Hi, Total newbie, knowledge level-minimal.
I’m trying to create a component out of sheet metal. Two of the edges will be exposed and so I’ll need to fold, say 10mm, back on itself to hide the raw edge. I’ve manged to use the rotate tool, but it ended up being folded back into itself! Presumably i need to include a small radius for the sheet to follow around to lay back on top of itself. If anyone can point me to a tutorial/explanation that would be much appreciated
There are a number of different ways to do this. The best way depends on the shape of the part. You might be able to use Push/Pull or Follow Me for this or if you were using a desktop client version of SketchUp, you might use an extension. Can you share the SKP file?
I’ll try! This is a feed tray to fit in the bottom of a sheep feed rack. It will be about 8’ long and will lie on top of the chassis, bottom left.sheeprack.skp (60.6 KB)
I want to fold the top edges outwards and back on themselves. Many thanks for taking the time to look at this.
How will you use this model once you’ve created it?
Do you have a photo of the feed tray or is this your invention?
Here I’ve drawn the edge rolled over just using the circle tool. Basically you would just draw the cross section of the tray instead of trying to bend it afterward.
What happens at the ends of the tray, though?
Maybe something like this?
I’ve inherited some very old sheepracks from my father, now long rusted out/rotted away, and so need to build some new ones. I need to give a local metal basher some decent drawings for him to follow, to fold a new tray. There are some timber components as well, not yet shown, that will form the two ends, and a mesh hay rack will sit on top of the rounded mid section, with a roof covering the whole thing. It is effectively a double sided feed trough.
I thought it would be easier to fold before I pulled it out to full length (8’).
Thank you.
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It would be easiest to draw the fold before you pull it out at all.
Almost there ! Looks very nice like that, but there will be a flat vertical board outside of the tray, so I will want to screw through the fold from the inside, to secure it to the board, so it needs to lie as flat as possible, hence a “simple” fold. Likewise, there will be two end boards (plywood), which will be bolted through the ends of the chassis. The two vertical boards will be fixed to the two upstands on the end of the chassis. I’m impressed with the speed with which you’ve managed to grasp this. Incidentally, I see you’ve located the tray on the chassis (which I’ve not yet tried!), does sketchup need a working clearance, or would it force a 50mm component over a 50mm component-obviously I will have to allow a manufacturing tolerance.
So it’s better to do this on a simple cross section then pull it out afterwards?
Many Thanks
Closer?
SketchUp doesn’t do any sort of collision detection if that’s what you mean. You can put one part right through another even though in real life they wouldn’t fit together. You would need to model in spacing allowances for fit if that is necessary. The keey is to make each separate part a component so that they don’t things don’t stick together when you want to be able to show them as separate.
Yes, usually it is for things like this. It sometimes requires a change of thought process from working with the real material.
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Hi Dave, Sorry, I had to leave on Sunday to attend to an ailing ewe! You’ve got the concept spot on, in fact your last picture showing the edge of the trough folded over the upstand may work better than a tight fold screwed to the inside edge. I’ll play around with it the next chance I get and let you know how I get on - I find it hard to believe that you’ve turned out something that looks so good, so quickly ! Thank you again.
Yes, Charlie. I’m sure that something like the flattened hem is the goal. I was just trying to sort out the overall shape, first. Adding the hem is trivial once the overall shape is developed. It’s only a continuation of the profile.
@Negger, I think an ailing ewe should indeed come first so no worries. I hope she’s doing much better now.
Thank you for the compliments. I’m glad it looks like I’m on the right track with it. It’s basically what I understood from your description. Even with the metal folded over the long rails, you might want to add the hem to prevent a sharp edge from being turned up. I’d miter the corners so they’d be less sharp even if they do get pull out.
Or maybe the sheet metal needs to be extended down and wrapped under the long rails. There’d be less water infiltration if the screws went in on the bottom edge of the rails.
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Dave, I guess this came to me by mistake. Just in case you didn’t send it to the intended…
Regards,
Brian
+61-418-685-240
US cell: +1-808-439-4991
Skype: brian.lagatita
HI All, Many thanks for your input
Re: ewe, sadly, despite my best efforts and an expensive visit from the Vet, she was stone cold the following morning-annoyingly, I’m none the wiser as to why!
Charlie V has it spot on with regard to the “flattened hem”, my original thought, Is this achieved simply by drawing a second section parallel to the first and then adding a radius around the outside ?, or is there a more elegant way of achieving this ?
I’m also opening a second post with regard to re-sizing an image.
Regards