Shapes Library Reference

CADFaber includes 30 shapes across multiple categories that serve as building blocks for 3D designs. This reference page covers the core primitives and most-used shapes, with parameters, default values, and practical tips for when and how to use each one.

To add any shape to your scene, click its icon in the shape library sidebar (left panel in the Visual Builder). The shape appears at the center of the workplane with its default dimensions. Select it to view and modify its parameters in the properties panel.

Cube

The Cube is the most fundamental shape and one you will use constantly. It creates a rectangular box defined by three dimensions.

Parameters

• Width (X) — The size along the X axis. Default: 20.
• Height (Y) — The size along the Y axis. Default: 20.
• Depth (Z) — The size along the Z axis. Default: 20.

Despite its name, the Cube does not have to be a perfect cube. Setting different values for Width, Height, and Depth creates a rectangular box (cuboid). Use cubes as baseplates, walls, brackets, panels, enclosures, or as the starting point for subtractive modeling where you cut holes and channels using CSG subtract operations.

Sphere

The Sphere creates a smooth ball shape. It is defined by a single radius parameter that controls its size in all directions equally.

Parameters

• Radius — The radius of the sphere. Default: 10.
• Segments— The number of horizontal and vertical subdivisions that define the sphere's smoothness. Default: 32. Higher values produce a smoother sphere but increase geometry complexity. For 3D printing, 32 segments is usually sufficient since the layer lines of an FDM printer will mask minor faceting.

Spheres are useful for rounded knobs, ball joints, decorative elements, and as tool shapes for CSG operations. A sphere subtracted from a cube creates a concave depression, which is a common technique for finger grips, bowl shapes, and cable routing channels.

Cylinder

The Cylinder creates a circular column defined by a radius and height. It is one of the most versatile shapes, used for dowels, pins, standoffs, tubes, and countless mechanical parts.

Parameters

• Radius — The radius of the circular cross-section. Default: 10.
• Height — The length of the cylinder along its central axis. Default: 20.
• Segments — The number of sides around the circumference. Default: 32. Lower values (such as 6 or 8) create hexagonal or octagonal columns instead of smooth cylinders.

A cylinder with 6 segments becomes a hexagonal prism, which is useful for bolt heads, nut recesses, and honeycomb patterns. Combining a cylinder with a CSG subtract operation against another, slightly smaller cylinder creates a tube or pipe shape, though the dedicated Tube shape is more convenient for this.

Cone

The Cone creates a tapered shape that narrows from a circular base to a point (or a smaller circle if truncated). It is defined by bottom radius, top radius, and height.

Parameters

• Bottom Radius — The radius at the base. Default: 10.
• Top Radius — The radius at the top. Default: 0 (a sharp point). Setting this to a non-zero value creates a truncated cone (frustum).
• Height — The distance from base to top. Default: 20.
• Segments — The number of sides around the circumference. Default: 32.

Truncated cones (frustums) are useful for transitions between different diameter sections, funnel shapes, and tapered supports. A cone with a very small top radius can serve as a pointer, spike, or decorative finial.

Torus

The Torus creates a donut-shaped ring. It is defined by two radii: the major radius (distance from the center of the torus to the center of the tube) and the minor radius (the thickness of the tube itself).

Parameters

• Major Radius — The distance from the center of the torus to the center of its circular cross-section. Default: 15.
• Minor Radius — The radius of the tube. Default: 5.
• Major Segments — Segments around the main ring. Default: 32.
• Minor Segments — Segments around the tube cross-section. Default: 16.

Tori are excellent for creating O-ring seals, handles, bezels, decorative rings, and cable management loops. When combined with CSG operations, a torus can create rounded channels and grooves in flat surfaces. Adjusting the ratio between major and minor radii dramatically changes the appearance — a small minor radius relative to the major radius creates a thin ring, while a large minor radius creates a fat donut.

Pyramid

The Pyramid creates a four-sided shape with a square base that tapers to a point at the top. Unlike the Cone, which has a circular base, the Pyramid has straight edges.

Parameters

• Base Width — The width of the square base. Default: 20.
• Base Depth — The depth of the base. Default: 20. When equal to Base Width, the base is a perfect square.
• Height — The distance from the base to the apex. Default: 20.

Pyramids are useful for decorative elements, roof shapes in architectural models, pointed tips, and alignment features. Combining a pyramid with a cube base creates a simple house or tent shape. A pyramid can also be used as a CSG subtraction tool to create V-shaped grooves and chamfers.

