ZBrushCentral

3D Printing Questions: Measuring size in ZB and exporting ZB files to Sketchup

ZBrush Usage Questions
#1

Hi all!

I’m into “customizing” 3rd party accessories (i.e. head sculpts and weapons) for collectible figures like 1/6 scale figures and Transformers toys. I started out using Sketchup 8 and bought ZBrush 4R6 to help with organic shapes. I have a few newbie questions to ask:

  1. Is there any way to measure the size of joints and sockets in ZBrush? This is very important, as I need the objects I create in ZBrush to perfectly fit the ball joints of the figure it’s designed for. I couldn’t find anything resembling a measuring tool in ZBrush.

Which leads me to the second question.

  1. I thought of designing all the hard surfaces in Sketchup, and then converting the skp file in Sketchup into obj and importing it into ZBrush in order to add in the organic shapes. That said, I’ve heard that such files tend to get errors and are nigh impossible to edit in ZBrush. If I simply added a subtool that I created in ZB to the sketchup object (i.e., add a human-face subtool made in ZB to a helmeted head made in Sketchup without altering either of them), would that be possible?

  2. Is it feasible to do the opposite, as in converting a file in ZBrush into obj and importing it into Sketchup? The ZB file will not be altered in any way, and only resized and attached to an existing Sketchup object (using the aforementioned example of the human face and the helmet). Will something like this remain watertight and print correctly?

  3. In any case, if, say, I made a 5mm diameter sphere in Sketchup and exported the obj file to ZBrush, would it remain as size-accurate as a 5mm sphere in ZB or would the size be altered the moment I open it in ZB?

I was wondering if I could make a sword handle, joint or socket of a specific size in Sketchup, and export it to ZB as a subtool for size reference. That way I could simply render the blade/head/limb by working from joint itself.

Thanks in advance for any advice!

#2

http://www.zbrushcentral.com/showthread.php?188371-Units-of-measurements

#3

Many thanks for pointing me in the right direction, Doug! After reading that thread, it seems the most popular way is to use transpose lines and calibrate them based off of a size-accurate picture of a grid.

Hopefully I’ll have better luck with importing/exporting obj or stl files between ZB and Sketchup, and be able use Sketchup for resizing and measuring.

As much as I love ZB when it comes to organic sculpting, it’s lack of a convenient “real world” measurement and resizing tool really makes things more difficult for rapid prototyping and 3d printing items than they have to be.

#4

What I do is always start with a mase mesh that is accurately sized. I also import size markers in the form of small cubes at various sizes I need. Then in ZB I can move them about to see how things compare to those sizes.

#5

That’s an awesome idea, Gordon!

Going off of your advice of importing a size-accurate base mesh, I could make a joint or whatever part that needs to be size-accurate in Sketchup, and then import that file in stl or obj form into ZB. I just tried it with a model I rendered in Sketchup, and while the stl file was all “wonky” (parts of the “skin” were missing) when I opened it in ZB, turning it into a polymesh patched up all the parts that were missing skins.

I know it’s kind of a stupid question, but will the imported marker cubes stay in their original sizes if I scaled them? With Sketchup, I usually zoom in and out of a model using the mouse wheel as I work on it, but with ZB, I do zooming with the “scale” button (clicking and holding on “scale” and dragging up or down). Since ZB doesn’t have an apparent measurement tool, I’ve no idea if it’s just zooming in an out of the model or actually resizing it.

#6

I have no idea :slight_smile: Not sure what that button does. I looks like it’s doing the same way as I zoom into an object. That’s, press and hold Alt, then click and left mouse button somewere on the canvas (not on the model), then while dragging the mouse, release the Alt key. You are then zooming/scaling the model (without changing it’s real size). that’s the way I learned it.

#7

Thanks again!

I’ll be using your method from now on, just to be safe. It’s also more convenient to just hold down Alt, left-click and drag, without having to go to the scale button every time.