In this class, we will get into some advanced modeling techniques.  There are many extensions available in the SketchUp Pro version that will draw many of the objects presented in this course much faster than what I show here.   However, using extensions is not the goal of this course; my goal is to help you […]

In this video, we start out learning the basics of the paint bucket tool, what all the modifier keys do and how they work. The paint bucket tool has a shortcut key B Modifier Keys do the following Shift – To Paint all Matching Colors Control/Option – Paint All Connected Shift+Control/Option –  Paint All On […]

Sketchup is a mesh modeling CAD program, meaning it doesn’t create solid smooth faces on round objects; instead, it creates a mesh of small squares and triangles to simulate a rounded surface. If you think of the mesh-like pixels on a picture, if you have a low number of pixels, your photo will start to […]

SketchUp was initially developed as an architectural tool to design buildings. However, with its intuitive interface allowing users to prototype rapidly, it has been adopted by furniture makers to design furniture. Unfortunately, sometimes the things we want to draw as furniture makers are smaller than what SketchUp was initially designed to handle. As a result, […]

These shapes are the foundation pieces of what we draw over and over when creating 3d modes.  They are basically the starting point for more complex shapes, a circle can become a sphere or a cone, a square can become a pyramid, etc. To make sure we are getting off to a good start, I […]

Before drawing the dust hose adaptor, we go through a few exercises on how to draw funnels and tapered circles, such as a tapered leg and a countersink in a board. A few important takeaways: When drawing circles that will become tapers or funnel shapes, it is best to pick an axes to pull your […]

Drawing a helical/spiral shape is the foundation for the next set of videos. Even though there are extensions that will create springs, bolts, and screws for you in the pro version, understanding how to draw these will make you a much better 3d modeler. If you ever come up against a situation where an extension […]

We will use what we learned from drawing the spring but add a second spiral to create a screw this time. When creating the screw tip and driver ends of the screw, there is a lot of geometry packed in a small space. I took my time and really looked to see where all the […]

We will use what we learned from drawing the spring and the screw, but this time we will add inner threads in a nut that will thread onto our bolt. Then adjust the for tolerances. Adjusting for tolerances, as in how tight the nut fits on the bolt, is a deep subject and different for […]

This is the final lesson in our spirals section. We will be using some of the same techniques in the spring, spring, screw, and bolt lessons. But with the flame finial, we are adding an additional twist. Unlike the spring where it spiraled straight up, the flame finial will spiral up and to the center. […]

We are going to put it all together in this video by drawing a machinist’s vice.  I picked this drawing because it has a little bit of everything we have done so far.  It has a few different thread types on screws, as well as different head types.  It has a countersink funnel shape that […]

Since the cutting board was first invented, woodworkers have been selling them.  In this video, we design on the fly a stand to display our cutting boards at craft shows. Key Takeaways One thing that I do when designing something is draw in things that my design will interact with.  We did this in the […]

There are so many different CNC software options out there, from paid to free, that it would not be reasonable to demonstrate them all.  So in this video, I will go through as many different ways I can think of to export your drawings out of SketchUp in several different formats so you can choose […]