Sketch-up tutorial

[LuiggiSpeed]

It's not only tracks for me, I have found SKTHP to be an excellent tool, I have roughly drawn this little custom job for our local luthier , to make it for me:



And some parts and little inventions I also like to have fun with, this program has helped me in a lot of ways.

[Purist]

i think I'll have to have another pair of eyes here look at it to try and find any misalignments.

I can use the offset tool on the curves, but I still can't seem to get uniform offset, and yes, I have been trying to make use of that little bar at the lower right to type in the measurements.

Perhaps I should ask this too, is anyone aware of any critical differences between the Mac and PC versions of this program?

P.S. Nice guitar, Luiggi.

[Tathrim]

Purist, if you want to get purely parallel lines, try and extend a line or two either side of the bit you want to be parallel which has already been offset, then drag do it's offset to the level of the line that's already offset.

[LuiggiSpeed]

How do you copy a certain section and paste it somewhere else?

I'm frustrated, haven't been able to find that, nor to rotate anything, other than model cars and stuff from the component file.

[Quintin03]

Has anyone had problems making increasing or decreasing width corners? I have. However due to the magic off sleep I thought of a way to get it right.

After you've made your single line drawing and offset the straights to the correct width you will have to find the point where the two lines of one side of the straight meet. Let's start on the inside.

Step 1:
Use the protractor and make two lines that are at 0 degrees with the the inside lines.

Step 2:
measure out the distance the ends of both straights are from the intersecting point then take the avaredge of the two and extend or shorten them to the correct length. Delete all lines unnecessecary

Step 3: Using the protractor you make two lines at the end of the straights at 90 degrees. They meet the centrepoint of the inside corner.

From hereon you can do it yourself. Be sure to repeat on the outside.

[ScotsBrutesFan]

Originally Posted by Quintin03

Has anyone had problems making increasing or decreasing width corners? I have. However due to the magic off sleep I thought of a way to get it right.

After you've made your single line drawing and offset the straights to the correct width you will have to find the point where the two lines of one side of the straight meet. Let's start on the inside.

Step 1:
Use the protractor and make two lines that are at 0 degrees with the the inside lines.

Step 2:
measure out the distance the ends of both straights are from the intersecting point then take the avaredge of the two and extend or shorten them to the correct length. Delete all lines unnecessecary

Step 3: Using the protractor you make two lines at the end of the straights at 90 degrees. They meet the centrepoint of the inside corner.

From hereon you can do it yourself. Be sure to repeat on the outside.

Sorry Quintin, maybe I need more sleep but I didn't understand a word of that nor why you would need it

[LuiggiSpeed]

Originally Posted by Quintin03

Has anyone had problems making increasing or decreasing width corners? I have. However due to the magic off sleep I thought of a way to get it right.

After you've made your single line drawing and offset the straights to the correct width you will have to find the point where the two lines of one side of the straight meet. Let's start on the inside.

Step 1:
Use the protractor and make two lines that are at 0 degrees with the the inside lines.

Step 2:
measure out the distance the ends of both straights are from the intersecting point then take the avaredge of the two and extend or shorten them to the correct length. Delete all lines unnecessecary

Step 3: Using the protractor you make two lines at the end of the straights at 90 degrees. They meet the centrepoint of the inside corner.

From hereon you can do it yourself. Be sure to repeat on the outside.

I first outline the general shape of the circuit using straight lines , then ,using the "arc" function I smooth out the corners, joining at the straight line's midpoint or wherever convenient to get the decreasing/increasing radius effect. All this before I offset anything,as I like to get my blot shape complete before any offsets are done, that way I save myself the PITA of joining sections, or trying to get the correct width for a corner and many other issues.

[ScotsBrutesFan]

The discussion on Purist's circuit has been moved to it's own thread in order to try and keep this one as much as possible a generic help thread.

You know what I mean, the ...
"how do you?"
"What the best way to?"

[ScotsBrutesFan]

Originally Posted by Purist

Also, how do I go about making the 3D structres: pit buildings, stands, retaining walls, overpasses, etc?

From one of the moved posts

Who want's to offer help here on these

[LuiggiSpeed]

To do buildings and 3d stuff I draw, say, a square and then use the "push/pull" button and just pull it out to whatever length you want, you can do it in any direction provided you have a plane from where to pull it and you can angle it out by moving ("move") the border line, dragging it till it's at your preferred angle.