Prism

The Prism creates a triangular cross-section extruded along its length. It differs from the Pyramid in that it maintains a consistent cross-section rather than tapering to a point.

Parameters

• Width — The width of the triangular base. Default: 20.
• Height — The height of the triangular cross-section. Default: 20.
• Depth — The extrusion length (how deep the prism extends). Default: 20.

Prisms are ideal for ramps, wedge-shaped supports, roof ridges, and angular structural elements. A prism laid on its side can serve as a ramp or slide. Rotated and combined with other shapes, prisms create angular geometries that are difficult to achieve with cubes and cylinders alone.

Tube

The Tube creates a hollow cylinder — essentially a pipe shape with configurable wall thickness. This is more convenient than manually subtracting one cylinder from another.

Parameters

• Outer Radius — The outer radius of the tube. Default: 10.
• Inner Radius — The inner radius (the hole). Default: 7.
• Height — The length of the tube. Default: 20.
• Segments — The number of sides. Default: 32.

The wall thickness is determined by the difference between Outer Radius and Inner Radius. Tubes are essential for creating pipe fittings, bushings, standoffs with pass-through holes, pen holders, vases, and cylindrical enclosures. For 3D printing, ensure the wall thickness (Outer Radius minus Inner Radius) is at least 1.2 mm for FDM printing.

Star

The Star creates a star-shaped extrusion with a configurable number of points. The shape is defined by an outer radius (the tips of the points) and an inner radius (the valleys between points).

Parameters

• Outer Radius — The distance from center to the tip of each point. Default: 15.
• Inner Radius — The distance from center to the valley between points. Default: 7.
• Points — The number of star points. Default: 5. Valid range: 3 to 20.
• Height — The extrusion depth. Default: 10.

Stars are great for decorative elements, badges, knobs with grip points, and custom shapes. A star with many points (12 or more) and a small difference between inner and outer radii approximates a gear-like shape. The ratio between Inner and Outer Radius controls how pointed the star appears — a small inner radius creates long, thin points, while a large inner radius creates a shape closer to a polygon.

Arrow

The Arrow creates a 3D arrow shape with a shaft and an arrowhead. It points along the Z axis by default and can be rotated to point in any direction.

Parameters

• Shaft Width — The width of the rectangular shaft. Default: 6.
• Shaft Length — The length of the shaft. Default: 20.
• Head Width — The width of the triangular arrowhead. Default: 14.
• Head Length — The length of the arrowhead. Default: 10.
• Height — The extrusion thickness. Default: 6.

Arrows are useful for directional indicators, signage, labels on functional parts, and decorative elements. They can also serve as pointer shapes in assemblies to indicate flow direction or alignment. Combine an arrow with a CSG subtract operation against a flat panel to create an engraved directional marker.

Half Sphere

The Half Sphere (also called a hemisphere or dome) creates the top half of a sphere. It sits flat on the workplane with a circular base and a smooth curved top.

Parameters

• Radius — The radius of the hemisphere. Default: 10.
• Segments — Subdivision count for smoothness. Default: 32.

Half spheres are perfect for dome tops, rounded caps, ergonomic button surfaces, and decorative finials. Place a half sphere on top of a cylinder to create a capsule or bullet shape. Use CSG subtract with a slightly smaller half sphere to create a bowl or shell structure. Hemispheres are also useful as smooth transition elements between flat and curved surfaces.

Rounded Box

The Rounded Box is a cube with rounded (filleted) edges and corners. It creates a softer, more polished appearance than a standard cube.

Parameters

• Width (X) — Default: 20.
• Height (Y) — Default: 20.
• Depth (Z) — Default: 20.
• Corner Radius — The radius of the edge fillets. Default: 3. Must be less than half the smallest dimension.

Rounded boxes are ideal for electronics enclosures, cases, holders, and any design where sharp edges are undesirable — either for aesthetics or for comfort when handling the printed object. The Corner Radius parameter controls how rounded the edges appear. A very small radius (1 or 2) gives a subtle softening, while a larger radius creates a pillowy, heavily rounded appearance. If the Corner Radius equals half the smallest dimension, the shape becomes a capsule or cylinder-like form.

Wedge

The Wedge creates a shape with a rectangular base and a sloped top face that goes from full height on one side to zero on the other, forming a triangular profile.

