What is 123DMake?

Make is a tool to help you turn digital ideas into something you can hold.
123DMake slices and converts digital 3D models into 2D patterns that you can cut
out of any flat material. Make also creates 3D instructions that you can interact with,
to help you build your model.

Important Terms
Slice: The cross sections you get by cutting straight through your model at any angle.
A slice can contain multiple parts.
Part: The individual pieces that make up a slice. They are assembled together later.
Cut Sheets: The sheets of material your parts are cut out of to build your model.

Navigation
Tumble
Mouse
Right click anywhere around your model and drag the cursor to change your view.

On screen Navigation Puck

Press the space bar and then click the center of the wheel and drag the cursor
in any direction to change your view.

Panning
Mouse
Click and hold the scroll wheel and drag the cursor to sweep your camera view
in any direction.

On screen Navigation Puck

Press the space bar, then click the left side of the wheel and drag the mouse
cursor in any direction to pan your camera view.

Zooming
Mouse
Roll the scroll wheel up and down on your mouse to zoom in and out.

On screen Navigation Puck

Press the space bar and then click the right side of the wheel and drag the
mouse cursor up and down.

Orthographic View
On screen Navigation Puck
Press the space bar and then click the bottom left Ortho icon to snap your
camera view to the closest flat view of your model.

Look At
On screen Navigation Puck
Press the space bar and then click the look at icon to center and frame your
view on the current side.

Home
On screen Navigation Puck
Press the space bar and then click the bottom right home icon to center and
frame your view of the front of your model.

Walkthrough
Start Shape
Choose from one of the included 3D models or import your
own. You can use any model of file types STL and OBJ.
If your model comes in looking misaligned, go to the Edit
Menu and click Rotate Model, to have it positioned correctly.

Construction Technique
Stacked Slices cross sections your 3D model, cutting it into
slices you can glue and stack on top of one another. You can
recreate your model out of any flat material you can cut.
Interlocked Slices cuts your 3D model into two stacks of slotted
slices. You lock them together in a grid, just like you would
build a 3d puzzle. This uses less material than stacked slices.

Dimensions
You can change both the size of your model and the size of
the sheet youre cutting it out from.
The smaller your object is compared to your sheet
size, the more parts you can fit on one sheet.
Under Cut Sheet Layout you can choose from a number of
standard cardboard sizes to cut your model out of. This
automatically updates the height, width and thickness of
your sheet size. Only enter specific widths and heights for
your sheet if you plan to use other materials.
When printing with 123Dapp.com use presets P1, P2, or P3.

Slice Angle
Click and drag the blue handle around your model to
change the slice angle.
The rings around your model are guides to help you keep
track of your angle changes. The slice angle will snap every
90 degrees to the guidelines.

Slice Control
In Interlocked Slices mode
Slice control lets you choose how many horizontal and
vertical slices to make your model out of. Increase the
number of slices to give more definition to your model.
Decrease the number of slices to use less material.

Click and drag any slice to change its position and spacing
between other slices. Click
(the Distribute button) to
space your slices evenly after you move any individual slices.

Select a slice and click

(the Insert button) to place a new
slice beside the original. It will follow the contours of the model.
(the Delete button) to remove
Select a slice and click
the slice from the stack instead.

Output
123D Make does not print directly to a printer.
Choose a file type from the dropdown menu to save to your
hard drive. You will use it to print slices that you assemble
as your 3D model.

Cut Width (Kerf)

Change how thick the actual cuts on your cut sheet are by
changing the cut width. It is based on how much material
your cutting tool (laser, saw, etc.) removes. This affects the
blue outlines in your cut sheet. Printers refer to this as Kerf.
A thicker cut width makes it easier to remove parts from the
sheet. It will take up marginally more room on your sheets.

Exporting
EPS is the best file type to send to print services at
123dapp.com/Make. Choosing EPS will create a zip folder with
individual pages for each slice.
PDF is better suited for printing at home. Choosing PDF will
create a single PDF file containing all of the slices.
Adobe Reader is required to view PDF files. Click the Get
Adobe Reader image to get a free download of the reader from Adobe.

Assembly
Drag the slider left and right to see how your sliced 3D
model goes together.
Use this as your assembly instructions when you build.

Troubleshooting
Using The Error Panel
If there are errors in your model the Error Panel will appear
to the right of your model. This panel has three areas that
are meant to help you understand and work through model
errors.

Slices With Errors

If your model has specific slice errors this area will display a
small preview of that error. This mostly happens in
interlocking mode. Click on this preview to highlight the
appropriate slice on the 3d model. This will also display an
error explanation below.

Error Explanation
If this section has a green bordered panel that says No
Errors then your model is fine! Global errors that affect
your whole model are shown with a yellow outline. Specific
errors show up with a red outline.

Active Slice Profile

This area displays a cross section of whichever slice is
currently selected on your model. As you move a slice the
cross section will update to help you get rid of the errors.

Using the Cut Layout

Go to the Cut Sheet section
to see your model, sliced into
the sheets of numbered parts you will assemble later.

What is the Cut Layout for?

