I've been struggling with sketchup for weeks to get some speed. I love it really. I've been having fun for the most part. But I have put a LOT of effort into it. I'll purchase the pro version at some point... unless...

I'm trying to print a template (attached) to scale so that it can be pasted onto a project and used to align cutouts. This would seem to me to be one of the FUNDAMENTAL needs of any design software. I can't get it to work despite following every tutorial available. Even if I do upgrade to PRO, what is most essential to me is the ability to send the file to anyone with a computer that can install the free version of sketchup just to read the file. If they can't print the file to scale in order to use the template then it's useless.

What, is everyone using sketchup just for fun? How can you do anything constructive at this rate?

@unknownuser said:

1. Switch to paraline mode by turning perspective mode off. To turn perspective mode off, open the "Camera" menu and click "Perspective" (so that a check mark is not displayed next to it).

2. Select a standard scalable view: Iso, Top, Front, Right, Back, or Left. To select a standard view, open the "Camera" menu, point to "Standard," and then click one of the views. Note: The scalable edges are those aligned with the axes.

   Standard scalable view

3. PC: Open the "File" menu, and then click "Print."
   Mac: Open the "File" menu, and then click "Document Setup."

4. In the "Print Size" section of the "Print" dialog box, clear the "Fit to page" option.

5. If you are in paraline mode (step 1) and have selected a standard view (step 2), the scale options in the "Print Size" (Mac: "Print Scale") section are enabled when you clear the "Fit to page" option. Set the scale you want to use.

6. PC: Click "OK" to print your model.
   Mac: Click "OK" to save your document settings, and then print your model by opening the "File" menu, and then clicking "Print."

I did all of that. To no avail.

I'm finally discovering, via multiple comments on the web, that sketchup struggles with this VERY BASIC NEED IN A DESIGN PROGRAM! There's anecdotal back and forth about reducing the size of white space around the image, converting to jpeg - tweaking - and reconverting to skp - and then hoping for the best, and a few other and sundry and irritating suggestions to pat your head and rub your belly and turn counterclockwise to get your file printed in scale. Some have described it as "software glitch'. A WHAT??? How many updated versions of a program are required until you can expect to print to scale?

@unknownuser said:

This Is the procedure that I use to print a scaled drawing of my sketchup model. This procedure will NOT work for perspective. It does work for plans, elevations, sections, isos and axons. This is actually mostly a photoshop procedure.

1. Frame view that you wish to print in sketchup interface. It is easiest if you choose one of the standard camera views. Turn perspective off first.

2. Export as a 2D graphic (JPEG).

3. In Photoshop, open jpeg file, go to Image, Image Size change to 300dpi (or your preference). Save As. You must Duplicate your layer and delete the original background layer.

4. Change Canvas size to 11x17 or whatever size paper and orientation you want.

5. Using the measure tool (under eydropper), measure a known distance on your image. For example. measure a wall that you know is 20' long. In 1/4" = 1'0" scale the wall should measure 5" long. Divide your desired distance, 5" by your actual distance, lets say 3". This number 1.66666 is your scaling percentage. Your image must be 166.666% larger in order to print to scale.

6. Go to Edit, Transform, Scale. At the top of the screen input your percentage, in this case 166.666 and make sure to link the "W" and "H" values with the link button in between them.

7. Enter and apply transformation.

8. Use measure tool to check for accuracy (the longer the dimension you use the more accurate you can be)

9. Print with Preview, choose appropriate paper and orientation in page setup, make sure not to scale to print or scale to paper in print settings.

Be careful, measure accurately, you will have precisely scaled drawings to work with.

Please respond with questions, corrections, or better ideas....

@unknownuser said:

Afraid you'll have to consider using "SKP-LAYOUT" for this purpose.
Right-Click the SKP imported onto LO. "Scale" appears at the bottom of
the drop-down menu.

Suggest you create 2D "scenes" in SKP to ease importing procedure to
"LayOut".

WHAT THE HECK IS THIS? This renders the program all but useless to me. And I've invested many, many, many, hours into it already!

I'm pissed. Please embarass me and tell me I'm quite wrong. I'd love to know that sketchup can print to scale without breaking a sweat.

Take a blank sketchup canvas. Draw a one inch circle. Send it to the printer to print a one inch circle. What? Am I dreaming? Sketchup can't do this?

Images alone-II.skp

I've worked all day on this and am having a nightmare trying to set it up for printing.

I've followed every instruction to the letter to print to scale. The image of the template
is 164mm across. Nothing seems work. It always prints smaller. I'm using sketchup 7.1 basic.

Ideally I'd like to set up the images so that they are in scale on the page, and then type
the text around them in order to fit everything on the same page. The disassociation between
text and image is MADDENING!!!!!!

Any help please!

last iiteration.skp

Ok, I'm gettin the hang of this little by little.
Here's a first attempt (attachment) using the follow me tool.
I'm trying to get a cutting blade profile for a dish shaped concavity. The blade is offset from the center vertical axis by 11/32.
So far so good, but I have to figure out how to save that red plane with the profile line in it.

This part really has me puzzled. I'm following all of the help section instructions on printing to scale and it's just not coming out right.
Then I noticed a really gross error that mystifies me. I unclicked the perspective option and chose a standard view and printed. Still not right and the image looked unnormal. I measured the image on the screen with a ruler. (attached)
The bottom line measures correctly at 19.5mm both with the wooden ruler and with the sketchup ruler tool. But the top line which is supposed to be about 165mm measures more like 260mm using a wooden ruler on the screen, but it measures 165mm with the sketchup ruler tool.

What the heck am I doing wrong?

number one.skp

number two.skp

Oops, posted too soon. I looked further down the list of topics and discovered the dxf plugin. It worked wonderfully!

But while I'm here, could someone help me with turning that 2d image 360 degrees on its vertical axis in order to produce a 3d concavity?

I'm trying to work with the exact contour represented in the following file

It was originally a dxf file that I saved as jpeg, uploaded to photobucket, and linked to here.

I understand that I cannot open dxf or pdf files with basic sketchup. Is there any accurate method of capturing and the exact proflie in that image and utilizing it in sketchup, or must I painstakingly freehand it with dozens and dozens of transferred coordinates?

Thanks so much.