Parameters

• Width — The width of the base. Default: 20.
• Height — The maximum height (the tall side). Default: 20.
• Depth — The depth of the wedge. Default: 20.

Wedges are essential for creating sloped surfaces, ramps, door stops, and angular transitions. They are commonly used in combination with CSG operations to add chamfers to edges of other shapes. For example, positioning a wedge along the edge of a cube and subtracting it creates a beveled edge. Wedges also work well as support structures and kickstands in functional prints.

Hex Nut

The Hex Nut creates a hexagonal ring — a flat hexagonal prism with a circular hole through the center. It replicates the shape of a standard hardware nut.

Parameters

• Outer Radius — The corner-to-corner radius of the hexagon. Default: 10.
• Inner Radius — The radius of the center hole. Default: 5.
• Height — The thickness. Default: 8.

Hex Nuts are primarily used for mechanical designs where you need a recess to capture a real hex nut. By using a Hex Nut shape as a CSG subtraction tool, you can create a hexagonal pocket in your design that holds a nut in place. This is a common technique for creating bolted assemblies in 3D-printed parts. Adjust the Outer Radius to match the specific nut size you are using (for example, an M3 nut has a corner-to-corner distance of about 6.35 mm, so set the Outer Radius to 3.3 mm with some tolerance).

Ring

The Ring creates a flat washer-like shape — a circular disc with a hole in the center. Unlike the Torus, which has a circular cross-section, the Ring has a rectangular cross-section (flat top and bottom surfaces).

Parameters

• Outer Radius — The outer edge radius. Default: 12.
• Inner Radius — The inner hole radius. Default: 6.
• Height — The thickness of the ring. Default: 4.
• Segments — The number of sides. Default: 32.

Rings are useful for washers, spacers, bezels, flanges, and any flat circular element with a center hole. They differ from Tubes in that they are typically short (flat) while Tubes are tall (long). Use Rings as decorative elements, structural spacers, or as bases for cylindrical assemblies. Stacking rings of different sizes creates stepped or tiered structures.

Heart

The Heart creates a 3D heart shape — a classic valentine-style heart extruded to a configurable thickness. It is a decorative shape primarily used for artistic and personal projects.

Parameters

• Size — The overall scale of the heart shape. Default: 20.
• Height — The extrusion thickness. Default: 8.

Hearts are perfect for keychains, pendants, decorative signs, personalized gifts, and any project where you want to add a sentimental touch. The Heart shape is more complex geometrically than basic primitives, so CSG operations involving hearts may take slightly longer to compute. For best results when 3D printing hearts at small sizes, ensure the minimum dimension is at least 10 mm to maintain structural integrity, especially at the pointed bottom tip.

Hollow Box

The Hollow Box creates an open-top rectangular container — essentially a cube with the interior hollowed out and the top face removed. It is equivalent to performing a CSG subtract of a slightly smaller cube from a larger one, but more convenient.

Parameters

• Outer Width — The external width. Default: 30.
• Outer Height — The external height. Default: 20.
• Outer Depth — The external depth. Default: 30.
• Wall Thickness — The thickness of the walls and bottom. Default: 2.

Hollow Boxes are one of the most practical shapes for functional prints. They create containers, trays, organizers, enclosures, and storage boxes. The Wall Thickness parameter controls how thick the sides and bottom are — for 3D printing, a wall thickness of 1.5 to 3 mm works well for most applications. The top is open by default; to create a closed box, add a Cube as a lid positioned at the top opening. For an electronics enclosure, combine a Hollow Box with cylinder subtraction operations to create mounting holes and cable pass-throughs.

General Tips for Working with Shapes

All shapes share common properties that appear in the properties panel: Position (X, Y, Z), Rotation (X, Y, Z), and a Color picker. Position determines where the shape sits in 3D space, rotation controls its orientation, and color is purely visual — it helps you distinguish shapes in the viewport but does not affect the exported 3D model.

When designing for 3D printing, keep minimum wall thickness in mind. For FDM printers, walls should be at least 0.8 mm thick (two perimeter lines at 0.4 mm nozzle) but 1.2 mm or more is recommended for structural parts. Small features like thin pins and sharp points may not print well — consider making them at least 2 mm in diameter.

The CSG operations page explains how to combine shapes using union, subtract, and intersect. The Visual Builder Guide covers how to select, move, resize, and organize shapes in the editor. For keyboard shortcuts that speed up shape manipulation, see the Keyboard Shortcuts Reference.