Your first model¶
Five minutes, from an empty scene to a rounded block you could 3D-print. Everything is typed at the command line — the box at the bottom of the window. Press Enter after each entry; Esc cancels a command.
Right-click = Enter
Anywhere in the viewport, a right-click does what Enter does — it runs the command you've typed, accepts a value, or repeats the last command. You rarely need to reach for the keyboard's Enter key.
1. Start a new model¶
Launch Serpentine3D and pick New model → millimetres on the welcome screen. You get an empty grid and a construction plane.
2. Make a box¶
Type box, then give two opposite corners:
@40,40,20 is relative to the first point, so you get a 40 × 40 × 20 mm
block. It appears shaded on the grid.
3. Round the edges¶
Click the edges you want rounded (they highlight), right-click when you're done, then type a radius:
The block rebuilds with 5 mm rounded edges. (Prefer dragging? Hold Ctrl+Shift and click an edge to get a fillet handle on the gumball.)
4. Look around¶
- Middle-mouse drag orbits the perspective view and pans Top, Front and Right · Shift + middle-drag pans · Ctrl + middle-drag orbits whichever view you are in · scroll zooms
- F1–F4 snap to Top / Front / Right / Perspective
- Ctrl+E zooms to fit everything
5. Save it¶
.serp files are self-contained (they carry a thumbnail and autosave
cleanly). Give it a name and you're done.
6. Export it to print¶
Choose STL — 3D printing, pick a quality (Fine is a good default for
curved surfaces), and you have a watertight mesh ready for any slicer. Want
to check it first? Run printcheck, select the block, and you'll get a
watertight / manifold / thin-wall / overhang report.
Next: the longer stage-flat tutorial builds a real theatrical flat and documents it on a drawing sheet — or jump to Export for 3D printing.