Answer Day: Inventor vs Fusion 360?

[michael]

Hi.

I have been using Inventor up until version 2014. Then I switched to Fusion and got into the CAM stuff. I really like that we hobbyists can afford this kind of software nowadays. I was almost going to pay for Fusion Premium, but lately it feels like my models are too big for Fusion, whereas Inventor seemed to cope well with bigger models (on the same computer). I'm also getting tired of not being able to separate my work into one file per part. The list of Fusion annoyances is growing each day.. I'm longing back to Inventor but I don't think I can afford what I need.

I'm running Fusion on a MacBook Pro, the same MacBook that used to run Inventor via Parallells.

I'm thinking of installing Inventor LT + HSM Express 2017, but I'm a bit confused by the product placement and pricing.

1. Inventor LT "is not available in your country". Why wouldn't this product be available in Sweden? This is a showstopper for sure..

2. I would pay 50 EUR a month for Inventor LT, but HSM Express seems to lack functions that I get for free in Fusion.

Examples:

- 3 axis (which I very seldom need, so it's no biggie)

- Chamfering toolpaths automatically detects collisions. New in 2017. This has been in Fusion for a long time

- Engraving. It seems that I'd have to pay for Inventor Pro to engrave my parts, but this is included in most cheapo CAD/CAM packages.

- As Inventor is aimed toward professionals more than Fusion seems to be, I'm worried what other stuff the LT version will lack compared to Fusion

//Michael

[Mark.Lancaster · Accepted solution]

@michael

Welcome to the community...

Inventor LT is not going to do assemblies..  Do you need that capability?

"I'm also getting tired of not being able to separate my work into one file per part."...  I haven't used fusion 360 in awhile but I was able to create separate part files and then assembly those parts together.

As far as I know the Fusion 360 CAM aspect was built from the HSM interface.  Yes you get more CAM functions in Fusion 360 over the free HSM version but Fusion 360 is the latest CAD/CAM interface being offered by Autodesk.

"Inventor LT "is not available in your country". Why wouldn't this product be available in Sweden?"  We are only users here so we have no control over which country Autodesk sells which product.  If you are looking at the on-line store and getting this message you may want to consider contacting a local Autodesk reseller and they can assist you in purchasing Inventor LT.

[michael]

Thank you Mark.

Oh, that's another showstopper =(

Assemblies is the biggest feature I miss in Fusion. In Fusion it's way to easy to start sketching with the wrong component active and after that you're in trouble, because sketches don't easily move between components. Worst scenario is when I accidentally draw some support sketches to be used in various components, in the wrong place. If I later delete this component, "the wrong place", I end up with a model beyond salvation..

Fusion is an impressive product for the price. I really wish Autodesk would make Inventor available to Hobbyists as well. That way they'd get hordes of Inventor experts on the market for future jobs with payed licenses.

Oh well.

Back to Fusion..

[I_Forge_KC · Accepted solution]

Hey Michael,

Welcome to the forum.

I think you may be best off keeping Fusion and just learning to adapt. Unfortunately, Inventor LT does not perform any assembly functions. It is strictly a part modeler/drafter. Since you make reference to individual files from your parts, I assume you're working with assemblies. This seems like a nail in the coffin, so to speak.

From a functional perspective, Fusion blows LT out of the water. You get the same part modeling capabilities in but also the assembly, CAM, and simulation inside Fusion.

What makes Inventor so powerful over both Fusion and LT are the tools in the assembly environment (e.g. constraints, design accelerators, iLogic).

If a subscription to full Inventor isn't feasible, using Fusion would be the next best option. I agree that there are caveats to it - but the functionality for the money is just mind-blowing.

[michael]

Here is a follow up question about Inventor Pro..

A great thing with Fusion (to me) is the centralized user parameters, which lets me define parameters in one place and use them in all components. In Inventor 2014 I had to store my parameters in an Excel sheet and link this sheet to every part. Is this still the case in Inventor 2017? It would be great to have a "project scope" on some parameters.

I'm still far away from banging out the bucks for Inventor Pro. But one day I'm sure it will happen, not in the hobbyist stage, though..

//Michael