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Post by sk8brdr540 on Dec 26, 2015 16:46:42 GMT -9
Does anyone have experience using sketch up? I would like to get started designing (or at least trying) some buildings but I'm not sure how to effectively transfer what is in my mind to program that will allow it to be mass printed. If anyone can point me in the direction of a useful tutorial I would really appreciate it. Or if there are other programs people suggest that would also be appreciated. As a side note, I saw a kit for arckit, which looks cool but also pricey. Has anyone used it?
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Post by cherno on Dec 27, 2015 15:05:28 GMT -9
You can use any kind of 3D modelling application. Blender is very popular and open source. Pepakura is not free but it allows you to unwrap a model and add tabs.
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Post by sudsy on Jan 2, 2016 7:38:56 GMT -9
I have DesignSpark Mechanical (or the free version of it...) and find it works like a cross between SketchUP and SolidWorks (my preferred 3D CAD). My brief experimentation of it anyway. I like it because I can create my 3D shape and modify dimensions, which in turn pulls the shape into those dimensions. I'm more comfortable with this than the arbitrary sizing of Blender or SketchUP. My drafting/machining background makes me a precision nut, sometimes to a fault.
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Post by lightning on Jan 7, 2016 11:20:02 GMT -9
Parametric modelling like in Solidworks is something I really miss in Blender. I know that it can be done to some point with what they call "drivers" but the ease of use in Solidworks was amazing and something I would love to see added to Blender.
Apart from that I love using Blender as it is free and can do amazing things including precision modelling in either metric or imperial units and unfolding for paper modelers.
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Post by dusancv on Dec 22, 2016 2:07:31 GMT -9
Sketchup is pretty primitive when it comes to complex modeling. Try using Rhino or 3DsMax. There's plenty of useful plugins for Rhino that can speed up the whole workflow.
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Post by cherno on Dec 22, 2016 8:50:34 GMT -9
I use 3D Studio Max and Pepakura.
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Post by Cardstock Dane on Dec 24, 2016 12:54:18 GMT -9
To be honest, I've come to the conclusion that unfolding 3d models is a pretty time consuming process, considering all the tab adjusting that needs to be done afterwards. I use Sketchup for making 3D mockups, and for testing textures, but I do all the model design work in Photoshop. I find it much faster and much more efficient than using 3D software and Pepakura.
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Post by Bhoritz on Dec 24, 2016 15:32:12 GMT -9
I am using sketchup because I found that it works better for keeping forms (and by result assembly) simple. More elaborate 3D programs feel like overkill. I make the 3D shape in sketchup, then draw the texture, going back and forth from sketchup to photoshop with "edit texture" until satisfied. Then I unfold with a sketchup plugin and finish in photoshop. edit: oops, forgot to give the unfolding plugin name (Flattery), but you probably already knows it.
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Post by glennwilliams on Dec 24, 2016 20:57:08 GMT -9
For years I used the various versions of 3D Crafter, finally moving to Carrara this past year. 3D Crafter is inexpensive and can handle nearly all the modeling chores we encounter. The problem with using 3d modeling is that you really need a suite of software: the modeler, an unfolder to create the UV maps, of course you paint program, and an unfolder to create the parts on the page. Of course, if you're going pro, you also need a publisher program. That's a lot of tech and quirks to master. For unfolding I have used Pepakura (especially its high res version) but like Papercraft3d best.
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Post by babybear on Jan 14, 2017 16:55:45 GMT -9
Though Ive not been active for awhile do to life happenings.... Im sketchup all the way. Once in awhile I will use flatterly to unfold but 95% the time I can unfold it in my heard before even start drawing. I use sketchup mostly to get my measurements down. The work around I found allows me to print is to PDF in seconds and never seen it distort the sizes like unfolding in Pepakura does to me. Pepa just plain hates me.
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Post by andrax2000 on Jan 14, 2017 18:50:36 GMT -9
I use SketchUp with Flattery for modeling and unfolding. My tip here is to use the text input box when drawing rectangles to get those exact parameters. A lot of building designers try to line things up to an inch grid, and it's easy enough to type 4", 6" into the box. I then open a special SketchUp template that I made that has the available printing/cutting margins for US Letter and copy the flattened shapes into it. Yes, I do the paper layout in Sketchup too! Then it's a whole mess of weird settings to export as a DXF. This step lets you import into Silhoutte to make cut files. Then I open the DXF in Illustrator. Just so I can copy the paths and paste them into Photoshop. Photoshop won't import the DXF (or maybe it just won't import it correctly). Then texturing in Photoshop. Some scripts to export into InDesign to do layering for the PDF export. But after watching that video for DesignSpark, I might have to check it out. sudsy , What do you use to unfold the models you make in DesignSpark?
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