topic Re: Please help with the loft tool! in Fusion Design, Validate & Document Forum

Please help with the loft tool!

beetlebasss — Wed, 22 Mar 2023 07:26:10 GMT

Hey all I'm trying to make a part and I'm having issues with the loft tool. In the first picture is my drawing with my planes and sketches drawn, the second picture is how I want the piece to look after it is completed except without the space. I believe my issue is getting the #1 and #2 to connect smoothly. As you can see when I try to loft, what happens is pictured in the 3rd picture, the piece gets distorted. Hopefully this makes sense if not I can clarify more to the best of my ability.

Betreff: Please help with the loft tool!

g-andresen — Wed, 22 Mar 2023 09:31:09 GMT

Hi,

It is not possible to loft hollowed bodies.
The outer profile must be lofted first and then the inner profile in a second loft.
It may be necessary to make an additional sketch for the inner profile.
However, I assume that the "pipe segment" on the left body will cause problems when lofting.

Please share the file.

File > export > save as f3d on local drive > attach it to the post

günther

Re: Please help with the loft tool!

davebYYPCU — Wed, 22 Mar 2023 09:51:04 GMT

You will get reasonable results with surface lofting, you don't have correct geometry for solid loft.

Most obvious result, (may not be correct).

As for the internal shape, you will have to break the inside arc on the right, then loft to the points again, stitch the surface lofts and Boundary fill as cut..

Left this one to you, because the outside result needs confirmation it is correct before proceeding.

Might help.....

Re: Please help with the loft tool!

TheCADWhisperer — Wed, 22 Mar 2023 11:57:58 GMT

@beetlebasss
Can you File>Export your *.f3d file to your local drive and then Attach it here to a Reply?

Model it the same way (more or less) that you would manufacture in the real world.

Attach your file here if you can’t figure it out.

Re: Please help with the loft tool!

beetlebasss — Wed, 22 Mar 2023 18:28:18 GMT

this looks the most accurate the only thing I would say is if it would be possible to extrude the green corner outward so that red corner isn't sharp. I'm also very new to this program, I know the basics but "As for the internal shape, you will have to break the inside arc on the right, then loft to the points again, stitch the surface lofts and Boundary fill as cut.. " this sounds foreign to me.....im sorry.

Re: Please help with the loft tool!

jhackney1972 — Wed, 22 Mar 2023 18:34:01 GMT

You need to attach your MODEL and not just pictures to get help with your model. Please attach the MODEL. If you do not know how to attach your Fusion 360 model follow these easy steps. Open the model in Fusion 360, select the File menu, then Export and save as a F3D or F3Z file to your hard drive. Then use the Attachments section, of a forum post, to attach it.

Re: Please help with the loft tool!

beetlebasss — Wed, 22 Mar 2023 18:43:58 GMT

I guess what I'm trying to do is ask the question and have it answered so I can then go on and do it myself, instead of just posting my project onto the website for anyone to take and do it for me. I just believe that option is lazy when there is a wonderful learning opportunity available. @davebYYPCU seems to have the best idea of what I would like accomplished. 😄

Re: Please help with the loft tool!

jhackney1972 — Wed, 22 Mar 2023 18:49:58 GMT

Part of learning is doing it yourself, I agree, but getting a correct and efficient process is just as important. If someone gives you the process, you should repeat it to learn it for yourself so next time it will be easier. Also, you yourself said in one of you last post said, "that sounds foreign to me" so words and pictures are not helping you.

Re: Please help with the loft tool!

beetlebasss — Wed, 22 Mar 2023 19:00:56 GMT

quick and efficient does not matter to me at the moment as this is a personal project. How am I supposed to learn if I send you the incomplete project and you send me the completed project back? There would still need to be a written out explanation of the steps on how to achieve what I am trying to do so that I may replicate it in the future. I am not trying to be difficult so please don't take it that way.

Re: Please help with the loft tool!

jhackney1972 — Wed, 22 Mar 2023 19:03:28 GMT

Most of my replies, to modeling problems, are accompanied by an video of the process or processes. There are many ways of learning, you need to be more open to them.

