Anyone Use Sketchup For Woodworkers?

[Derek Arita]

Does it work well and is it easy to use? Is it really free and where do I download it? I'm not very tech savvy, so I'm a bit worried that this will overpower my senile, analog brain.
Is Sketchup For Woodworkers different from a regular Sketchup? How so?

[lowell holmes]

Sketchup for Woodworkers is not software. It is a video package produced by Popular Woodworking showing how to use Sketchup for woodworking applications.

It is a good tutorial, but it was made using an older version of Sketchup and may not be current in all applications. Fine Woodworking also has a tutorial and I think Dave Richards had something to do with it. Dave is a good source for how-to knowledge.

[Ken Fitzgerald]

Dave Richards, a fellow Creeker, is a FWW Contributor for Sketchup. He did a series of videos about using Sketchup for woodworking for FWW that are sold there.

He is more than generous with his time here at SMC helping those with Sketchup problems.

Is Sketchup a valuable tool for woodworkers? It can be very valuable for those who take the time to learn to use it. With the aid of Dave's videos, the learning curve is dramatically reduced.

[Grant Wilkinson]

Yes, it really is free. You can download it here

http://www.sketchup.com/

There is also a paid, pro version. I've never needed any more than the free version + some plugins offer.

[Phil Barrett]

I never used any tutorials - just downloaded and started playing with it. Having used a number of CAD and drawing packages before, SU's learning curve was brief for me. It does have some unintuitive aspects but, over all, it is a wonderful tool for creating a design.

[Mike Konobeck]

I am getting better and better at SketchUp. It still amazes me that it has continued to be free. SketchUp for Woodworkers is still relevant. It is a fast tutorial basically. There are some key concepts in there that I have started to master like components vs. groups. You HAVE to learn to use shortcuts and key concepts in how to work in the interface or you will just beat your head against your keyboard trying to learn it. There are a TON of free tutorials and forums like this to ask/answer questions.

I have purchased SketchList 3D Pro. The guy who owns the business, Dave, has offered me a free 1:1 session to get going on the software which is pretty generous. It is not as freeform as SketchUp which may be good for some people but I am going to give it a whirl and see how it works. I am hoping that the cut lists and 3D rendering is a little better than the free SketchUp plug-ins.

[Derek Arita]

Will the download work on MacBook?

[Mark W Pugh]

Will the download work on MacBook?

Works on mine. Only if I could figure out how to REALLY use it. Still pencil to paper for me, for now.

[Lee Reep]

I really like SketchUp. Initially I just picked a fairly simple project to design using SketchUp, and found it to be pretty intuitive. The project was my "MFT-XL". I wanted a permanent workbench in my shop that had an MDF top with 20mm holes, similar to Festool's MFT/3 workbench. I CNC'd the top from a full sheet of MDF, but reduced overall size to 36" X 84". I designed the frame with 2X4 framework and 4X4 legs. Nothing fancy, but it is pretty robust and does the job. It also doubles as the out-feed table for my table saw.

My second design was a rolling cart for a DeWalt planer, and I planned to use my MFT-style workbench as the planer's outfeed table. The best learning experience for me was to model the DeWalt planer. Wow, that took some time. Once I was done I discovered that there are LOTS of 3D models for SketchUp, and I found a highly detailed model of the planer! But, that design effort was well worth it for the added experience I got. I imported the library model into my design for the cart frame. I have been sidelined with other projects and have not built the planer cart yet, but hope to build it before too long.

If anyone is interested to see my bench you could search on MFT-XL, since I believe I used that terminology.

[William Adams]

Please note that if you're not choosing to pay for it, you probably want to use an older version --- the new ``free'' Maker version is license-encumbered and may not be used in a commercial setting or to make things for sale --- see the fine print in the license for the details.

[Peter Quinn]

I haven't built a project without it since I can remember. Don't know about "Sketchup for woodworkers" but I bought the Dave Richard's ebook "Sketchup guide for woodworkers"....best $12 or so dollars I've spent on a book. Really changed the way I use the tool, made a lot of things clear to me that were not from my hunt and peck experimentation and more general sketch up guides I had read. The FWW blog "Design, Click, Build" is also very helpful on more advanced topics, you can keep growing your knowledge of specific advanced techniques with that avenue, also lots of input there from Dave Richards.

Ive used sketch up on both mac and pc.....works great on the Macbook pro I'm on now. I don't like doing anything on a PC, but I found it a bit more clumsy on the PC version, even after finding everything.

