The Google SketchUp Thread

[Gordon Ferguson]

Great, never been to the corner before ......... Might meet Nick there, not heard from him for a while 

[Carlo]

Has anyone had experience with both AutoCAD 123D, and Google Sketchup?
If so, could you give a comparison review? Seems like everyone here is using Sketchup.
Carlo

[finescalerr]

I think somebody answered your question either at the beginning of this thread or on a related one.

I spent the day creating a detailed drawing of a hand pump. It will replace the mockup in the shack drawing I posted yesterday. This thing might be the first model I get 3-D printed and I hope it is unnecessary to break it down into subassemblies.

Russ

[kathymillatt]

Russ

The good thing about 3D printing is that it doesn't need pour holes or sprues etc. I reckon your pump would print with no problems in one piece as long as the individual bits are larger than the minimum for your material.

Kathy

[marc_reusser]

Has anyone had experience with both AutoCAD 123D, and Google Sketchup?
If so, could you give a comparison review? Seems like everyone here is using Sketchup.
Carlo

Carlo,

Sorry, I have no Experience with ACAD123D, but from looking at it, and comparing it to SU, it seems far more simplistic/rudimentary. It seems more for the happy home hobbyist. The nice thing about SU, is that there are a lot of plug-ins, and stand alone programs that will work with it,...and with SU you can be as simple or complex as you want (to a degree...for me compound surfaces and complex forms, start to be an issue...and are not really the programs forte)....I have found that for most everything I do in my modeling and real life, I have no limitations to the accuracy and detail I can create/build in SU.

[Hydrostat]

Hi, Russ,

I spent the day creating a detailed drawing of a hand pump. It will replace the mockup in the shack drawing I posted yesterday. This thing might be the first model I get 3-D printed and I hope it is unnecessary to break it down into subassemblies.

for 3D-printing you'll have to check wall dimensions especially at the spout for example. Is the body cavernous? If not it's going to be unnecessary expensive. I would suggest to separate body and pump handle parts for they might be a bit brittle. Don't print the piston rod; this is not going to be too crisp. The hinge of the handle looks somewhat strange; the lower part (the one that belongs to the body) may be a bit thicker at the hinge area?

Volker

[lab-dad]

I hope it is unnecessary to break it down into subassemblies

But then the handle wont move!

Why not just make it from brass? Then it might even "pump!"

Mj, just being brass

[finescalerr]

Marty, you know I'm hopeless with metal. Go stand in the corner.

Thank you for the tips, Volker. I suspected the handle might have to be printed separately and the piston might have to be wire. I will take another look at the hinge.

Russ

[kathymillatt]

Success, I've netfabbed my wall and loaded it successfully onto Shapeways.

I'm planning on using FUD and one end wall is about €30. That's expensive to get another three walls, two of which are twice as long...  It's currently 2mm thick and Shapeways say it will warp at thin thicknesses.

I'm wondering if I can thin the wall further or not. I was going to mount on sheet styrene.  Laminating will hopefully strengthen it.

I may also add corner braces in too...

What do you think?

Kathy

[Hydrostat]

Kathy,

I'm sure you've written that before: Which scale is it? Maybe you could print the walls in a cheaper (or do I have to say more inexpensive?) material and the window frames with FUD.

Volker

[kathymillatt]

Hi Volker

It's HO. The wall is about 3.13" high to the apex.

I have printed in White, Strong & Flexible in the past but it was too rough for this scale. Having spent ages getting everything detailed to FUD specifications, I'm not sure any other material will print the mortar lines.

Kathy

[marc_reusser]

Laser cut/etch by VectorCut?...

[kathymillatt]

I wonder what the relative merits of 3D printing v laser cut is for a wall like this.

There's a railway club down the road with a new laser printer which I could play on but I fancied building something totally in the computer and then printing it...

Kathy

[finescalerr]

Dave at VectorCut does outstanding bricks (and many other things). Some of his bricks sit below the nominal surface, some protrude subtly. I doubt even the most hi-res 3-D print could surpass his work. You would still have to miter the corners of each laser cut wall sheet, just as you would with printed bricks. He uses laser board, a resin impregnated paper, rather than wood so there is no grain. You can see his HO brickwork at http://www.vectorcut.com/Diorama.

Yes, I know you've already uploaded your wall. This information is just for the record.

Russ

[marc_reusser]

Kathy,

The only reason I brought it up was cost, especially if you only end up printing it as a veneer sheet....and as it seems you will be need in may more, at even greater expense. IMO 3D printing shines when the object is a full 3 dimensional piece(s).....there are other almost equally effective (and likely more applicable) methods of fabrication for doing thin/veneer type items.

By all means please do print it 3D...it is interesting, and educational watching you go through the steps/process, and I am sure the results would be very nice.