[Purist]

Do you create the 3D building, or whatever, inside the track file itself, or do you create it in its own file and import it somehow?

[LuiggiSpeed]

Originally Posted by Purist

Do you create the 3D building, or whatever, inside the track file itself, or do you create it in its own file and import it somehow?

Not me at least,I do it right there as part of the original design.

[Purist]

Ok. Thanks for clearing that up.

[Purist]

I've gotten the hang of a lot more of the tools. There are two main things I'm trying to do now.

1. How do you make curved structures in 3D?

@. How do you do the extrusions for garage spaces while still retaining the side walls?

[ScotsBrutesFan]

For curved structures it's easiest to explain with something like a curving grandstand. at 90 degrees to the track create what you'd like to be the side on view. at the front or back add the curve you want it to follow. then use the "follow me" tool to extrude it around the arc.
I've added a 4 very quick images to give you an idea

Personally I don't add that much detail for the garages, I tend to "cheat" and just draw closed garage doors such as can be seen on the second image of this design

[Purist]

I'll give that a go and see what I get. Thanks for the description, and the accompanying visuals.

[Quintin03]

I had to explain this basic technique to Chrispage on another thread.

Forgive my ignorance in this!

I can only see how to make a curve in a strict half-circle. Can this be twisted to form corners with inconstant radius?

Yes, you'd have to use multiple arcs. To create other arcs that aren't half circles you'd have to find it's centre. Do this by drawing a line at a 90 degree angle to the straight it connects to. The length of that line is the radius of the corner. Then measure out the duration of the corner you want with the protractor and make a line exactly as long as the other line. Then connect the ends of these lines and draw a third line of the same length through the centra of this line. Finally draw your arc from the end of the straight to the end of the second line via the middle line. If you've done that and you've done it exactly as I thought I wrote then you should have a constant radius curve. Use the line at the end of the corner to create the next corner or straight and then remove all guidelines.
This is so basic I'd have never expected to explain it but I'm happy to do. I'll need to post this in the tutorial thread which realy should be a sticky

Original posts removed from ptclause98's tracks threads.

[Tathrim]

could this be stickied?

[ChrisPage]

Originally Posted by Quintin03

I had to explain this basic technique to Chrispage on another thread.

Sorry, I knew it was a basic request, but as I've never used a graphic design program before I'm a bit shooting in the dark with it. Its good to have a forum like this rather than dry tutorials.

[Quintin03]

Realy it's not a problem. This section of the forum is for showing and improving your track designing skill. I am happy to help you at any time of day. I think I speak for all other members by writing that. Have fun.

[mitchbr]

OK, I know this will sound really stupid, but I just downloaded SketchUp, and can't seem to get how to make lines, circles, etc stay. Sorry, it's stupid and I feel like an idiot but i click and drag using the pencil, but if I let go of the mouse and move the cursor the line disappears. Now that I think about it, I'm a complete newb to SketchUp, so could someone give me an explanation of how to just get started? I even looked at google sketchup help and it gives no basic help. Thanks!

By the way, I'm using a MacBook with a trackpad for my mouse.

[Purist]

Unless my brain has completely gone since earlier in the Spring, you don't click and drag. Instead, you click once to get your starting anchor point, move the mouse, then click again to set the other anchor point, whether that's the other end of a line, the outer edge of a circle, or defining the curvature of an arc.

I hope this helps.

[Purist]

It's been quiet for a while in this thread, but I have something a bit different to ask.

How do you make surfaces translucent? I've been looking back at various tracks posted in the last few months, and have noticed what appear to be translucent windows on pit buildings, or awnings on grandstands, and was just wondering how to do that.

[ScotsBrutesFan]

In the materials section where you'd find the asphalt vegetation etc. there is a Translucent option. You just colour your area in your choice, the reflected cloud is probably the more realistist though not if in a shaded are under a grandstand roof.

[Purist]

Thanks for that last tidbit, SBF.

The other main thing I'm wondering about, that I've actually seen done, is how you do those rounded hills, like the ones shown in the image 92scotland posted back on the first page of this thread.

The other thing I'm thinking about, but haven't seen actually done, is whether there is a way to do trees somehow. It's not really possible, or at least not at all practical, to do real elevation changes, but being able to give an impression of the track going through a forest would be nice, if it can be done.