A few thoughts. If you don't already know how to draw, a computer won't make it easier. Just different. You will still need to know how to draw or learn, which involves seeing. Editing is much quicker, things can be done very accurately, but you still have to be able to see it and follow it mentally to product complete drawings. I tried to show somebody a few things once that had no drafting experience but lots of computer experience......hard road. Which leads to my next conclusion.....using a computer will not instantly make you a good designer if you are not already. It makes getting designs on paper, or screen, fairly quick and efficient, but it can also be a great distraction at first as learning the software becomes as much the project as designing things to be made from wood. Its a great tool once you get it under your belt, lots of support in the sketch up community, if its your first foray into computer design software its fairly accessible but not fully self explanatory, so do reach out for education to easy the learning curve.

[Jim Barstow]

I've used it for several years. I'm not really rigorous and actually draw individual pieces with mortises and tenons then fit them together. I draw the finished
project to get the dimensions and proportions right. I take the dimensions from the drawings and adjust them for the required joints.

The ROI has been enormous.

[Larry Browning]

I never used any tutorials - just downloaded and started playing with it. Having used a number of CAD and drawing packages before, SU's learning curve was brief for me. It does have some unintuitive aspects but, over all, it is a wonderful tool for creating a design.
Really? This just supports my theory about learning how to use Sketchup being more of a God given talent like playing a musical instrument of playing sports. Either you can do it or you can't. Unfortunately I fall into the can't category. I have seriously tried to learn how to use Sketchup at least twice and have failed both times. A pencil, ruler, and graph paper have always proved to be MUCH faster (like about 5-10 times!) than Sketchup for me.
Actually, I am planning on giving it another try after I retire in 2 years.

[Garth Almgren]

It's not knowledge that anybody is born with, just familiarity with 3D modelling and drawing tools that makes it seem easier for some. Just takes practice for everybody else, and sometimes a good teacher or tutorial.
You might want to check out some of Jay Bates' videos on SketchUp. He has some instructional videos that make it look really easy: http://jayscustomcreations.com/category/sketchup/

[Chris Padilla]

I love love LOVE Sketch-Up!! From drawing up rooms with cabinets in it to figuring out how to best cut up a sheet of plywood, it is easily just as valuable a tool as my table saw!

[Peter Aeschliman]

I've spent many hours with sketchup. I'm 34 years old and grew up with a computer in the house, so I imagine that helps.

My experience has been that it can be really frustrating to use at first. Youtube is a huge huge help. My advice for learning it is to watch a few beginners videos first, try to design something and let yourself get frustrated, then go back to youtube for some intermediate videos. Then play with it. You'll get over a hump and it will become second nature. Just plan to spend 10 hours or so messing with it before you get over that hump.

I use it for projects where precision is important. For example, when designing built-ins and kitchen cabinetry. So far I've built a few built-ins based on designs I did in sketchup. It really helped clarify things that would've otherwise required trial and error. I've also designed our kitchen, but I have yet to embark on that project.

I find sketchup less useful for pieces of free-standing furniture where the outer dimensions of the piece are more flexible. My approach to such pieces is to use pen and graph paper, and tweak dimensions as I build it. This also gives you the freedom to play with your design to work around your material (grain patterns, blemishes, etc). It's my personal view that working off of very precise plans actually makes woodworking less fun.

A middle ground is to do as Jim stated above- don't worry about planning your joinery in sketchup or doing exploded diagrams of every piece- just use it to mess with proportions. That makes a whole lot of sense to me.

To each his own, but it's very much worth giving it a good try and pushing through some of the frustrations to at least learn whether you enjoy it!

[Phil Barrett]

Really? This just supports my theory about learning how to use Sketchup being more of a God given talent like playing a musical instrument of playing sports. Either you can do it or you can't. Unfortunately I fall into the can't category. I have seriously tried to learn how to use Sketchup at least twice and have failed both times. A pencil, ruler, and graph paper have always proved to be MUCH faster (like about 5-10 times!) than Sketchup for me.
Actually, I am planning on giving it another try after I retire in 2 years.

I've been using various drawing and cad programs for more than 30 years. Used CorelDraw well before version 1.0 shipped and DOS based versions of AutoCAD (talk about user hostile...). The concepts are pretty straightforward and SU is pretty good in that regard. Though, the mapping of 3D onto a 2D screen takes a little getting used to. I'd go look for SU beginner tutorials. Once you "get" how to make solids, it should start to click.

[Jim German]

I've used pretty much every professional CAD program out there, from Autocad up to CATIA, and everything in between. I find Sketchup good for, as the name implies, doing sketches. For doing anything really detailed though, I find it very lacking. For that I tend to use Solidworks. I'l sketch something up quickly in Sketchup, and then make a full detailed set of drawings in Solidworks.

