Floor Lamp Modelling

anstvam

I 'd appreciate any tips on how to model the top of this floor lamp. Surely I'll be needing a plugin or two? I'm on SU7 but have never used any plugin.
Thanks a lot, Anastassis

floor lamp.jpg

ledisnomad

Hey anstvam,

I don't think you need a plugin. I'd make the general shape as with the follow-me tool (circle as a path, squished semi-circle as a profile), then unsmooth all the lines. Then you can pick a segment and trace a single, curved element, mirror it on that segment, then rotate array it around. Making the curved element will take a few minutes, but no longer than finding the right plugin and using that.

Cheers,
Damon

ledisnomad

Here's how I did it. The proportions are quite right, yet, but I did it quickly as a proof of concept: no plugins and only a few minutes since my last post.

lamp_top.skp

anstvam

Thanks ever so much Damon. Easy enough even for me. I guess I still lack the right way of thinking about how to model something. It comes with practice.
Unsmoothing the lines was a turning point, it hadn't even crossed my mind. After that it all made sense.
Thanks again and a merry merry X-mas
Anastassis

Jim57

Antsvam—

I used to have the fear of Rubys too, but some ideas just don't fit into SketchUp as it comes from the factory. Once you start playing around with them you will never go back! Check out the Rubys forum, ask some questions or watch a tutorial on how to begin, then start to play. You will find your modeling skills increasing as your models start looking more and more amazing.

Try a great Ruby by our very own Fredo6— FredoScale. It scales in some ways that SU doesn't, and I find myself using both of them to get different effects, or to scale to dimensions in different ways. One of the effects in FredoScale is Box Twisting, where you rotate one end of an object and the whole thing twists evenly, instead of just the last line segment. You can find it, along with a thread that describes how to install it, in the Plugins page— use the link at the top of the Forum.

I used only that one plugin to model your lamp. If you follow the tabs in this SU file I explain my workflow. Note that some aspects are different than Damon's model— you can get a lot of different looks depending on the tools and process you use. The more you play, the easier it is to find the one that works best for you.

Jim

lamp_top2.skp

anstvam

Thanks for the wonderful tutorial Jim. Really appreciated!
Had a look at Fredo Scale ruby. An amazing script indeed
Anastassis

anstvam

For anyone wanting to specify this lamp, it's the Rolanda-P by Bover
http://www.bover.es/lamp.asp?idTipus=4&id=86&Familia=Rolanda

Jim57

Use the Force, Antsvam, Use the Force!

Jim