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3D and working planes


bicameral2

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i had to buy VW for a job, and i've been using it for about 2 months. i've run into a few senarios where the working plane and snapping attributes seem to ellude me. here is a prime example:

i'm trying to connect the corner of a tubular steel frame to the roof ridge. i've tried extruding the tube on a basic dimension, and then trimming it down to fit. that doesn't always yeild the best results. so then i got the idea to extrude a path that, in thoery, would connect the two perfectly. here's the rub: i can't figure out how to draw the path. it's come up several times, now, and in a deadline environment, i've just hand draw in the weird angle in the viewport. i'm sick of that. in sketch-up, maya, and 3ds, all i have to do is connect the vertices, or rotate in two dimensions and i'm done.

what am i missing? why can't i get a working plane to align to a weird angle? why do i need a working plane at all? i've read alot about this in the help and here, but i haven't found a solution.

here's a video:

a few hints, at the least, would be great.

thx.

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Instead of a 2d line, try using a NURBS "curve" for the path - just two vertices produces a straight 3d line. Or draw a two vertex 3d polygon. Snap each end in any view with no special working plane. Shift view a bit with flyover tool to verify that the snaps are correct. Pick the tangent option in the EAP dialog. Edit the object and rotate the profile as nec. Trim the length with solid section at each end unless ends buried in the other frame elements are acceptable. Surrounding framing elements may not be big enough to fully trim the ends. Create cutting planes as needed - eg extruded 2d lines or polys.

HTH

-B

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  • 4 weeks later...

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