The lack of “custom supports” feature is something that that many users often brought up as an argument against Cura.
Not anymore – I created the Cura custom supports plugin, and it works similar to the custom supports function you see in other slicers like CraftWare or Simplify3D.
I know (maybe you do too) that it was possible to customize the support placement in Cura for quite some time (at least a year), but it was so unintuitive and clumsy to use, it was more like unintentional feature.
To be honest, I rarely needed to add custom supports, and was always able to get good results by tweaking the existing Cura settings. But I see a lot of people swearing that they can’t live without custom supports in their slicer of choice, and it’s mandatory feature for them… Or so they say 🙂
So, I decided to take the things in my own hands, because – you know – this is what open source is for…
The good thing was that everything I needed was already there – in the existing Support Blocker plugin which is bundled with the recent Cura versions.
Using it’s code, I was able to create the opposite effect, and soon had quite usable custom supports.
The Custom Supports Cura plugin in action
Quite easy – just click, click, click… slice.
Tested and working with Cura versions 3.3 and 3.4. Older versions will likely not work.
The code is shared on GitHub with LGPLv3 license: https://github.com/lokster/cura-custom-supports
How to install it
- First, make sure your Cura version is 3.3 or newer
- Open Cura Marketpalce from the main menu, and locate the “Custom Supports” plugin:
- Click on it, and the click Install:
- Finally, restart Cura.
How it works
It works quite simple, and does exactly what you expect…
- Load some model in Cura and select it.
- Uncheck the “Generate Support” checkbox in the right panel (if you want to use ONLY custom supports).
- Click on the “Custom Supports” button on the left toolbar.
- Click anywhere on the model to place support block there.
- Clicking existing support block deletes it.
Note: it’s easier to add/remove supports when you are in “Solid View” mode. - You can customize the custom support settings from the support settings in the right panel. Even if you disable the automatic support generation, the custom supports will still be generated and use these settings.
- It’s also possible to use the “Per model settings” tool from the toolbar, to select and customize the settings of specific custom support blocks.
- You can move / rotate / scale each individual support block at any time just like you do with any regular model.
Show respect
If you like my work and want to support me – don’t hesitate, make a donation via PayPal!
Time is money, and I created this plugin in my time for free, so YOU can use it.
Even a small donation is greatly appreciated, and reassures me that people appreciate my work. And it’s much cheaper than paying for a closed source slicer…
