LEFT BRAIN · TECHNICAL LEARNING PATH
The Onshape CAD Learning Path
A structured path from zero to robot-ready computer-aided design. Start at Beginner, work through Intermediate, finish with real 3D-printed builds you can hold in your hand.
Why Onshape?
Onshape is the CAD tool FIRST teams use because it’s cloud-based, free for student teams, and runs in a web browser on any computer. No installs, no licensing fights, no “your computer is too old.” You log in, you build. The whole team can work on the same file at the same time, like Google Docs for engineering.
CAD Learning Path Completion Check List
Level 1 · Beginner — 3 hours 20 minutes
Do these in order. Each video builds on the last. Don’t skip ahead; the foundation matters more than it feels like it should. Save the official Onshape CAD for Robotics path for the end — it lands much harder once the fundamentals are already in your head.
- Units and Decimals — Basics, Onshape 3D CAD (8 minutes)
- Mini Course 1 — Important Concepts (23 minutes)
- Onshape Tutorial for Absolute Beginners! (10 minutes)
- Onshape Tutorial for Absolute Beginners: Part 2 (10 minutes)
- Beginner Tutorial 1/5 — Creating Sketches and Objects (12 minutes)
- Beginner Tutorial 2/5 — Adding Features (20 minutes)
- Beginner Tutorial 3/5 — Other Tidbits (5 minutes)
- Beginner Tutorial 4/5 — Views and Orientation (3 minutes)
- Beginner Tutorial 5/5 — Documents (7 minutes)
- Export to STL for 3D Printing (12 minutes)
FINAL STEP · OFFICIAL FIRST PATH
Now that the basics are second nature, run the official Onshape CAD for Robotics path:
- CAD for Robotics: Intro to Onshape — FTC (30 minutes)
- CAD for Robotics: Creating Custom Components (1 hour)
💡 Tip: After every video, open Onshape and recreate what you just saw. Watching alone teaches almost nothing — doing it teaches everything. Plan on roughly 1.5× the video runtime if you’re practicing alongside, so the beginner level realistically takes about 5 hours.
Level 2 · Intermediate — ~15 hours across 5 modules
The intermediate level is 22 tutorials and almost twelve hours of video. To make it manageable, we’ve broken it into 5 focused modules so you can finish a piece, take a breath, and move on without staring down an eleven-hour mountain. Do them in the order shown.
💡 How to pace it: One module per week is realistic if you’re putting in ~2 hours of focused practice time. Finish a module before starting the next. The capstone in Module 5 is where the learning actually consolidates — don’t skip it.
Level 3 · Advanced — Build Real Spinning Things
This is where CAD becomes physical. Pick a fidget-spinner project from the four below, study the photos and dimensions on its Printables page, then design it from scratch in Onshape — don’t download the STL. Once your CAD is finished, export each part to STL, send to the 3D printer, and assemble the finished spinner by hand.
Why “by hand” instead of just printing the STL?
Because anyone can download a model. The skill we’re building is looking at a real, working mechanism and recreating it in CAD on your own — the same skill you’ll need when you stare at the robot field and have to design a custom intake or arm with nothing to copy from. Use the Printables page as a reference for dimensions, gear counts, and tolerances. Don’t copy the file.
PROJECT 1 · ★★★ HARD
Gyro Straight-Cut Planetary Gear Fidget Spinner
A planetary gear set built into a spinner — central sun gear, orbiting planets, ring gear. Teaches gear meshing math, tolerance for 3D-printed plastic, and snap-fit assembly.
PROJECT 2 · ★★★ HARD
Quadro Gear Spinner
Four gears arranged symmetrically around a central spinner, all meshed so they rotate together. Tests gear ratios, axial symmetry, and multi-axis bearing fits.
PROJECT 3 · ★★★★ EXPERT
Spinfinity — A Very Long Spinning Top
A spinning top engineered for an unusually long spin time. Demands center-of-mass calculations, precise tip geometry, and careful weight distribution. The CAD math here is the highest of all four projects.
PROJECT 4 · ★★★★ EXPERT · THE FINAL BOSS
Super Combo Fidget Spinner
Multi-stage spinner combining concentric rings, gear meshing, and counter-rotation in a single object. This one pulls together every skill from the intermediate modules — gear ratios, mates, tolerance, top-down assembly. Save it for last; if you can build this, you can CAD anything on the robot.
Advanced Project Checklist (for each spinner)
- Study the source. Open the Printables page. Look at the photos, the part list, and the description. Note dimensions, gear counts, and how parts fit together.
- Sketch first, CAD second. Hand-sketch each part on paper with dimensions before touching Onshape. Saves rework.
- Build each part in its own Part Studio. One file per part type. Reusable, version-controllable.
- Assemble in Onshape. Use Mates (revolute, fastened, slider) the way you practiced in Modules 1 and 2.
- Print a single test part first. Don’t print all 12 parts before checking the tolerance on one bearing fit.
- Iterate. The first print rarely works. Tighten the tolerance and print again.
- Assemble by hand. Bearings, gears, axles, shrouds. Document the build in your engineering notebook with photos.
- Spin it. Time the spin. Refine. Print again.
When you finish this path, you can CAD a robot.
That’s the whole point. Every video here is a step toward being able to look at a season game and design an original robot for it. Take your time. Practice between videos. Don’t skip the capstone or the advanced builds — those are where the skills become muscle memory.