# Can't push pull surface **URL:** \ **Category:** Pro\ **Created:** [July 8, 2015, 2:53pm UTC](https://forums.sketchup.com/t/cant-push-pull-surface/12917 "2015-07-08T14:53:27Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![aliyesami](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/ecb155/32.png) [@aliyesami](https://forums.sketchup.com/u/aliyesami)\ **Post date:** [July 8, 2015, 2:53pm UTC](https://forums.sketchup.com/t/cant-push-pull-surface/12917/1 "2015-07-08T14:53:27Z")
hi ! i downloaded this model from the 3D warehouse but i cant push pull any area on its surface , even though I select it by either double clicking on by selecting the whole box with mouse. I cant upload files so here is the url for the enclosure [Hammond enclosure](https://3dwarehouse.sketchup.com/model.html?id=36c3e11ebff2085ae6e7fa185917db8) ---
**Author:** ![slbaumgartner](https://sea2.discourse-cdn.com/sketchup/user_avatar/forums.sketchup.com/slbaumgartner/32/7302_2.png) [@slbaumgartner](https://forums.sketchup.com/u/slbaumgartner)\ **Post date:** [July 8, 2015, 2:56pm UTC](https://forums.sketchup.com/t/cant-push-pull-surface/12917/2 "2015-07-08T14:56:07Z")
For starters, what model? Please provide a link or upload the model! My guess would be that the model contains a Group or ComponentInstance that you must open for edit before you can do such operations. ---
**Author:** ![aliyesami](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/ecb155/32.png) [@aliyesami](https://forums.sketchup.com/u/aliyesami)\ **Post date:** [July 8, 2015, 3:01pm UTC](https://forums.sketchup.com/t/cant-push-pull-surface/12917/3 "2015-07-08T15:01:19Z")
sketchup pro 2014. i have put the link in the post , you dont see it ? > **[Hammond Enclosure 1455l1602](https://3dwarehouse.sketchup.com/model/36c3e11ebff2085ae6e7fa185917db8/Hammond-Enclosure-1455l1602)** > > Hammond Enclosure 1455l1602 > Extruded Aluminum Enclosure > (Plastic End Panels) > (1455 Series) #1455l1602 #Case #Enclosurey #Hammond thanks ---
**Author:** ![slbaumgartner](https://sea2.discourse-cdn.com/sketchup/user_avatar/forums.sketchup.com/slbaumgartner/32/7302_2.png) [@slbaumgartner](https://forums.sketchup.com/u/slbaumgartner)\ **Post date:** [July 8, 2015, 3:08pm UTC](https://forums.sketchup.com/t/cant-push-pull-surface/12917/4 "2015-07-08T15:08:45Z")
It’s there now, but for some reason the link didn’t show the first time I looked… OK, that model contains multiple levels of nested Groups - which you can see by opening the Outliner window. To edit any particular surface, you will need to recursively open for edit the nested Groups until you get into the one that “owns” the surface you want to pushpull. Double clicking a Group name in the Outliner is a shortcut way to open a particular one for edit. As a side note, this model could be improved by using Components instead of Groups for the repeated entities that are identical such as the little feet (Gruppe#5) and the end caps (Gruppe#2 and Gruppe#4 - which appear to be mirror images of each other). ---
**Author:** ![aliyesami](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/ecb155/32.png) [@aliyesami](https://forums.sketchup.com/u/aliyesami)\ **Post date:** [July 8, 2015, 3:18pm UTC](https://forums.sketchup.com/t/cant-push-pull-surface/12917/5 "2015-07-08T15:18:42Z")
so if i want to push pull the face of the box what i have to do ? how do I select all the layers? i double clicked , it highlights the surface but wont push pull still. I didnt understand how can i make it into a component ? ---
**Author:** ![colin](https://sea2.discourse-cdn.com/sketchup/user_avatar/forums.sketchup.com/colin/32/266703_2.png) [@colin](https://forums.sketchup.com/u/colin)\ **Post date:** [July 8, 2015, 3:19pm UTC](https://forums.sketchup.com/t/cant-push-pull-surface/12917/6 "2015-07-08T15:19:42Z")
Strangely, that model is 850 feet long. That seems rather large. Also, some of the surfaces have been smoothed, and you can’t push/pull those, unless you enable View/Hidden Geometry, then you can pull the individual faces that are used in the smoothed parts. ---
**Author:** ![aliyesami](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/ecb155/32.png) [@aliyesami](https://forums.sketchup.com/u/aliyesami)\ **Post date:** [July 8, 2015, 3:23pm UTC](https://forums.sketchup.com/t/cant-push-pull-surface/12917/7 "2015-07-08T15:23:58Z")
two questions: how can i scale down this to one feet ? how can i smooth the face surface ? I want to be able to select rectangle area on the face and push it inwards to create a depression and also another rectangle which will be a window…so cut through . also same thing happening with this box … can’t push pull on any surface https://3dwarehouse.sketchup.com/embed.html?mid=8bf8727b590eaf4436ba97f1da9abaeb&width=580&height=326 ---
