The poly count on D Mesh is so low in obj format and the user interface so simple, you really should give it a try. The finished object will have an extremely smooth skin, too. The modeller doesn't use sweep or extrude it employs displacement to mesh deform/edit. You could build it in Bryce with boolean operations, but to get the tapering along the side where there are ribs could take forever. Another inexpensive ($99.00) modeller that would get the job done in no time is Nendo. That would be my first choice for a project like this.