Advice please on drawing this cast iron element

SketchUp Pro
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I’m helping Andrew (@Quadhurst) to draw mid 20th century street light columns and lanterns.

This image and attached SU file represent part of a cast iron column.

image
image708×1660 80.1 KB

Embossing.skp (373.5 KB)

The intention is to draw it at full size (as dimensioned) and to have it 3D printed at 1/10 scale on a laser 3D printer with a resolution of about 0.1 or 0.2mm - so the detail of the embossed part of the casting can’t be too great.

The embossing is mirrored on two opposite sides of the column.

There appear to be 16 copies in the ring of ‘bulges’ just at the level of the 8" dimension line.

The embossed pattern covers about 3/8 of the perimeter - 6 of the bulges.

How might we best draw the embossed part of the column?

Try to draw half of one side it directly on a 16-segment cone, then give it thickness and mirror the result?

Draw it flat, then using a Bend extension to curve it round the conical under-shape?

The printer has limited resolution so one can’t make the embossing too detailed.

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Personally I would create the emboss flat then use Truebend, Shapebender or Flowify to shape it.
Each will have different problems. Truebend and Shapebender will tend to stretch the shape so you would need to create it thinner to allow it to stretch. I’m not familiar enough with Flowify to say how that would distort it.
All trial and error and I don’t have the time for that at the moment.

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Using Line (for 2D shape), Fredo JPP > Normal Push, Flowify, SUbD

2 Likes
4

Thanks @Box and @mihai.s.

We’ll try those suggestions and report back, but maybe not for a week or so - Andrew and I are both busy until next weekend.