Yes. Drawing and downloading cost nothing, and you need no account. You only pay if you have the part cut by us.

Do I need to know CAD?

No. For simple parts a rectangle, a circle and a few dimensions are enough. For common shapes there are templates you only adjust: mounting plate, gusset plate, washer, sign and more.

Can I edit an existing DXF?

Yes. Upload it on the upload page and it opens in the sketcher. To only look at it and measure, use the DXF viewer.

Which programs read the file?

Any that opens R12 DXF, which is nearly all of them: AutoCAD, Fusion 360, FreeCAD, Inkscape and most programs for laser, plasma and waterjet machines.

Does it work on a phone?

Drawing does. Import and download sit in the sidebar, which appears on larger screens only, so use a computer or a tablet held sideways.

What can the sketcher not do?

It draws flat parts in 2D. 3D models and bent parts belong in a CAD program, but you can import the STEP file of a flat part.

Create a DXF file online

Draw your part in the browser and download it as a DXF, with no CAD program and nothing to install. The sketcher works in real millimetres, snaps to corners and centres, and holds every dimension you set. Free, no sign-up.

Open the sketcher Start from a template

What you can draw in the sketcher

Lines, polylines, rectangles, circles, arcs, ellipses, polygons and slots.
Dimensions and constraints: distance, angle, radius and diameter, parallel, perpendicular, tangent, equal, horizontal and vertical.
Trim, fillet, chamfer and mirror.
Text in stencil fonts, which keep the inner parts of letters like A and O joined by bridges, or as lettering cut from solid sheet.
Import of DXF and STEP files to keep working on.
A manufacturability check: once a material is chosen, it shows whether the outline is closed and whether holes, bridges and edge distances are large enough for the material and thickness.

A DXF in four steps

Open the sketcher, empty or from a template such as a mounting plate, gusset plate or washer. A template opens in the sketcher with “Edit in Sketcher”.
Draw the outline and dimension it. Change a dimension and the drawing follows.
Place holes, slots and cut-outs inside the outline.
In the sidebar, under “Cut files”, click “Download DXF”.

What the DXF contains

An R12 DXF in millimetres, which common CAD and cutting programs read. It holds the closed outline with its holes and cut-outs as lines, arcs and circles. Ellipses and text go in as fine polylines.

Construction lines, dimensions and lines that belong to no closed outline stay out. So the file holds exactly what gets cut.

Have it cut straight away

The price sits beside the download: choose material and thickness, and the sketcher shows at once what the part costs with us, from one piece. We cut steel, stainless steel, aluminium and spring steel; every grade is listed under materials. The minimum sizes for holes and bridges are in the design guidelines.

Questions about creating a DXF

Is it really free?: Yes. Drawing and downloading cost nothing, and you need no account. You only pay if you have the part cut by us.
Do I need to know CAD?: No. For simple parts a rectangle, a circle and a few dimensions are enough. For common shapes there are templates you only adjust: mounting plate, gusset plate, washer, sign and more.
Can I edit an existing DXF?: Yes. Upload it on the upload page and it opens in the sketcher. To only look at it and measure, use the DXF viewer.
Which programs read the file?: Any that opens R12 DXF, which is nearly all of them: AutoCAD, Fusion 360, FreeCAD, Inkscape and most programs for laser, plasma and waterjet machines.
Does it work on a phone?: Drawing does. Import and download sit in the sidebar, which appears on larger screens only, so use a computer or a tablet held sideways.
What can the sketcher not do?: It draws flat parts in 2D. 3D models and bent parts belong in a CAD program, but you can import the STEP file of a flat part.

Open the sketcher