Overall flow
Choose your material and standard, then work through Profile → Grooves → Placement → Review → finishing (Colouring, Engraving) → Export. You can move between the tabs freely at any time, and every change is applied to the one barrel straight away.
- Weight, overall length and largest diameter always appear in the top bar (a ✗ shows if you exceed the standard).
- Not sure where to start? Picking a Profile preset is the quickest way in.
Design steps (tabs)
Work from top to bottom (you can move between tabs freely at any time; Colouring and Engraving are optional).
- 1
ProfileShape the barrel outline
- Set the overall length, diameter, waist and rounding (R)
- Start from a preset, then fine-tune by dragging the anchor points or typing in dimensions
- 2
GroovesCreate groove shapes (My grooves)
- Save shark, ring and other groove shapes as templates
- Set the opening width, depth and wall angle
- 3
Groove placementLay grooves along the barrel
- Place your saved grooves along the length of the barrel
- Set the count, spacing and position (evenly spaced groups too)
- 4
3D layoutFeatures around the barrel
- Dots (rings), lengthwise grooves (angled slots) and multi-sided barrels
- Set how many, at what angle and how deep
- 5
ReviewSee the machined barrel in 3D
- Check the machined surface with full shading
- Check how the grooves cut in and how the barrel looks
- 6
ColouringAdd colour(optional)
- PVD (body and grooves, metallic finishes) or colour coat (grooves only, 12 colours)
- Factories that cannot colour receive the order plain
- 7
EngravingLaser engraving(optional)
- Text in any gap of 6 mm or more (5 typefaces, upright or rotated, single line — add a line break for two)
- Wrapping the text around the barrel (rotary engraving) is also possible — shown as an unrolled view
- Logo engraving (black-and-white image) needs PRO or above
- Densely grooved barrels having no free space is normal
- 8
ExportProduce drawings, NC and 3D CAD
- Simple dimensioned drawing: available on every plan
- Full drawings (sections, milling detail, colouring and engraving instructions), DXF and STEP: PRO or above
- NC (G-code) and Try-cut: FACTORY
- Choose the drawing language to suit your factory
Features by plan
What you can use depends on your plan. Designing itself, data transfer and the simple dimensioned drawing are available on every plan. Full drawing output, Try-cut and the like belong to the higher plans.
| Feature | PLAYER | PRO | PRO TEAM | FACTORY |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| All design steps (profile, grooves, placement, colouring, text engraving) | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ |
| Data transfer and inbox | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ |
| Provenance (transfers & versions) | — | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ |
| Operation history (design evolution / morph) — coming | — | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ |
| Simple dimensioned drawing export | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ |
| Full drawings (sections, milling detail, colouring/engraving instructions) | — | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ |
| DXF export | — | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ |
| STEP export (3D CAD) | — | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ |
| Logo engraving (black-and-white image) | — | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ |
| Tooling and machining guides | — | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ |
| Team management (invitations, seats) | — | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ |
| Production board (Gantt) | — | — | ✓ | ✓ |
| Try-cut (machining simulation) | — | — | — | ✓ |
| NC export (profile-tracing G-code) | — | — | — | ✓ |
PRO TEAM and FACTORY include everything in PRO. This table matches the actual limits in the app.
Folders (product development line)
A folder is the development line for one product. Under one product hang its revisions (REV) and branches (for example, a soft-tip version adapted for steel). One-off files still work as before — no folder needed.
- Development code (required, for the factory): the only name that appears on drawings and orders. It is a meaningless code, which structurally prevents designs being passed off elsewhere.
- Product name (optional, can be added later): for customers and staff. It never appears on factory drawings.
- Use “Make project” on a design card to start a development line from that design.
My files & inbox
What you can do from each card in My files.
- Edit: opens the designer (read-only designs you received open as “View”).
- Duplicate: makes a copy of the same design.
- Save as template: saves it as a starting point you can pick when creating a new design.
- Group into a folder: starts a product development line from that file.
- Data transfer: sends the design to another account (see below).
- Provenance: shows when it was created, transferred and received (see below — PRO and above).
- Delete: a soft delete — we can restore it for 30 days.
At the top of the list sits the received-data inbox. Designs transferred to you land there; press “Accept” and a copy becomes your own design.
Data transfer
Sends a design to the account with the email address you specify. The link is tied to that address, so nobody else can accept it even if the URL leaks.
- Editable data: the recipient can edit and export it freely as their own design.
- Read-only: the recipient can see every setting but cannot change it, export drawings/NC/STEP or place an order (to lift this, send again as editable).
- When the recipient actually accepts, the sender gets a notification email.
- Links expire after 14 days. Sent by mistake? Cancel it from the transfer history.
- After issuing a link, you can copy a ready-made message to paste straight into LINE or any chat.
▶ Player designs → maker (PRO / factory) machines it
This is the core workflow: a finished design — with the exact weight already fixed — reaches the maker with no back-and-forth.
- The player designs their barrel on PLAYER (US$12/month): drag the outline, add grooves, and the exact weight is fixed on the spot.
- They transfer it as “editable data” to the maker’s (PRO) email address. The link is tied to that address — nobody else can accept it even if it leaks.
- The maker presses “Accept” in their inbox, and a copy becomes their own design.
- The maker exports the full drawing (sections, groove projection, milling detail, colour/engraving instructions), NC, DXF and STEP.
- Straight to machining. Every dimension, the weight and the groove detail are already fixed, so programming is faster and lead times come down.
Read-only lets the recipient see every setting but not change it, export drawings/NC/STEP or place an order (good for approval or quoting). Send again as “editable” once approved.
It works the other way too: a maker can design and send it to the player as “read-only” for sign-off.
Note: full drawings, NC, DXF/STEP and ordering need PRO or above. PLAYER alone gets the simple drawing (overview + outline, PDF). Drawing capability follows whoever opens the design.
Provenance
Provenance is a PRO-and-above feature (not included in PLAYER). It is for tracing how a design changed hands when comparing prices or moving to production.
From “Provenance” on a card you can see, in order, when the design was created, who it was transferred to and who received it. Edits made after the recipient accepts are recorded in their design’s provenance (you never see another account’s edits).
Note: this is the provenance — who made it and how it changed hands. A separate operation history that replays how the design was built (operation-by-operation evolution / morph) is coming, exclusive to PRO TEAM (for barrel makers).
Ordering (coming soon)
Ordering a finished barrel from a factory is coming soon. Once available, the drawings, price breakdown and order paperwork are prepared automatically and you are matched to factories by what they can do (PVD, colour coat, laser, 4-axis and so on). Until then, please export the drawings and use them directly.
For the factory side, see the tooling and machining guides as well.
Account & plans
- Account settings: profile, password, two-step sign-in (TOTP) and per-material density calibration.
- PLAYER: for individual players. Designing, data transfer and the simple dimensioned drawing.
- PRO / PRO TEAM / FACTORY: higher plans unlock more (full drawings, DXF/STEP, logo engraving, teams, production board, Try-cut, NC export). For details see Features by plan .
- Stuck? Use Support (chat) at the bottom right of the screen.