Dust3D

Dust3D — Reference Manual

Video Tutorial

Keyboard Shortcuts

Ctrl+ZUndo
Ctrl+Shift+Z / YRedo
Ctrl+ASelect all
Ctrl+XCut selected
Ctrl+CCopy selected
Ctrl+VPaste
Del / BackspaceDelete selected
[ / ]Scale selected down / up
- / =Shrink / grow node radius
Alt+- / =Zoom rendered model out / in
, / .Rotate CCW / CW
Move selected nodes
ASwitch to Add mode
SSwitch to Select mode
WToggle wireframe
SpaceShow component property
EscCancel / exit current mode
XLock / unlock X axis
YLock / unlock Y axis
ZLock / unlock Z axis
ESwitch node profile (front ↔ side)
FHighlight part in Parts list
HShow / hide selected part
JEnable / disable selected part
LLock / unlock selected part
MToggle X-mirror
BToggle subdivide
UToggle round end
CToggle chamfer

Menus & Context Menus

Ctrl+N New WindowOpen a new document window
Ctrl+O Open…Open a .ds3 file
Ctrl+S SaveSave current document
Save As…Save to a new file
Save AllSave all open documents
Export as OBJ…Wavefront OBJ
Export as GLB…glTF binary
Export as FBX…Autodesk FBX
Export as GLB and WAVs…GLB + per-bone WAV files
Export as FBX and WAVs…FBX + per-bone WAV files
Change Background Image…Set front/side reference image
Erase Background ImageRemove reference image
Ctrl+Q QuitExit the application
Toggle WireframeShow/hide wireframe overlay
Toggle RotationStart/stop auto rotation
Toggle ColorColor vs. monochrome render
PartsShow the Parts panel
BonesShow the Bones panel
AnimationsShow the Animations panel
DialogsList and re-raise open dialogs
DebugOpen the debug log browser
Add…Switch to Add mode
Undo / RedoUndo or redo last action
DeleteDelete selected nodes/edges
BreakInsert node into selected edge
ReduceReduce selected nodes
ReverseReverse selected edge direction
ConnectConnect two selected nodes
Cut / Copy / PasteClipboard operations
H Flip / V FlipFlip selection horizontally / vertically
Rotate 90D CW / CCWRotate selection 90°
Rotate 90D Around Z-AxisRotate side-profile nodes around Z
Rotate 90D Around X-AxisRotate main-profile nodes around X
Switch XZSwap X and Z coordinates
Align To › Local CenterAlign to local center
Align To › Local V / H CenterAlign to local vertical / horizontal center
Align To › Global CenterAlign to global center
Align To › Global V / H CenterAlign to global vertical / horizontal center
Colorize › Blank / Auto ColorRemove or auto-assign color
Select All / Part / Unselect AllSelection helpers
Make groupGroup selected into a folder
UngroupDissolve selected group
Move To › Begin / EndJump to top or bottom of list
Move To › Previous / NextMove one step up or down
Convert to ModelChange target to regular mesh
Convert to Cut FaceUse as custom cross-section
Convert to Stitching LineUse as stitching line
DeleteRemove selected components
Clear AssignmentsRemove edge assignments from bone
Clear Chain AssignmentsRemove assignments from bone chain
Return / EnterAssign selected canvas edges to bone

Examples

Banana
Fruit — Banana
  1. Draw five nodes in a circle (cut face shape)
  2. Right-click part → Convert to Cut Face
  3. Draw a tube-shaped part on canvas
  4. Double-click tube to select it in Parts list
  5. Open part properties → select the Cut Face
Hat
Clothes — Hat
  1. Draw five spine parts on canvas
  2. Select all → right-click → Convert to Stitching Line
  3. Right-click → Make group
  4. Open group properties → check Back closed
  5. Set Target Segments to 7
Dog
Animals — Dog
  1. Photograph the dog from the front and side
  2. File → Change Background Image → load both photos
  3. Draw nodes tracing the reference image
  4. Select all parts → open properties → choose texture
More files