Meshmixer is another good program for adding supports.

@teig said:

I seem to have some very weird anomalies going on at the back of the elbow, also under the 'front'. What are they, why did they suddenly appear when I ran SolidSolverand how the begorra do I get rid of them?

Looks like the follow me path was too sharp for that size of profile. You can select the elbow geometry > Right click > Intersect selected, then clean up the internal geometry - or make the bend not so sharp, and then you won't get the nasty intersecting geometry.

@d12dozr said:

...you can use Netfabb Basic to quickly decimate (reduce the # of polygons) an existing model with out having to re-draw the whole thing.

Here's how: open model in Netfabb, Right click > Level of Detail > Choose something like 50%.

I just learned that this decimation is visual only, and you can't save the decimated model. D'oh!

When they introduced Outer Shell in SU 8, it was for the home 3D printing crowd so they included it in the free versions. It does indeed remove all internal geometry, which is what you usually want for 3D printing. If there is internal geometry not connected to the outside at all, then it usually is not needed for printing anyway.

It is one of the features I use the most for making 3D printable models.

I would use the autotrace function in Illustrator, and then save as DXF right from Illustrator. No need to use Sketchup at all for this one!

If you don't have Illustrator, you can use Inkscape (free) to do the same thing.

Even easier than using Intersect with Model would be to make the elbow a solid group, the select all 3 groups, Right Click > Outer Shell to combine them into a solid group.

Superb, Teig! It's neat to watch your progression from the beginning of the thread to now

There are some designers making action figures with Sketchup. Do it - we'll help you if you get stuck!

Yep, what Box said...the best way is to optimize the segments at the beginning. That said, you can use Netfabb Basic to quickly decimate (reduce the # of polygons) an existing model with out having to re-draw the whole thing.

Here's how: open model in Netfabb, Right click > Level of Detail > Choose something like 50%.

I showed the book to my nieces this weekend, and they really enjoyed it. Of course they couldn't stop laughing at the word a-BUTT-ment...6 and 8 year olds, haha.

Sketchup has trouble creating geometry that small. Simple solution is to scale up your model by 100x, perform the follow me operation, then scale back down.

The new Windows Holographic looks pretty sweet too!

Microsoft announces Windows Holographic with HoloLens headset

“We’re not talking about putting you into virtual worlds. We’re dreaming beyond virtual worlds.”

The Verge (www.theverge.com)

Check out Thomthom's UV Toolkit: http://sketchucation.com/plugin/740-tt_uv_toolkit

That's fantastic, Stuart! Loved the robot selfie

BTW, if anyone liked the book you can help Stuart out by leaving positive feedback on his Amazon page (find it via Stuart's link above). You don't have to purchase through Amazon to leave a review.

@teig said:

If I understand you correctly ,faffing around with the 'torus-within-a-torus' was a complete waste of time then? Another good learning curve though I suppose...

Not completely...in other cases where you have a bigger model or you're printing with a powder-based printer, it would make sense, but you'd still have to think about how to remove the support material. For example on a powder printer, 2 5mm holes on opposite sides of the model connecting the inner torus to the outside would allow for removal by compressed air.

Teig, regarding making a hole in the shape to save material, it likely won't make a difference in this small of a model. This is because when using a desktop printer, you can set the printer to only fill the interior with a percentage of plastic, say 20%. This way you would get the same effect of saving material much more efficiently.

If using a commercial printer, you would also need to add escape holes to remove the support material, or you'd lose the benefit of the making the model hollow anyway.

Hey Teig, I messed up the first time around...it should be .001. Sorry, I edited my post, but you already caught it.

Also the way to move the geometry is to draw a line separating the piece you want to follow-me, then group it for moving (or copy it and erase the original).

Carsten (cotty) did it exactly how I would have

@teig said:

And the scale tool. Sorry for sounding stupid but if I scale it by a 1000x what do I sale by to get back to my dimensions?

.001

You can also use the Tape Measure tool to quickly and accurately scale a model.

It's neat to watch your design iterations gradually improve

What happened an Paris is disgusting and awful. Sorry for your loss

@krisidious said:

Other than that I'd need some allusions to what you speak of.

I gotta back Jeff on this one. A couple more...

• Spanish Inqusition
• Columbus massacred thousands of Native Americans, basically decimated entire populations, all in the name of his god.

Just look at this rap sheet, from ancient times until today.

Relevant, if you haven't seen it yet: http://online.liebertpub.com/doi/full/10.1089/3dp.2014.1508

Professor Hod Lipson's, AMF tutorial, Part 2