Re: Please help with the loft tool!

beetlebasss — Wed, 22 Mar 2023 19:13:09 GMT

With all due respect I am open to different ways of learning and I am well aware which ways do not benefit me. There must always be a degree of self dependency even when asking for help, if not like I said before, its just laziness and pawning your problems off for someone else to fix. Allow me a minute so I can change some parameters to my project and I will send it your way. I did not know you made videos on solutions, that would be extremely helpful.

Re: Please help with the loft tool!

beetlebasss — Wed, 22 Mar 2023 19:21:28 GMT

here it is

Re: Please help with the loft tool!

davebYYPCU — Wed, 22 Mar 2023 19:29:46 GMT

The green corner outwards - the top portion of the object, has to align somewhere,

sure you could take the green edge to the next lower face corner, I think that’s what Fusion tried to do in the mess pic.

As this is my replica, you might edit the pic to show where the green edge has to go.

Will worry about the inside, when the outside is right.

Might help....

Re: Please help with the loft tool!

jhackney1972 — Wed, 22 Mar 2023 22:50:28 GMT

The video is rather long as the process I used, in not hard, just time consuming. I did stop the video in some places where the process was very repetitive. I am not sure the Forum can accept such a long video so I am also adding it to my Dropbox and giving you a link to it here. If you want to keep the video, please download it from the Dropbox site as soon as possible as I have limited space. My model is attached.

(view in My Videos)

If this solves your question, please pick on the "Accept Solution" or ask further questions.

Re: Please help with the loft tool!

davebYYPCU — Thu, 23 Mar 2023 01:20:16 GMT

Much easier with your data.

Why is your origin not in centre of the tube? (Need to make a mirror plane instead)

Blue Lines and white points not recommended.

Not a 3d sketch / patch in sight, in fact I deleted most of your 4th sketch.

(I did not notice the small sliver when I did my mockup.)

Used the 4th and 5th sketches to make the surface loft that are needed. (Do 1 side mirror bodies to save time)

With the surfaces done and stitched, Extrude sketch 3 to the current body 1 face as New Body so we can hide body 1.

Use Boundary fill, and cut the red section out, and add new yellow material in.

Show body 1 and combine it to the new body.

You can Remove the construction bodies from the browser if you wish.

Walk up the timeline, Happy to answer questions.

Might help....

Re: Please help with the loft tool!

TheCADWhisperer — Thu, 23 Mar 2023 12:14:23 GMT

@beetlebasss wrote:
There must always be a degree of self dependency even when asking for help…

@beetlebasss
I would model this very very differently.

@beetlebasss wrote:
... How am I supposed to learn... ...steps on how to achieve what I am trying to do so that I may replicate it in the future.

Do you want to learn the right way?

(The other examples here did not demonstrate the right way - they only demonstrated how to build a house of cards on a foundation of quicksand.)

Re: Please help with the loft tool!

TheCADWhisperer — Thu, 23 Mar 2023 12:36:04 GMT

@beetlebasss

Virtually everything you have done was not done in the most efficient/robust/predictable way to model geometry.

When we walk out to the shop floor to machine a part - the first thing we do is establish a logical Origin (0,0,0) on the manufacturing machine.

The most logical location for your part is the center of the polygon/circle.

Blue lines and white dots (quicksand trap) should keep you awake at night.

Step 1. Start a new file and sketch a Polygon centered at the Origin. Dimension the side-to-side distance. Add a Horizontal Constraint to the bottom line. What do you observe?

If you elect to continue on with this discussion - the instruction will follow the BORN Technique, the most reliable/predictable/robust modeling technique that transfers to any CAD design software.

Re: Please help with the loft tool!

davebYYPCU — Thu, 23 Mar 2023 18:05:21 GMT

Well excuse me. Only thing I didn’t mention was the extruded irregular cut.

Re: Please help with the loft tool!

TheCADWhisperer — Mon, 27 Mar 2023 10:59:04 GMT

@beetlebasss

How are you progressing on this design.

Have you come to the realization that Loft was not the best tool to use (replicating manufacturing process) in creating this geometry?