Sketchup drawings, cut lists, sheet layout

[Jonathan Spool]

Befopre I draw up plans on Sketchup for a living room wall unit/ curio cabinet, and a bedroom closet/dresser unit, I thought I might benefit from a program such as Cabinet Cruncher, as it appears that much of the work is already done for me with the different modules that can be modified exactly to my dimensions. While Cabinet Cruncher will provide me with a visual of what I am building, and a cutlist, there is no provision for grain orientation, nor a utility such as Cutlist 4.0 for optimized sheet layout.

If I simply export the cutlist from Cabinet Cruncher to Cutlist 4.0, the sheet layout won't take into consideration any grain orientation, or will it?
Once the data is exported can I associate grain orientation easily to the parts using Cutlist?

If I'm barking up the wrong tree here to get a program that will take me from a plan to a cutlist to a sheet layout, please let me know.

I'm a nube at this, so I need to keep it relatively simple.
Thanks
Jonathan

[Tom Veatch]

...
If I simply export the cutlist from Cabinet Cruncher to Cutlist 4.0, the sheet layout won't take into consideration any grain orientation, or will it?
Once the data is exported can I associate grain orientation easily to the parts using Cutlist?...

If you can output the cutlist from Cabinet Cruncher in csv (Comma Separated Variables) format, you should be able to import into CL4.0 fairly simply. There are other import formats that CL can read, but csv is the only one I've ever used. You'll have to identify within CL which imported field is associated with which CL variable, but CL makes that easy for you to do. The grain orientation is defined by the material and part definitions within CL and can be set and/or modified after being imported.

I think you're barking up precisely the right tree.

[Chris Padilla]

One piece of advice I can give you for Sketch-Up is to make every individual piece a component: always, always, always! Your life will be much easier if you do this. I learned the hard way...but I learned!

Cabinet Cruncher and Cutlist sound interesting...I may have to check 'em out but I suppose they want greenbacks in exchange for their s/w?!

[Ed Sallee]

Actually.... it's better to make every single piece a group.... then the group that makes a component should be made in to a component.

Groups can be moved outside of the component box and worked on individually..... components remain in tact....

I was struggling with all of it.... but, this, very easy to follow set of tutorials made it all come together for me.... well worth the little bit of time you need to invest http://sketchupforwoodworkers.com/tutorials

[Chris Padilla]

Actually.... it's better to make every single piece a group.... then the group that makes a component should be made in to a component.

Groups can be moved outside of the component box and worked on individually..... components remain in tact....

I was struggling with all of it.... but, this, very easy to follow set of tutorials made it all come together for me.... well worth the little bit of time you need to invest http://sketchupforwoodworkers.com/tutorials

Oh yeah? Well, since I just "forayed" into the component realm of SU, I'm still new at it.

Maybe I'll go through those tutorials before I bombard you with questions about components, groups, components of groups or groups of components! So far, my work in SU has DRAMATICALLY improved by going the component route....

[Ed Sallee]

Indeed..... Components are great. For example - Since I do boxes, I'll use one as an example.

Each piece of the lid can be made a group.... and it is handled much like a component.... However, they can be considered "mini-components"...

Then, when you have all the pieces of the lid...grouped.... make it a component....

Or...on a larger scale - all the pieces of a drawer on a dresser would be individually grouped... then once you get the groups put together in to the drawer - component it! Copy the drawers to however many you need... then if you change one drawer - they all change.

Groups can be handled in a much smaller scale - keeping the integrity of the piece.

I particularly like being able to rename the groups in to the individual pieces....

[Jason Beam]

Actually.... it's better to make every single piece a group.... then the group that makes a component should be made in to a component.

Groups can be moved outside of the component box and worked on individually..... components remain in tact....

I was struggling with all of it.... but, this, very easy to follow set of tutorials made it all come together for me.... well worth the little bit of time you need to invest http://sketchupforwoodworkers.com/tutorials

Not to Hijack this thread, but i disagree. I never use groups for anything. I haven't found any reason to use 'em over compnents, honestly. One of the things i LOVE about components is that every copy of a component I make will see any changes that I make on an individual instance ... it's a feature I make great use of all the time for legs and such ... By mirroring components, it means even Left/Right/Front/Back elements can be maintained.

[Ed Sallee]

I suppose it all boils down to personal preference....

[Jonathan Spool]

Nube question here. Does something being a group or component have any bearing on individual pieces showing being defined in a cut list?
Jonathan

[Jonathan Spool]

Thanks for the excellent link Ed!

[Tom Veatch]

Nube question here. Does something being a group or component have any bearing on individual pieces showing being defined in a cut list?
Jonathan

Yes. There may be other cutlist scripts that run in SU, but the one I'm familiar with, CutlistAndMaterials 3.3, only recognizes defined components as parts and only produces entries in the cutlist for those components selected at the time the plugin is executed.

[Marty Paulus]

Has anyone tried Cutlist 4.0.6? I can't seem to get it to download and was wondering if anyone else has acomplished this?

[Mike Gager]

i think cutlist only works with components

[Tom Veatch]

Has anyone tried Cutlist 4.0.6? I can't seem to get it to download and was wondering if anyone else has acomplished this?

Downloaded from here and installed with no problem.

[Tom Veatch]

i think cutlist only works with components

That is essentially correct. From the preamble inside the Ruby script (edited for formatting and emphasis):

Call script using Plugins menu, and file name *-CutList.cvs is created in the model's folder. It is readable by text editors, and cutlist programs like CutList Plus.

This script uses bounding boxes to ascertain the dimensions of parts within the user selection. Only components, groups and components within components are recorded. Ensure that the component axes are adjusted to the component to give the smallest bounding box to get accurate sizes.

The top level component/s should be aligned to the axes of the model. Volumes are given in board foot.

Any component whose name contains the string Part or part will not be treated as wood for the cutlist but as a hardware part and it will be counted.

Any component that has a material whose name contains the word sheet or Sheet will be treated as sheet material in a separate list. Sheet material is calculated in square feet rather than board feet.