Fiddlers Green

Keep an eye on here. I am going to attempt to show how I go about designing a model in Rhino3D, from blank screen, to hopefully a free download link at the end.

It's going to be a simple model, not to be offered by FG, and maybe even not an aircraft

First off, we must pick the subject. I'll be back in an hour after browsing my stockpile of 3 views.

Now this is something I've been waiting for .

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Last completed: Star Wars Imperial Star Destroyer
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http://chrissmodels.webs.com

i am ready...go for it murph!!!!!!!!.....

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Laterz
Possm_23
Never say anything you wouldnt think out loud!
Take your time leavin.....but hurry back!!!!
Every tub has to sit on its own bottom!!!!

Okay, so it took a bit longer than an hour. I got a lot of 3-views

Anyways.

Step 1: Pick your nos...I mean subject

Usually you go with your mostest favoritest yet leastest available model.
In this case, I'm going with something easy.

I have randomly selected the Blohm and Voss P.215


Why? Cause.




Okay, okay.


Usually, when designing a model, you have to hunt high and low for pictures, drawings and 3 views, often times begging and pleading with friends, coworkers and complete strangers who might have easy access to said plane in real life to get pictures from any and all angles, so you know what shape to make it.

Sometimes, however, you stumble across a reference source that practically gives you the model. For instance:



This is the important page. Why? Formers. These are very important when trying to make the shape of an aircraft model. without them, you have to basicaly guess at the shape.



Okay, step 2 requires photoshop, or some form of image editing software that uses layers. For those who don't have any, go get it. Now.

Are those from a balsa kit?

It's from a balsa flying rocket kit. I found it online a while ago.

Time for Step 2.

Using your favorite image editing software of choice, you should open your 3-view.

Then, using the selection/lasoo tool, select one of the views, and press control X to cut it out.

Then press Ctrl-N for a new sheet, and ctrl-P to paste.

Then you want to flatten the image.

Flatten is usually under the layers menu

Next, you want to convert the background into an active layer.
Do this by doubleclicking the background image in the layers menu



Now make a new layer, then make the new layer the new background, by selecting "Make new background from layer"


Next, invert the image. In photoshop elements, invert is in the effects menu. in Photoshop Cs3, it is in the image>adjustments menu


It should now look like this. We don't want this though.


go to Opacity in the layers menu, and change it to 50%, then flatten the image again.


Now you're done. Save it as a .BMP using the appropriate name (Top, Side, Front) and rinse and repeat for the remaining angles, 1 at a time.
If you're lucky enough to have section views or formers included, put them on the front view.

The reason we have to make it the gray color is because this is the background color for Rhino3D, and helps the lines show up best.

For step 3, you need Rhino3D, which you can get at www.rhino3d.com
I'm using the free demo version, which only has 25 saves before you're unable to save anymore.

So what do you do when you can't save any more?

Then, I usually draw the model in one step, don't close Rhino until it's done, and pray my PC doesn't crash.

It also helps to ration the saves. I save once I have the model finished to where I like it.

But how do you save it when you cant save it....just to a screen-grab?

hmm... this shall be very useful, wonder if this method can be used in blender. cant use Rhino, since it's not Mac compatible

I haven't figured out how to export the files to photoshop, so Once I get everything unrolled, I do a screengrab, and paste it into Photoshop. Then I trace over everything and head on from there.

Sure it's twice the effort, but if anybody knows a better way, please tell me, pleeeeeease.

Ooookay, on to step 3. Cha-cha-cha

Now we place those 3 views into Rhino

First, when you open it, it gives you a choice of measurements. I always choose small objects= inches.


Then go to View>Background Bitmap>Place


Which opens the open window. Go to the folder you saved the three views in, and select one. I always start with the top view.


Click in the viewport labelled "Top" and drag the box to an appropriate size. It doesn't matter what, we'll fix it later.


Do this for all three views, clicking on the appropriate viewport before doing so. One thing I forgot to mention in step 2, is you always want the side view to be the left side of the plane. so do an image flip if necessary. If done right, you should have this:


Now, we need to get everything lined up and scaled to the same size.
First, decide on what the common point in the model will be. In this instance, I chose the very bottom of the fuselage. On complicated aircraft, I usually use the main wheels, if shown.

Go to View>Background Bitmap>Move, and click on this point. Then drag the image up so the crosshairs rest on the red line. then do it again, but center the picture on the green Line. Or in the case of the side view, have the nose touch the green line.


And you should end up with this:


Now to get the three views to the same size.

Go back to View>Background Bitmap>Scale, and click on one of the views. I usually leave the side view as is, and scale the top view to it. In this case using the fuselage as the reference. Just click on the nose, then the tail, and drag until the crosshairs touch the tail of the side view.


Rinse and repeat for the other view, this time using the wing of the front view to resize the front view.


And you should end up with this.


At this point, you want to use a save, so you don't lose the file.

And we're done with Step 3. Step 4 deals with actual drawing. On to the fun stuff

there goes my stored brain power.....i been drained....

_________________
Laterz
Possm_23
Never say anything you wouldnt think out loud!
Take your time leavin.....but hurry back!!!!
Every tub has to sit on its own bottom!!!!

Excellent and informative tutorial! It answers a lot of questions. I'm hoping that there is going to be more to come in the future. Do you know of any design software that these techniques are transferrable to, or easily adapted?

"A helicopter doesn't fly - it beats the air into submission." My instructor at Ft. Rucker, Alabama