Since I am a newbee on this forum I couldn’t insert the 2nd image on the 1st post. I am also a newbee to Sketchup. But I have been using Windows paint and paint.net for many years to make drawings and schematic diagrams . The 2nd proj is a project box to mount a completed printed circuit board in. The picture bellow is the bottom of the box looking at it from the top. The smaller box inside the big box is the outline of the pc board. the Circles are the mounting holes for the plastic standoff’s to hold the pc board. The holes are all 1/8" in dia. and 1/8" in from each edge. I am having trouble getting the dia of each hole right and getting the holes in the right place in each corner. I zoom in do the 1st hole, then zoom out, move to the next corner, zoom in. I got to the 3rd corner and on the other 2 the dia is off again and the the position is also out of place. I have been placing pc boards in project box’s the old fashioned way for many years. This is my 1st attempt at designing a project box around a pc board in a 3D drawing prog for 3D printer.
First of all, post in the main SketchUp category until you learn your way around the forums. (Not knowing how to use the application is not a Technical Issue. I moved it.)
It’s best to draw on a planar face. Make one using the RectangleTool.
Then change the camera to one of the parallel projection standard views. Camera > Standard Views > Top
Also, SketchUp doesn’t have true circles. They are really polygons with line segments.
If you haven’t seen it in my previous postings. I have an AA degree in electronics, 2 Way radio, vcr and computer repair. I have been using Win paint and pant.net to make drawings and schematic drawing’s for many a blue moon
Not intending offense, but those are traditional 2D drawing programs that teach you nearly nothing about using SketchUp, which is a 3D modeling program and also has its own way of going about creating a model. Unfortunately the skp does not reveal the process you followed while drawing the holes, but it does suggest many things that you need to learn.
The centers of the circles are placed inaccurately. How did you locate them? That is, what did you click on to place the center before setting the radius? You have some guide points in the model, but it isn’t clear what they are for, as they don’t contribute to placing the centers. The radii of the circles are inconsistent and imprecise, suggesting you haven’t learned the basic SketchUp technique of starting to draw a figure, typing the target value + enter. You are working in an architectural style with displayed units rounded to 1/16" and length snapping on, which is obscuring some of the errors.
As @DaveR wrote, you need to spend some time learning the basics of SketchUp rather than assuming it works the same as the 2D programs you are accustomed to.
The model Unit of Measure settings are set to Architectural - Inches and Length Snapping is ON
Those Units settings are inappropriate for your purpose, especially Length Snapping.
Look to the top menus.
Window > Model Info > Units
Try the settings shown here:
Besides seconding all Steve said. I myself (also being competent in MS Paint and Paint.NET, and having worked in Communications Electronics & Systems Engineering many many years,) would never use a paint program for schematics.
PCB123LP is free
And there are many other, free schematic applications.
Even any of the many free 2D CAD apps are better for schematics than a mere paint program. I also would not use SketchUp for the tasks that are better suited to a 2D CAD application.
SketchUp is not a drawing program. It is a 3D surface modeler. It has a 2D “paper space equivalent” sister application called LayOut.
But after having drawn whatever in 2D. When it is time for 3D electronic chassis layout, sure SketchUp would be great. Especially for producing 3D views for assembly.
I know about the 2D CAD programs for drawing schematics. But the amount of schematics that I draw (hobby wise) doesn’t warrant buying a professional electronic engineering 2 D CAD program. I know drawing in Sketchup is diffrent then drawing in Win paint or Pant.net. I am just saying that I am not a complete newbee to drawing things on a computer. Every new prog takes a bit of time to get use to it. Some prog’s are just a bit harder to get to know.
