

• 23-375 – 3/8 x 1.25″ – Compression Spiral 2 Flute Carbide End Mill
• 20-250 – 1/4 x 1″ – Upcut Spiral 2 Flute Carbide End Mill
• CNC Router Sheet Tooling Kits
• Desktop CNC Router Tooling Kits

Collets

• ER32 Collet – 3/4
• ER32 Collet – 3/8
• ER32 Collet – 5/16

Miscellaneous

• Tool tag tower
• Modular ATC Tool Changer

Vacuum Forming Machines

Vacuum-forming machines can be an integral part of the prototyping or small-production process. Traditionally, vacuum-forming machines were only available to commercial manufacturers or those with large budgets.

Mayku is a company located in London that’s making vacuum forming accessible to everyday Makers, Entrepreneurs, and business owners. We’re a proud owner of their machines and recommend them to anyone looking to get started in vacuum forming.

• Budget (< $700)
  FormBox by Mayku – Check Price

• Performance (< $5,000)
  Multiplier by Mayku – Check Price

Calipers

A caliper is a device used to measure the dimensions of an object. Most calipers display measurements with a ruler, a dial, a digital display – or a combination of the three.

Having a trusty pair of calipers handy will help your 3D Printing and Woodworking endeavors. Whether you’re reverse engineering a part to 3D Print or finalizing a detailed furniture piece, you’ll find caliper to be an invaluable addition to your toolkit.

Finding the right caliper can be tricky because the price points vary tremendously. We recommend having a budget caliper over no caliper. However, a caliper is one tool you should spend money on. Cheap calipers often break or read incorrect measurements. A professional caliper will last your lifetime if you take care of it. Consider getting a stainless steel caliper over an all-plastic one.

• Budget (< $50)
  NEIKO 8” Electronic Digital Caliper Stainless Steel (01408A) – Check Price

• Performance (< $150)
  Anytime Tools Premium Dial Caliper 12″/0.001″ Precision Hardened Stainless Steel – Check Price

• Professional (< $400)
  Mitutoyo Advanced Onsite Sensor (AOS) Absolute Scale Digital Caliper (500-197-30) – Check Price

Computers for Autodesk Fusion 360

Deciding on a new computer is not an easy task, and there are many things to consider. To start, make sure the computer meets the minimum specifications to run Fusion 360.

Remember, Autodesk Fusion (Fusion 360) does work on Windows and Mac operating systems, so you have plenty of options. If Fusion 360 is the most resource-intense piece of software you’ll be using, then you can stick to a lower-end computer. However, if you plan to do video editing or things in addition to 3D modeling, you’ll want to get a machine with additional RAM and storage capacity.

Below you will find some of our recommendations for computers. However, note that each person has their own unique needs, and computers are hard to recommend. We encourage you to do your due diligence and make sure you’re getting the best machine for you.

• Budget (< $700)
  Skytech Gaming Nebula Gaming PC Desktop – Intel Core i5 13400F 2.5 GHz, NVIDIA RTX 4060, 1TB NVME SSD, 16GB DDR4 RAM 3200, 600W Gold PSU – Check Price

• Performance (< $1,500)
  Acer Aspire Z24-890-UA91 AIO Desktop, 23.8 inches Full HD, 9th Gen Intel Core i5-9400T, 12GB DDR4, 512GB SSD – Check Price

• Professional (< $5,000)
  Apple iMac with Retina 5K Display (27-inch, 8GB RAM, 512GB SSD Storage) – Check Price
  Apple MacBook Pro M2 (What Kevin mainly uses)
  Microsoft Surface Studio 2 (Intel Core i7, 32GB RAM, 2TB) – Check Price

Gear Used for Tutorials

We get a lot of questions about the gear we use to produce our high-quality tutorials. Below you will find some of the products that we’ve used over the last two years.

We’re always experimenting with new gear and will update this when a product aligns with our expectations and quality standards.

Software

• Course Learning Platform (3 Plans)
  Thinkific – Check Price

• Screen Recording
  Screenflow 9 – Check Price
  Adobe Premiere Pro

• Automate Audio Editing with Recut – Get $10 Off
  

Camera Equipment

• Budget (< $400)
  GoPro HERO8 Black 4K Waterproof Action Camera – Check Price

• Performance (< $2,000)
  Sony α7 III Mirrorless Camera – Check Price

• Professional (< $6,000)
  Sony Alpha 7S III Full-Frame Mirrorless Camera with Sony SEL2470GM E-Mount Camera Lens – Check Price

Microphones for Voice-Overs

• Budget (< $150)
  Blue Yeti USB Mic for Recording & Streaming on PC and Mac – Check Price

• Performance (< $300)
  Rode Podcaster USB Dynamic Microphone – Check Price

• Professional (< $400)
  Shure SM7B Cardioid Dynamic Microphone – Check Price

Software Tools

3D Printing Related Tools

• 3D Print Cost Calculator (free to use)
  3DWithUs has an online calculator that helps you estimate the final cost of a printed part – Visit Calculator