Is Fusion 360 a viable product?

[parkerledwards]

Sincere question here. 

I've been using F360 heavily for one year and have likely lost ~30-40 working hours to crashes, failed features, and bugs (this is of course in addition to the many many hours spent being a rookie to the software). As I've done searches regarding each of these issues I consistently find forum posts both here and on other forums that are 5, 6, and 7 years old describing the same issue echoing to the present.

In so many areas Fusion 360 feels pre-release. Like it should be offered for free as a beta rather than a high ticket piece of commercial software. It was bearable when I began my Fusion journey, but I find that now after so much time it is *extremely* grating and I sometimes loathe when I have to work with it because I know that even if I learn everything there is to learn about working well with it that I will run into random bugs that can sink 1, 2 or more entire workdays to resolve even if I'm doing everything right. 

Is this software worth sinking more years into? Is the team worth putting my faith in? 

[mango.freund]

Did you buy the license or, like so many here, are you tasked with finding and reporting exactly these errors with the free version?
I hear very few reports from people who have the purchase version.

[TheCADWhisperer]

---

@mango.freund wrote:
Did you buy the license or, like so many here, are you tasked with finding and reporting exactly these errors with the free version?
I hear very few reports from people who have the purchase version.

---

I don’t understand how free license or purchased license has anything to do with the question?

[TrippyLighting]

I don't see many posts from you on this forum, and the one I do see all relate to the CAM workspace. Whether Fusion 360 is a viable option really depends on the type of work you are doing. A generic reply is unlikely going to  answer the question.

Amongst the CAD systems I have worked with professionally over the last 30 year Fusion 360 is amongst the lowest cost options. 

[mango.freund]

masalo ona e te valea ma e te manaʻo e faʻafefe oe ia te aʻu i taimi uma?

[TrippyLighting]

---

@mango.freund wrote:
...
I hear very few reports from people who have the purchase version.

---

Reports of what ? Bugs ?

[mango.freund]

ganz ehrlich peter -- was hab ich mit den antworten von dir und ????wasauchimmer??? anzufangen. der fragesteller heisst doch @parkerledwards und auf den soll reagiert werden --- ich will nicht zirkusdarsteller sein und lass mich auch nur ungern in den mittelpunkt stellen. sei so freundlich lass es uns am a.... vorbeiziehen und nicht als grammatiktests ueber fehlendes subjekt. danke

[TrippyLighting]

@mango.freund my question was not intended as a test for grammar 😉

I really wanted to know what you were referring to.

I ask myself that question - whether or not Fusion 360 is a viable product for professional use - very often.

[mango.freund]

I'm just surprised that this question is so broad. like you, i want to understand and look for answers. "proverb" -but you don't look into the horse's mouth for a given horse,
so the question about the license status.
Second, there are wandering beta versions as well.
and thirdly, in the end I still differentiate for which use the good parkerled defines these problems. I just want to make myself smart. For example, I assume you - not-- always have to prove my ability. but there are people who use this platform exclusively for <<< making every small to >>> be bigger.
offer help free from ego = forum

[laughingcreek]

I some times worry about the long-term commitment of upper level AD management to this product.   The development team is capable, but seem to be stretched thin on resources.  Seems to take an exceedingly long time to get around to bringing the functionality of existing tools to the level they should/could be at.

that said I wonder how much of this is perception.  I learned cad on an early version of autocad (2.??).  Had zero contact with anybody at Autodesk.  Pretty sure some of things I struggled with turned out to be bugs.  And bug reporting? HA!

The every cad package I've used since then have had bugs in there somewhere.  But it can be hard to differentiate between bugs and user error till you reach a certain level of proficiency.

I suspect there is a larger user base of non-professionals using fusion than something like inventor/solid works,  hence a larger number of "bug" reports (real or perceived), but that's just my conjecture.

I can't justify the cost of a higher end package for what I do, and I can certainly do more with fusion than anything else I can find at the same price point.  But if the money was there I would seriously look at other options.

I do think (again, just a guess based on my own experience) that people experiencing lots of crashes are probably using sub-optimal modeling techniques.  Then again, software shouldn't crash just because of wonky input.  

[jmsimmons460]

I've been using Fusion360 since it's inception. I've also used Autodesk Inventor, Solidworks etc. Fusion360 used to be a great cheaper alternative to those cost heavy programs. But... with every update they pump it full of more and more useless stuff slowly diminishing its core function as parametric modeling software. I have files from years ago that the new version of the software cant even open let alone modify. I can tell you from using this program for so long, the crashes, bugs, freezes etc. have only gotten worse over the years and will most likely continue to do so. I'm about to jump ship myself.

[Ex_Machina_Engineering]

Short Answer: Yes

Long Answer: Professionally, I have gone through ProEngineer Wildfire 3.0, Solidworks 2012, Solidworks 2016, Inventor and Fusion. The best bang for the buck, I would say is Inventor.

ProEngineer is impressive in its stability and its equation editor is unmatched. It also has a great toolset although the industry has caught up in the last few years. But the price is extremely high. Solidworks is easy to pick up for a newbie and has a few more tools than Fusion360 but it's not any more robust than Fusion360. It's priced competitively to Inventor, so Inventor is a no brainer there.

But for a small start-up or an Engineering as a Service provider like me, Fusion is unmatched. The toolset for the price is AMAZING and the software keeps getting better and better, both in stability and functionality. Back when the lathe CAM was said to be lacking (2016-ish) I was programming an ST-15Y with it and consistently beating programming time and execution time on the machine from reps of other major CAM software.

P.S. Haven't tried CATIA.

[parkerledwards]

All, thanks VERY much for your thoughtful responses. For those questioning my posting record I only ask questions here or in other forums that I’m not able to find elsewhere. I’m not saying I’m not able to find others experiencing the same F360 issues I am, I’m saying that I DO find others asking the same questions in posts that often date back to 2016 who’s experiences mirror mine exactly with NO SOLUTIONS TO DATE or ancient employees posting “we’re looking into it”. This is the classic repose of a big tech company in 2022 “we’re looking into it” then push new versions with new features and leave what I would consider very basic functions to languish. I posted here to see if I was wrong but it doesn’t seem to me that I’m wrong nor alone.

 Additionally, I’m using F360 for exactly what it was intended for, design and CAM.

I recently did a reinstall of the software and it is somehow worse in areas that  had no problems before. It hangs for 20-30 seconds at a light breeze, or crashes during basic functionality (like SAVING!) let alone during tough computing or long toolpaths. One day I’ll put together a screen capture compilation of all the software gore to entertain and inflame. For now I’ll just be sad and hope for better than how software tends to be treated in 2022: disposable. 

[Hfrossard]

I know I am being repetitive for saying the same thing on other posts.

I really see potential on Fusion, but It is being left out by Autodesk itself.

Even Onshape is better on parametric and 2d drawing level than Fusion.