Google Sketchup

[i-will]

anyone willing to do it is a saint in my eyes. go for it and thanks. i'm lookin forward to it.

there r a few files out there but they r scattered and random. i found a few sprinkler valves and reducers for download. not so much pipes and fittings though.

[potatoflinger]

I can make some PVC fittings, as long as I can find the dimensions for the real ones somewhere.

Sketchup is a great tool to use, but it gets rather annoying to use when you are making something that is detailed.

[SEAKING9006]

I remember my tech teacher gave me a trial copy of solidworks to try out, and honestly, it was nightmarish. But that was two years ago (haven't touched it since) and it does have one distinct advantage over sketchup. Generating parts based on dimensions, which is freaking perfect for spudgun design. Simply enter the inner diameter and outer diameter, length, and boom. Pipe section that conforms to whatever schedule you want. And, parts fit inside each other automatically. I'm certain I can't use it now, and I'm not going out of my way to get it. Just noting that that is a feature sketchup needs badly.

[Spuddin]

i love those free programs like that, gimp is great too (replaces photoshop) and its also free.
i wanted to make a script with spud gun parts that u move around and build a 3D gun. like the ones they have for building a model shop or house. maybe one of u guys can figure out how to make it work and offer it as a download here.

[SEAKING9006]

I'm pretty sure someone could come up with something... Although modeling advanced designs would be a chore, because there is nary an advanced concept that doesn't need to cut holes in something.

[TurboSuper]

Sheez, is this really all necessary? Honestly, it's a nice gimmick and great for making official-looking reports, but does a 3D spudgun really, really do something for you that a plain 2D drawing doesn't?

I can understand it for complicated mechanical systems, but for a couple of pieces of pipe, I really don't see the lasting appeal.

Don't get me wrong- 3D drawing is awesome, and a spudgun modeling program would be pretty cool...but actually making a library of spudgun components sounds like more trouble than it's worth. And this is coming from someone with more free time than anyone should have.

[SEAKING9006]

Not really. If someone can generate the components from their dimensions, it won't take long at all.

Also, it's becoming nearly necesary nowadays in order to make sure our 2-d paper calculations are correct and that our things ( *cough*X-ACS*cough*) will actually work.

If someone will make the components, I will DEFINITELY use them.

[i-will]

Sheez, is this really all necessary? Honestly, it's a nice gimmick and great for making official-looking reports, but does a 3D spudgun really, really do something for you that a plain 2D drawing doesn't?

Yes! it's very necessary when ur on a budget and u wanna know exactly what u need without wasting money on unneeded parts. yes it matters when u don't wanna waste and trash pipe and parts that were perfect until u got ur hands on it. then to the trash it goes.

if your the kinda guy that jumps in head first with a fist full of dollars and too much free time then waste all u want. but for the rest of us that want to have a game plan and have lives outside of spudding, we see the advantages. especially for guys like me that don't just glue pipes together. we design and take pride in it.

I can understand it for complicated mechanical systems, but for a couple of pieces of pipe, I really don't see the lasting appeal.

the appeal is that we go through less drama if we first model them on an easily edited graphic plain. sometimes we need a little more than a pen and note pad.

[Hubb]

I can make some PVC fittings, as long as I can find the dimensions for the real ones somewhere.

Try this. This site has a lot of selections, including Sch40, Sch80, and DWV. It should great for the person who wants to make a Sketchup file.

[VH_man]

Try this. This site has a lot of selections, including Sch40, Sch80, and DWV. It should great for the person who wants to make a Sketchup file.[/quote]

Very Helpful. Will start on this when i have time.

[TurboSuper]

iwill, I seem to have struck a nerve with you. I'll just ask you this:

How do you figure that a something cooked up in Google Sketchup (or any other program) is more accurate than graph paper and a ruler?

Is a 3D drawing not made with 2D drawings from different perspectives?

Do they not give you the dimensions of pipe already? Can't you figure out if a part is needed or not just by looking at it?

How does spending more time with a 3D modeling program give you more of a life outside spudding?

I'm intrigued. I'd really like to be convinced that it's better to use a 3D modeling program, so can you show me one of your creations where it was of paramount importance that you had a 3d drawing? I'm not being sarcastic...I'd really like to be convinced.

[POLAND_SPUD]

a programme like this one seems to be ideal for presenting complicated designs... sometimes it's dificult to show something in 2D..

[starman]

Precious few cannons in the showcase here, even some really nice ones, have been modeled up front with 3D. I do not agree that building the cannon virtually in 3D offers any significant advantage or certainly is "very necessary". I don't even see it saving that much in parts as opposed the alternate "fiddling around in the shop" method.

Perhaps if you are a very experienced spud gunner and you have decided to build a ground-breaking, highly mechanized complex unit, it may help you gather your thoughts and break down special engineering that will be required. I would put Solar's Eclipse 40 mm gun in this catagory. However, for the majority of even what is considered high end pneumatic and combustion cannons, they really are not complicated enough to warrent the trouble.

[i-will]

iwill, I seem to have struck a nerve with you. I'll just ask you this:

How do you figure that a something cooked up in Google Sketchup (or any other program) is more accurate than graph paper and a ruler?

Is a 3D drawing not made with 2D drawings from different perspectives?

Do they not give you the dimensions of pipe already? Can't you figure out if a part is needed or not just by looking at it?

u didn't hit an nerve. i just like to debate and learn other points of view.

everywhere i go i have a notebook that is almost full of designs and mechanisms that i think of randomly. when i decide to model an idea i used to wish i had a better way to see it without building it which gives me a chance to make any changes i want before hand. paper doesn't have a built in measuring plain and is prone to human error. i'm usin sketchup to model a revolving launcher and so far i know what size pvc and parts i need and i haven't walk into a hardware store yet. why not let a computer do the measuring for u instead of trying to convert units with a ruler a calculator. sketchup is quick, clean, precise, easy, user friendly, editable, etc. not the best but it works.

when u have an easy program like sketchup and know ur way around a computer very well it just seems to make sense. to me it's a 3d tape measure and a double checking method.

if sketchup or any program like this is too difficult to understand and use than stick to paper and pen. not everyone is technology inclined. i'm planin on makin a touch screen just for sketchup and programs like it.

also everyone knows that when u see a 3d model it's easier to understand.

3d modeling isn't of "paramount importance" or anything but when u wanna get it right the first time it's a great tool. it's all about preference. i like it.

just cuz u don't see the advantage that doesn't mean that someone else doesn't. everyone has their own methods. don't knock it.

[Davidvaini]

3D designs have their advantages when it comes to understanding someones design.. Sometimes you simply cant show a design in 2D.


Now sketchup is a quick and easy tool to make quick sketches of your idea.. Its not uberly exact but It does get the job done.

If you want to make something with exact demensions then you will need something that has, "Front, Top, Left" viewing... This way you make the shape in exact 2D measurments and it is converted to 3D. (Autocad) for example.

Here is an example of what I mean:



This is obviously the most accurate way of making a 3D model but if you are looking for something that is nice and easy to use for quick 3D sketches then Google Sketchup is for you.