[Dave Richards]

To all those who who made compliments, thank you. I'm happy that I've been able to help you learn to use SketchUp.

To those who say SketchUp isn't good for the details, I suppose you are right. But for simple projects like Phillip Lowe's Low Boy (https://flic.kr/p/nxkiJe), Steve Latta's Federal-style Serpentine Sideboard (https://flic.kr/p/fLzGtT) and Michael Fortune's Garden Chair (https://flic.kr/p/nAnpmU) I think it is adequate. It's good enough enough to get all the details a woodworker needs to make images to communicate with a client as well as the shop drawings to work from.

I'm guessing there aren't many of us who could afford a seat of Solidworks to use in our home shop. When I checked on the price back in July I was told the least expensive version was $5000 and there's a $1500 annual subscription fee. A guy could buy some pretty nice machines for the shop for that.

[Phil Barrett]

I dunno, it's not hard to draw complex profiles and such in SU. It's kind of a stretch to call the projects that Dave linked above "simple".

I also have used it to design model airplanes and that is far more exacting than any woodworking project.

[Richard McComas]

Confused. I just downloaded SketchUP Make. It says it's a 30 day free trial. Is this not the free version? Did I download the wrong one?

[Dave Richards]

You got the pro version which, starting with SU2015 has a 30 day trial period. You could get the free version instead or if you've installed the pro version, you might as well use the trial period up and then install the free version. Up to you.

[Grant Wilkinson]

If you want to see what Sketchup free is capable of, look to a Youtube video where a team of university profs and students is modelling Rome as it existed when the Roman empire ruled the world. This thing is unbelievable!

I'll second or third all those who mentioned Dave as the go to guy for woodworkers using Sketchup.

[Mike Manning]

For those with experience using SU, can I create a plywood cut list to show me how to get the most out of my sheets? Does it take grain direction into consideration? I've tried to use it several times. First time, I invested a little more time and felt almost comfortable doing some of the simple things but forgot it all by the second time using it and then got frustrated. Going to give it a third shot. Also wondering how many of you have read the ebook from FWW by Dave Richards SU for Woodworkers - The Basics? Is it worth the $10 (with 25% discount now on FWW.com)?

Thanks!
Mike

[Tim M Tuttle]

For those with experience using SU, can I create a plywood cut list to show me how to get the most out of my sheets? Does it take grain direction into consideration? I've tried to use it several times. First time, I invested a little more time and felt almost comfortable doing some of the simple things but forgot it all by the second time using it and then got frustrated. Going to give it a third shot. Also wondering how many of you have read the ebook from FWW by Dave Richards SU for Woodworkers - The Basics? Is it worth the $10 (with 25% discount now on FWW.com)?

Thanks!
Mike

There is a plugin out there that will generate cut lists but it apparently has quite a few shortcomings. Jay Bates has a lot of good tutorials for SketchUp and walks through making a cut list in a few different videos. His technique is to basically make a copy of the assembly and then break out all of the parts and move them onto sheets/boards. It can be tedious but the results are pretty good. You just have to make sure to allow for the kerf.

[Ken Kortge]

I'm currently reading - well, working through - a book named "Sketchup: A Design Guide for Woodworkers" by Joe Zeh. So far I've finished the initial chapter that introduces and and sets up the software. The very next chapter starts the hands on stuff. I think it was written using a slightly older version of SketchUp Make (the free version), but so far it matches just fine.

So far the book is taking a slow and careful one-step-at-a-time approach toward learning SketchUp.

I got tired of using Excel or PowerPoint to try to draw pictures and am hoping I can use SketchUp. What I see people doing with it is really very impressive. Time will tell.

[Ken Fitzgerald]

I have the FWW CD video by Dave Richards "The Basics". I really like it.

I purchased "Cut List Plus" to use with Sketchup and it works well. It will not only produce drawings laying out the parts on sheet goods but allows you to indicate parts of importance. The program will layout those designated parts of importance so the grain runs through them in the same direction. Cut List plus will also provide cost lists of a project if you provide your parts and their costs.

[Matt Day]

Well I know one person here on SMC who read Dave Richards book, his name is Dave Richards. If he doesn’t comment on this thread (again, being that it’s a 3’s 3 years old), drop him a PM and I’m sure he’ll be happy to help.

[Ken Fitzgerald]

Dave is most generous with his time and assistance!

[Dave Richards]

For those with experience using SU, can I create a plywood cut list to show me how to get the most out of my sheets? Does it take grain direction into consideration?
Thanks!
Mike

Mike,

There are several different extensions that will generate cut lists from your SketchUp model. The one I like is called simply CutList. You can get it from the Extension Warehouse. Access the Warehouse directly in SketchUp and it will automatically install it when you click the button.