**Author:** ![slbaumgartner](https://sea2.discourse-cdn.com/sketchup/user_avatar/forums.sketchup.com/slbaumgartner/32/7302_2.png) [@slbaumgartner](https://forums.sketchup.com/u/slbaumgartner)\ **Post date:** [July 8, 2015, 3:28pm UTC](https://forums.sketchup.com/t/cant-push-pull-surface/12917/8 "2015-07-08T15:28:54Z")
Even stranger, it is 160cm long when I downloaded it!!? [edit] oops! I misread the Tape Measure value! 160meters! This was likely imported from AutoCAD without fixing the scale afterward, since the labels clearly indicate it was meant to be 160mm! ---
**Author:** ![aliyesami](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/ecb155/32.png) [@aliyesami](https://forums.sketchup.com/u/aliyesami)\ **Post date:** [July 8, 2015, 3:34pm UTC](https://forums.sketchup.com/t/cant-push-pull-surface/12917/9 "2015-07-08T15:34:59Z")
dont know …i am getting these from the 3D warehouse. ---
**Author:** ![slbaumgartner](https://sea2.discourse-cdn.com/sketchup/user_avatar/forums.sketchup.com/slbaumgartner/32/7302_2.png) [@slbaumgartner](https://forums.sketchup.com/u/slbaumgartner)\ **Post date:** [July 8, 2015, 3:44pm UTC](https://forums.sketchup.com/t/cant-push-pull-surface/12917/10 "2015-07-08T15:44:22Z")
> [@aliyesami](#): > > how can i scale down this to one feet ? Select the Tape Measure tool, click first on one end of the extrusion then again on the other end (it should say 160m in the Measurements box). Then type 1’ (just type, don’t click in the Measurements box) and hit return. SketchUp will prompt to verify that you want to scale the entire model. Poof! You will need to zoom extents to see your now drastically reduced model. > [@aliyesami](#): > > how can i smooth the face surface ? Not sure what you mean by this one. Please elaborate… > [@aliyesami](#): > > want to be able to select rectangle area on the face and push it inwards to create a depression and also another rectangle which will be a window…so cut through . > > also same thing happening with this box … can’t push pull on any surface Again, you have to open for edit down through the nested Groups until you get to the one that contains the geometry you want to edit. On which specific face of the box do you want to work? ---
**Author:** ![colin](https://sea2.discourse-cdn.com/sketchup/user_avatar/forums.sketchup.com/colin/32/266703_2.png) [@colin](https://forums.sketchup.com/u/colin)\ **Post date:** [July 8, 2015, 3:50pm UTC](https://forums.sketchup.com/t/cant-push-pull-surface/12917/11 "2015-07-08T15:50:35Z")
The main case is 160m, not 160cm. But even 160cm would be huge. It could be it was intended to be 160 mm? You can scale the whole model this way: Select the Tape Measure tool ( ). The cursor changes to a tape measure. Measure the distance between two points on your model: Enter a new size for the line in the Measurements toolbar and press the Enter (Microsoft Windows) or Return (Mac OS X) key. … Click the Yes button. So, just measure a known length (meaning click at one end of the known length, then click at the other end of the known length), and without clicking in the dimensions box, just type the correct length. For example, if the body is meant to be 160 mm instead of 160 m, type 160mm and press return, and click Yes to resize the model. The resized model is likely to be off to the side, and so small you won’t notice it, so choose Camera/Zoom Extents to see if clearly. By the way, there can be advantages to making a model bigger than real life, especially for doing rounded corners. But 1000X is a bit of overkill! ---
**Author:** ![slbaumgartner](https://sea2.discourse-cdn.com/sketchup/user_avatar/forums.sketchup.com/slbaumgartner/32/7302_2.png) [@slbaumgartner](https://forums.sketchup.com/u/slbaumgartner)\ **Post date:** [July 8, 2015, 3:54pm UTC](https://forums.sketchup.com/t/cant-push-pull-surface/12917/12 "2015-07-08T15:54:59Z")
> [@aliyesami](#): > > I want to be able to select rectangle area on the face and push it inwards to create a depression and also another rectangle which will be a window…so cut through . Just a matter of opening the correct editing context (note: at the start of this gif I first double clicked the main Group to open it for edit, then double clicked the lid to open it for edit. That goes by a bit fast in the gif!): ![](https://global.discourse-cdn.com/sketchup/original/2X/0/0a6a3a74c6e563b3e1b27339a4d4b52c4111d898.gif) ---
**Author:** ![slbaumgartner](https://sea2.discourse-cdn.com/sketchup/user_avatar/forums.sketchup.com/slbaumgartner/32/7302_2.png) [@slbaumgartner](https://forums.sketchup.com/u/slbaumgartner)\ **Post date:** [July 8, 2015, 4:03pm UTC](https://forums.sketchup.com/t/cant-push-pull-surface/12917/13 "2015-07-08T16:03:42Z")
Yes, I misread the Tape tool value before my earlier post 😳. Based on the name of the extrusion’s group I think it was meant to be 160mm. ---
