need some help with google sketchup. If anyone can help me that would be great! I have been trying to make some 3d models of different robot designs however I am new to this and cant figure out how to trim a model that I downloaded. I downloaded a c-channel to use. If anyone could help me out it would be greatly appreciated.
Trim the part? Like cutting it?
Right-click on the part and keep clicking âEdit componentâ or âEdit groupâ until that option isnât available. Now you can just edit it like any other part. To âcutâ it, use your preferred method (i.e. push until offset = 0, or delete all faces and lines, etc.).
IMHO, Sketchup is good for prelim design, but I wouldnât really want to design the whole robot in it, but thatâs just my opinion.
//Andrew
P.S. If anyone with a Pro version of Sketchup could create a dynamic component that could expand with the scaling of the part, that would be GREAT! 
ya i wouldnât really want to do my whole robot either on it however I donât have access to any other cadding software soâŚ
I would look into autodesk inventor, its simple and runs on ( most) computers pretty easily. We use it on our frc ftc and vex team. It gas a simple ui and its easy to learn. Here is the website to download it from.
Enjoy
-andrew
what as coincidence! I just found that this morning:p
Witch version should I use? Pro or Publisher?
You want to download Autodesk Inventor Professional.
Thanks for the help guys
i guess this is irrelevant now, but you can right click, explode
and then draw a line where you want to cut it and then delete the unwanted part, and right click regroup it
i started on sketchup and built my whole robot on there, and then went onto inventor. in my opinion i think you should start on sketchup because it just got me familiar with 3d designing, and then work your way up to inventor. i guess it doesnt realyly matter, but that is jsut my opinion. inventor will be pretty hard though, unless someone teaches it to you.
Wait, is autodesk inventor professional a trial or seriously a free download?
it is a free download for a student. if you are a registered student (that is free!) it is free of charge. you can not use it commercially i believe though.
You for sure canât use it commercailly ( there are work arounds) but my job uses inventor so I had to get a full version to work. One thing is for sure the lisence is stuck to my computer so I have to format my hard drive and upgrade one of these days to be able to work from home ( been on vacation recently)
In response to the order if what you should start with.
I started in inventor 2008 I believe maybe 2009 not sure. But my computer at the time couldnt run inventor so I used sketch up and hated it ( but thatâs my opinion) so I would reccomend starting in inventor right out the gate. This way inventor is not so overwelhming when you start on it or another program like it.
But thatâs my .02 cents
- Andrew