The most useful tools for the task

So, I’m wanting to create my Dream Guitar in sketch to which is inspired by a Fender Stratocaster(I like the look of a Stratocaster for some reason), and I have a few questions:

  1. What tools will I find extremely useful in making this model?

  2. After tracing over a Stratocaster template image, the ”tracing” does not fill so I can extrude it, besides the time eating ”getting right up to the lines and amending where needed, Is there a faster way?

  3. When I get to the neck part where there appears to be a smooth bevel or contour where the neck connects to the body, how do I make the neck have that contour/bevel that the neck naturally has?

  4. On a rough guess, for a guy whom would be somewhere between beginner and intermediate, what part of the 3D modelling process will most likely take the most time?

Thank you for your time😀

What version of SketchUp are you using? That information will help us give you some ideas of what tools you can use. Please complete your profile.

My profile should now tell you what I use

But just in case it doesnt

I use SketchIp Make 2017(I believe that is the latest version of Make)

Thank you for updating your profile. You should add 2017 to it.

So now we now that you don’t have access to the Solid Tools so they can be left out of the discussion. You could use Bool Tools 2 to cut the recesses for the pickups and the neck. Or you could use Intersect Faces. I would look at tools like FredoSpline or Bezier Spline for drawing the curves and FredoCorner for rounding over the edges.

Aaron’s video will give you some ideas, too.

This video should answer most questions, but note that it’s a demanding model, Aaron didn’t get to do the neck even after 3 1/2 hours.

My Stratocaster by the way, which Aaron does mention!

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Colin, I watched Aaron live when he created the guitar. :slightly_smiling_face:

@StillLearning1993, you could also try to model using Quads, and you’ll need a few extensions: QuadFace Tools, Vertex Tools, Fredo Corner and SUbD.

Like this: guitar-web.skp (3.7 MB)

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