The Cut Layout has two purposes.
To preview what your model will look like when it is sliced on several sheets.
To show errors that will stop you from from printing or building your model.

Sheets: how many sheets of material you currently need to make your model.
Sheet Size: the dimensions of the selected print material. Change this in the Cut
Sheet Layout menu on the left.
Cut Sheet: The actual, printed sheets that the layers of your model are spread
across. You cannot directly change where your models parts are placed. Magnify a
specific sheet by clicking it.
Labels: These numbers tell you which sheet a part belongs to. They are not in
order. Parts are automatically fitted to use as much of the sheet as possible.
Heiphenated numbers (e.g. 5 2) mean that there are multiple parts on a single sheet.
I.e.

5 2 means 2 parts on layer 5.

Coloured Outlines: Blue outlines represent the outside edge of your model.

Green outlines represent cuts made inside of your model to make hollow areas.
Errors: Parts with red dashes have an error that will make your model difficult to
build or too fragile to stay together.

Troubleshooting Print Errors

If any sliced part in your noun is red, it means it has errors and cant
be printed or assembled.
If a part is blue, it means it is detached from the model and will fall
off.

General Tips
Resize your model slightly
Change the angle you slice your model at
Shrink your model to fit the material
Change your material to a larger sheet size (this may affect cost)
Reposition the highlighted slice that is causing the error
Remove the highlighted slice that is causing the error

Specific Print Errors

Unconnected pieces
Chunks of the model have been separated and it will fall apart.
These detached parts are colored blue. Most of the time, this
happens to the first or last slice in interlocked slices mode. It
happens because there is no supporting structure to keep the
slices attached. For a more complete structure, you can:
1.
2.
3.
4.

Change the angle you slice your model at.

Change the number of slices your model is cut into.
Change the construction technique between stacked and interlocked slices.
Delete the disconnected slice.

Part too small

Part of the model is so tiny it will be difficult to cut out or assemble.
1. Enlarge your model.
2. Change the angle you slice your model at.
3. Drag the affected slice over.

Notches split part

Part of the model was cut off from the main section by a slice.
1. Move the affected slice in small amounts until the
separated pieces join together to form a whole part.
2. Change the angle you slice your model at.

Part too Narrow

Part of the model is too thin and may break when printed. You
may choose to print with this error, at your own risk. Stronger
materials like plastic probably wont break.
1. Enlarge your model.
2. Change the angle you slice your model at.

Parts too large for sheet

Parts of the model do not fit within the boundaries of the sheet.
If you are in stacked slices mode, 123D Make will try to break
the large part(s) into two pieces, with puzzle piece tabs to
connect them. This does not happen in interlocked slices mode.
You may want to:
1. Make your model smaller in the Object Size menu.
2. Make your sheet size larger in the Object Size menu.
3. Change the angle you slice your model at until the part fits.

Multiple Notches
Part of the interlocked model has extra, unnecessary
notches. In some cases a notch will become blocked (see
right). When printed, you wont be able to lock the two
slices together. To fix this, you can:
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.

Change the angle you slice your model at.

Drag the slice slightly in one direction.
Delete the affected slice.
Change to Stacked Slices mode.
Resize your model slightly.

Notch intersects hole

A hollow area of your model has had a notch cut into it. The
notch is not required for assembly.
1. Change to Stacked Slices mode.
2. Change the angle you slice your model at.

Printing
To print the model you sliced in 123DMake you have to export a file.
1. Select PDF under the file type dropdown menu if
youre printing at home.
2. Select EPS under the file type dropdown menu if
youre sending the job to www.123Dapp.com.
3. Click Export and save to your hard drive.

Printing with a Service

If you want your model cut for you, with smooth contours and a lot less gluing, send
the job to be printed for you at 123Dapp.com. You must use the P1, P2, or P3 settings
1. Go to www.123dapp.com.
2. At the top of the screen, click Register to create an account (takes 2 minutes)
3. Click
4. Click Get Started > under the Laser Cutting tab.
5. Under Upload a Model click Select a File.

6. Select the EPS file you created in 123DMake and upload.

7. Follow the on screen instructions.

Printing at Home
If you want the convenience of a regular printer, or you want to turn your model into
a fun crafts project, you can print your model at home.

On standard paper
Standard paper is too thin by itself to print a model. You will also need cardboard
and glue.
1. Get sheets of cardboard and measure their thickness.
2. In 123D Make, set the material thickness to your cardboards thickness, in the Cut
Sheet Layout
3. Export a PDF file to your hard drive.
4. Open and print the PDF file.
5. Glue the printed pages to the cardboard sheets.
6. Cut the parts out.
7. Glue the cardboard parts together.
Use Makes assembly walkthrough as a guideline.
Tip: Try using adhesive paper to make it easier to place your printouts on the cardboard sheets.

Other Materials
You can be creative with what you use if you follow the same procedure as above.
E.g. Plywood, felt, plastic sheeting, etc.
Make sure the material thickness in the Cut Sheet Layout matches that of your
material. And match the Cut Width to the thickness of your cutting tool.
E.g. If cutting plywood, enter the thickness of your saw blade.