Mike had owned a 3D printer for two years. It mostly collected dust.
Sure, he'd printed a few Benchy boats and downloaded some phone stands from Thingiverse. But every time he had an actual problem—something that needed a custom part—he'd hit the same wall: he didn't know CAD.
The €180 Bracket Problem
Then the fridge shelf broke.
Not the whole shelf—just a small plastic bracket. The kind of part that costs pennies to make but supports 10kg of groceries. When Mike contacted the manufacturer (a German brand he'd specifically chosen for its quality), they quoted him €45 per bracket. He needed four.
The "simple" replacement:
- • €180 for four brackets (+ shipping from Germany)
- • 3-4 week wait time
- • Part might be discontinued next time
"I stared at my 3D printer and thought: this is literally what you're for. I just need to... figure out how to design a bracket."
He spent the weekend watching Fusion 360 tutorials. He learned about sketches, extrusions, and constraints. After eight hours, he could make a rectangular box. The bracket he needed had chamfers, a clip mechanism, mounting holes at specific distances, and needed to handle load.
At that rate, he calculated, he was looking at 40+ hours before he could even attempt the design. And that's assuming he didn't mess up the dimensions.
The Reddit Comment
Monday morning, frustrated and still bracket-less, Mike posted to r/3Dprinting:
How long did it take you to get good enough at Fusion 360 to design functional parts?
I have a specific bracket I need. Not complex but has mounting holes and a clip. Already spent a weekend on tutorials and I still can't make what I need. Feeling like I should just pay the €180...
Most replies were what he expected: "took me 6 months," "learn OpenSCAD instead," "just buy the bracket bro."
Then one comment caught his eye:
Have you tried Formd? It's this AI thing that generates STL files from descriptions. I was skeptical but it made me a camera mount last week. Took like 2 minutes. formd.dev
↑ 47 · Reply · Share
Mike was skeptical. Very skeptical. But €180 skeptical? No.
45 Seconds Later
He measured the broken bracket with calipers. Wrote down the dimensions. Went to Formd. Typed:
Prompt
Fridge shelf bracket. 85mm wide, 12mm thick shelf slot. Clip-on mechanism that snaps onto rail. Needs to hold 5kg minimum. Two mounting screw holes, 60mm apart, M4 size. Front lip to prevent shelf sliding forward.
He clicked generate, expecting either nothing or garbage.
45 seconds later, he had an STL file.
The system flagged one issue—a thin wall near the clip mechanism that might fail during printing—and offered to auto-fix it. Mike clicked the button. Score jumped to 94%.
Want to try it yourself?
Start with 2 free designs
No credit card, no tutorials, no learning curve. Just describe what you need.
Try Formd FreeThe Moment of Truth
Mike loaded the STL into his slicer. 45-minute print time. He started it and went to make coffee, fully expecting to return to spaghetti.
The bracket came out perfect.
He walked to the fridge. Lined it up. Snapped it onto the rail. The clip mechanism clicked into place with a satisfying sound. The shelf slid in. He loaded it with milk, eggs, leftovers—probably 8kg of stuff.
It held. It still holds, six months later.
Total time: idea → installed
"I printed 4 more as spares. Total material cost: maybe €2. The manufacturer wanted €180 for the same thing, assuming they even had them in stock."
Mike R.
Hobbyist maker, Berlin
The Math
| Approach | Learn CAD | Buy OEM | Formd |
|---|---|---|---|
| Time investment | 40+ hours | 0 | 3 minutes |
| Money spent | €2 (filament) | €180+ | €2 (filament) |
| Wait time | Weeks | 3-4 weeks | 47 minutes |
| Reusable skill? | Yes | No | Yes* |
| Print success rate | ~60% (beginner) | n/a | ~95% |
*Every design is yours to keep, modify, and reprint whenever you need.
The Point
Mike's 3D printer sat unused for two years because there was a 40-hour wall between "I have a problem" and "I can solve it myself."
Formd doesn't replace CAD for professional engineers designing complex assemblies. It eliminates the barrier for everyone else—the hobbyists, the tinkerers, the people who bought a printer and realized they couldn't actually use it for the things they needed.
Six Months Later
Mike's printed 23 custom parts with Formd. A replacement knob for his washing machine. Cable management clips that actually fit his desk. A wall mount for his vintage speaker that no company sells.
He still hasn't learned Fusion 360. He probably never will. He doesn't need to anymore.