Ok, just one more question. I got past the solid thing. Got past SU crashing every time I did a solid subtract. Then finally, I got every thing right, 2 water tight groups etc. But the result is not what I expected. In playing around with subtract using crude shapes I felt I understood the end result but this subtract transformation on my groups is completely different. I tried reversing the "1" and "2" but there results are still perplexing. Any insight? Group 1 is a representation of four bolt holes complete with ledges for the heads of the bolts. Group 2 is just a shaped hunk of metal. The result should be holes in the hunk of metal correct?

Thanks again!

solid_subtractingv3.skp

Hey Guys, Thanks for all the help but never mind on the crashing event. I redid my drawing yet again (yeah, a whole day shot) and tried it one last time and the subtract worked. Anyway, seems a little buggy but nothing you guys should spend your time on. Just out of curiosity, have any of you used imaterialize (the 3D firm that will take your drawing and produce the whatever thing-a-ma-jig in plastic or metal?)? Just wondering what that process is like and if the parts are 'perfect' - whatever that means (I guess good enough that machining isn't needed at the end). Thanks again, Cheers, Keith

Thanks everyone! Sometime between 1 and 2 am I found out about the follow-me path. In the last 24 hours I've made a lot of progress with solids and I can create them almost (dare I say) a will. But a new problem has arisen and I'm not sure you can help me with this one. I purchased Pro a couple weeks ago (v but every time I do a solid subtract the program crashes. Have any of you experienced this? Three times I have started from scratch and the path I take seems not to matter - the crash always happens at the moment I select the second solid. Any suggestions would be helpful. Thanks mucho, Keith

Two solids, when I extract the tubes from the plate, sketchup crashes and burns.

Hello. I'm embarrassed to be writing this because the 'solid' concept seems straight forward and somewhat intuitive yet even the simplest examples I construct are not solids or so SU tells me. The only thing I've been able to make a solid is to extrude a circle into a cylinder. But as soon as I get more complicated than that I fail the solid test. The most frustrating is: Make a square. Get rid of the inside so your left with just the perimeter. Make a circle perpendicular to the path at the center (of the circle). Then use follow me to get a picture frame looking tubular square - SU tells me its not a solid. What gives? What am I not understanding here? Thanks for all the help.

a_solid_attempt.skp

Hello, My name is Keith. I've been using sketchup off and on for a year or two. I'll be honest, I still find it tedious and that leads me to my questions. (Background: I need to make 3D metal frames. From the renderings I will do the welding.) Question: Is Pro really worth it and do many of the plugins require Pro? Money is tight right now and its pricey. Question 2: I'm very interested in Tak2Hata's Building Structure Tool plugin but I can't seem to find the actual location to download it. Where should I be looking? Thank you kindly, Keith