I designed a 3D printed part… without measuring anything.

No calipers. No ruler (well… almost 😉). Just a photo, a scanner, and a simple trick that actually works.

In this video, I needed to create a custom hydroponic seed starter adapter—but I didn’t have proper measuring tools. So instead, I used a 3-step method to reverse-engineer the part from an image… and hoped it would fit first time.

👉 It did.

You’ll learn how to:

Capture accurate reference images using just a phone or scanner
Calibrate those images inside CAD using real-world objects (coins, rulers, etc.)
Model directly over the image to create parts that actually fit

This technique is perfect when:

You don’t have access to the part
You’re working remotely
You just want a faster way to get dimensions into CAD

I’m using Alibre Atom 3D here, but this works in Fusion 360, SolidWorks, and most CAD tools.
You can find Alibre at: - https://www.alibre.com/atom3d/

Chapters:
0:00 – The “No Measuring Tools” Challenge
0:49 – The Hydroponic Problem
1:00 – Method 1: Phone Camera
2:51 – Method 2: 2D Scanner
4:08 – Calibrating the Image
5:21 – Modeling Over the Image
6:18 – Will It Fit?

If you’ve ever been stuck trying to model something without the right tools… this is a technique you’ll use forever.