Making a simple design for 3d printing

SketchUp 3D Printing
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I’m trying to make a fairly simple object for 3d printing, just to get my feet wet in 3d printing.

An object .75" x 3" x 6.75".

Yes, basically a scale model of the monolith from 2001: A Space Odyssey.

Doesn’t seem that difficult, but I’m not having much success in Sketch-Up.

I have a feeling someone who’s a wiz in Sketch Up could crank this out in short order.

Anyone, anyone?

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Do share your file, picture, a link etc so as we know how to help.

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This tells us nothing and affords no basis upon which to offer advice. Please tell us exactly what you tried, what you were expecting to happen, and what actually did happen.

-Gully

By the way you may find this earlier thread of interest:

1 Like
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Create a rectangle 0.75" x 3" and extrude it 6.75". Offset the edge 0.1" and reverse extrude it (to make it hollow and save material):

Export the model as a 3D DAE file and you’re done (if your printer can’t work with DAE files, you can use MeshLab to import the DAE file and then export it as an STL file).

1 Like
5

Making a ‘box’ to those dimensions is “SketchUp 101”.
Check some basic Youtube videos…

Make a Rectangle the size of the base, then PushPull it to the desire height
Select all of it and make it into a group.
Select it and open Entity Info.
It should say it’s a ‘Solid’.

If you then export that in a format suitable for 3d-printing it should work.
Possible formats might be DAE [Collada], if STL is needed then there is an exported available from the Extension Warehouse - Extension | SketchUp Extension Warehouse
Do some research…

1 Like
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Thanks, I think I’m getting the hang of it.

I haven’t gotten to offsetting the edge and reverse extruding it…

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hmmmm, I created it, but when I select it and open Entity Info, it says Layer 1, Type: Undefined.
How do I tell it to make it a Solid?

Image in above reply.

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That’s not the way it works. You construct the object to be solid. If you did it right, Entity Info recognizes it as such and identifies the part as solid. If Entity Info does not recognize it as solid, it isn’t, and you have to go back to the object and find what’s wrong with it. I’m guessing it’s missing a face.

-Gully

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Yep, that was it; the bottom of it wasn’t solid. I rebuilt it and now it shows as a solid group.

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Also make sure all front-faces are ‘outwards’ !
You screenshot looks inside-out ?