I was interested in gears and mechanics around gears and wanted visuals to better understand how they worked. I used AutoCAD to design simple gears with circular teeth.  I calculated the ratios to make planetary gears. I considered the number of teeth, the diameter of the teeth, and the circumference of the gear to make these. I laser cut the pieces and created a  working model. The gears did not turn smoothly though. This may have been due to the material creating friction.