CutList does not have a facility for taking grain direction into account. The longest dimension is always assumed to be the length. At least in my experience, there aren't many parts where that is incorrect. There are some other extensions that can generate cut lists. Joe Zeh has one. I played with it for awhile but found it much too complicated for my liking. It does seem to be good for things like kitchen and bathroom cabinets. Although I do some kitchen design and detail the cabinets for plans, the majority of my SketchUp work is more one off stuff and the much simpler CutList works just fine. If you want to see a little demo of it, I did a video you can access here (http://www.finewoodworking.com/2017/10/18/get-cutlist-sketchup-model).

[Mike Manning]

Mike,

There are several different extensions that will generate cut lists from your SketchUp model. The one I like is called simply CutList. You can get it from the Extension Warehouse. Access the Warehouse directly in SketchUp and it will automatically install it when you click the button.

CutList does not have a facility for taking grain direction into account. The longest dimension is always assumed to be the length. At least in my experience, there aren't many parts where that is incorrect. There are some other extensions that can generate cut lists. Joe Zeh has one. I played with it for awhile but found it much too complicated for my liking. It does seem to be good for things like kitchen and bathroom cabinets. Although I do some kitchen design and detail the cabinets for plans, the majority of my SketchUp work is more one off stuff and the much simpler CutList works just fine. If you want to see a little demo of it, I did a video you can access here (http://www.finewoodworking.com/2017/10/18/get-cutlist-sketchup-model).

Thanks Dave. I just ordered the SU for Woodworker's : The Basics from FWW. I hope it isn't TOO basic. Since I've read conflicting information on whether SU will do cutlists I asked. Great to hear that it's possible with an extension. I'll check out the link you provided but first I've got to go thru "The Basics". ;-)

Mike

[Dave Richards]

The DVD assumes you have already learned how to use the basic tools. If you aren't at least familiar with them, you should review the instructional videos from SketchUp.com.

If you have any questions regarding using sketchUp, drop me a PM and I'll help you out.

And thank you.

I'm curious where you might have seen information indicating that SketchUp isn't able to do cutlists.

[Mark Bolton]

I hope it isn't TOO basic. Since I've read conflicting information on whether SU will do cutlists I asked.

We are on a job at the moment and are outputting cutlists with 350-400 items each (multiple lists) from SU. Any information you have that says its not possible is wrong. .CSV to excel is a breeze. It not uncommon in an unsorted kitchen to output lists in the thousands. (we sort ply, by width, materials, etc so never see lists in that quantity).

Dave has bailed me out of a sinking boat more times than I can count.

[Mark Bolton]

\I'm guessing there aren't many of us who could afford a seat of Solidworks to use in our home shop.


My guess is that Solidworks is somewhat like Autocad (today, but moreso of 10 year ago) and is the most pirated software on the planet by users and engineers who sneak or take an unregistered copy home for their personal use. I was given a copy of autocad, with implicit warnings from the engineer who gave it to me, that it was an unlicensed copy.

We are running a 60x100, 10HP, CNC running at .001 and running SUpro daily in conjunction with other CAD/CAM sofware and I would argue that it would/could even suffice for most machining applications. Im not saying its a replacement for Autocad or Fusion for hard core four decimal place, 5 axis work. But the hobby woodworking world seems to on a regular basis think they need to be working to five or six decimal places. Three may bw necessary or "handy" with CNC but if your talking general wood working two decimal places is all thats ever needed.

[William Adams]

Solidworks will license their educational version to U.S. and Canadian veterans on an annual basis for $20/yr. --- https://store.solidworks.com/veteran/default.php?command=Step1

[Dave Richards]

My guess is that Solidworks is somewhat like Autocad (today, but moreso of 10 year ago) and is the most pirated software on the planet by users and engineers who sneak or take an unregistered copy home for their personal use.

I would guess you are right on that. Every woodworker I've ever talked to who uses Solidworks told me they got it from their employer.



But the hobby woodworking world seems to on a regular basis think they need to be working to five or six decimal places. Three may be necessary or "handy" with CNC but if your talking general wood working two decimal places is all thats ever needed.

Indeed!

[Michael Hooper]

Works on mine. Only if I could figure out how to REALLY use it. Still pencil to paper for me, for now.

Go to youtube and look up Jay Bates. Look at his videos, and who way back, you will see he started out teaching Sketchup. For some reason, his teaching made sense to me, and it just clicked. If that works, buy Sketchup for Woodworkers book. It is slightly dated, but covers the details Jay missed.