**Author:** ![aliyesami](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/ecb155/32.png) [@aliyesami](https://forums.sketchup.com/u/aliyesami)\ **Post date:** [July 8, 2015, 4:17pm UTC](https://forums.sketchup.com/t/cant-push-pull-surface/12917/14 "2015-07-08T16:17:56Z")
ah yes thats exactly what i want. . but its not working for me i must be doing something wrong. I double click first to highlight all the three parts as group. it puts them in blue lines . then i double click the top face surface its puts all the box in grey color . then i draw the rectangle and try to push it like you are doing but it just dont cut through. it makes a box under the surface thats it . ---
**Author:** ![aliyesami](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/ecb155/32.png) [@aliyesami](https://forums.sketchup.com/u/aliyesami)\ **Post date:** [July 8, 2015, 4:20pm UTC](https://forums.sketchup.com/t/cant-push-pull-surface/12917/15 "2015-07-08T16:20:11Z")
oh YAYYYYYY i did it … working now . thanks all for your valuable help. ---
**Author:** ![aliyesami](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/ecb155/32.png) [@aliyesami](https://forums.sketchup.com/u/aliyesami)\ **Post date:** [July 8, 2015, 9:09pm UTC](https://forums.sketchup.com/t/cant-push-pull-surface/12917/16 "2015-07-08T21:09:35Z")
hi Colin I am having trouble in scaling using your method can you explain again please ? if I enable the tape tool and then go from one edge to the other and type in the length I want ,it just extends the lines around the body to that length but it does not do anything with the box itself ? can i not scale using the “scale” tool which adjusts all three axis ? ---
**Author:** ![colin](https://sea2.discourse-cdn.com/sketchup/user_avatar/forums.sketchup.com/colin/32/266703_2.png) [@colin](https://forums.sketchup.com/u/colin)\ **Post date:** [July 8, 2015, 9:33pm UTC](https://forums.sketchup.com/t/cant-push-pull-surface/12917/17 "2015-07-08T21:33:19Z")
If you click one place, drag to another, and then type a number, it will put down a guide line at that distance. If you click somewhere, move somewhere else (don’t drag, you should have done a brief click at the first location), and click again, before typing, you should get asked if you want to resize the model. Make sure you’re not inside any group or component at the time, otherwise it will just resize that part of the model. ---
**Author:** ![aliyesami](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/ecb155/32.png) [@aliyesami](https://forums.sketchup.com/u/aliyesami)\ **Post date:** [July 9, 2015, 12:56am UTC](https://forums.sketchup.com/t/cant-push-pull-surface/12917/18 "2015-07-09T00:56:12Z")
ok I can resize the model but now i am not understanding how it is resizing it . .e.g the box that i am trying to resize has a length of 113mm , I resize it to 50mm and i get prompted if i want to resize and I hit YES and i can see that the model size is reduced but when i measure the length its not 50 but its 67mm? ---
**Author:** ![Geo](https://sea2.discourse-cdn.com/sketchup/user_avatar/forums.sketchup.com/geo/32/82_2.png) [@Geo](https://forums.sketchup.com/u/Geo)\ **Post date:** [July 9, 2015, 1:40am UTC](https://forums.sketchup.com/t/cant-push-pull-surface/12917/19 "2015-07-09T01:40:02Z")
> [@colin](#): > > If you click somewhere, move somewhere else (don’t drag, you should have done a brief click at the first location), and click again, before typing, you should get asked if you want to resize the model. @aliyesami Colin’s description is a bit vague. Do not click “_somewhere_” Hover the Tape Measure tool over a **meaningful endpoint** , say, the end corner of the lid. Wait until you see the **inference dot** and **tool tip** message … **Endpoint** … and then click once. Then hover the tool over the opposite end corner of the lid. Again, wait until you see the inference dot. Then click once to finish. Now type the desired dimension and hit Enter * * * **Measure from a meaningful point … to a meaningful point.** ![](https://global.discourse-cdn.com/sketchup/original/2X/e/e8868ed0378ef0a5895aa05f13f223e7bd9147c7.PNG) ---
**Author:** ![aliyesami](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/ecb155/32.png) [@aliyesami](https://forums.sketchup.com/u/aliyesami)\ **Post date:** [July 9, 2015, 1:47am UTC](https://forums.sketchup.com/t/cant-push-pull-surface/12917/20 "2015-07-09T01:47:25Z")
yes that worked perfectly . .thanks all for the help [Next page](https://forums.sketchup.com/t/cant-push-pull-surface/12917.md?page=2)