Tutorial - Objects for BTB with Sketchup

B

Biggles1212

  • Biggles1212

Hi I've completed a full tutorial that should be comprehensive enough for just about anyone to make objects in Sketchup and use them in BTB for their favorite sim.

I'd appreciate any good suggestions.

It took me a few hours to work all the snags out and there was a lot of great information already here at Race Department.

I've uploaded the tutorial here.

http://forum.racedepartment.com/downloads/btb-library/38/full-objects-sketchup-btb-1805/

If you have any questions post them here or PM me. I'll do my best but I'm no guru at this.

Do enjoy. Thanks
 
Could you send the model to me, i can take a look at it. I don't need to do any tricks like saving to kmz and unzipping, I save as DAE, import it via XPacker and it works everytime..

In the mean time, here are four tutorial videos: http://simtrackipedia.wikidot.com/objects:sketchup-to-btb
Tell me what info is missing and we'll add it. I had problems too importing objects, i figured it out but i can't now remember what the info that i was missing at the time.
 
Could you send the model to me, i can take a look at it. I don't need to do any tricks like saving to kmz and unzipping, I save as DAE, import it via XPacker and it works everytime..

In the mean time, here are four tutorial videos: http://simtrackipedia.wikidot.com/objects:sketchup-to-btb
Tell me what info is missing and we'll add it. I had problems too importing objects, i figured it out but i can't now remember what the info that i was missing at the time.

Are you saying you want the google earth terrain data from sk8?? that wouldn't be too hard.. And I tried saving as dae using sk8 and it said same thing "unhandled exception"

And I do EXACTLY what is in that 3rd video for exporting and then unzipping and TRYING to add the dae to xpacker but it always says "unhandled exception" when I try click add... idk why.

And I'm using google earth data through sketchup to have the mtns. All my touges are mountain roads with over 1,000 ft elevation change start to finish and surrouned by other mtns and a river and I want the scenery to look right and familiar to me. Doing the same with btb would litterally take YEARS to complete hahahaah f that. This is quick and simple and would be fairly easy if it werent for this issue I'm having.
 
As far as I remember, collada from SK8 does not work for xpacks. I have SK8 PRO (I think getting GE terrain is possible only with PRO) - try to export as .3ds. This way you can work some more on mesh in e.g. 3d Max, because GE terrain in Sketchup is not editable.
More: I think you also could try to unlock the object in Sketchup before exporting (options under mouse right button).
 
This is old tutorial, now I working like that: Made model in Sketchup 8, then remove in Edge style - edge. With Entyti info remove duble face textures and save as Sketchup 6, and only after you can export as 4kmz - who used old collada. Any new Sketchup version used new collada file format and can't be used in Xpack...
When I find more free time i will make new tutorial who let except blank textures and others..
 
I don't trust SU materials at all - they have bad mapping for sure when SU applies them to meshes. They are bad at all ;)
It's better to export SU materials as textures (jpg, png, whatever) - to do this - open material window, switch to "In model" group and right click the icons - "export materials" or similar pop-up option you will see. Then make a texture atlas and map again.
Remember to delete some polys before - for example floor - you will never see it (and if you do nothing - you will get that white material also to use in btb - what for?)
Also - check inside for "empty" edges and polys which SU likes to add to make you nervous later :D
 
Yep, never use SU materials, they are bugging a lot. Haven't checked but i bet you have a lot of duplicates in materials. Remember to paint the reverse side of faces with some material already used in the project. That way you can get rid of FrontColour and ForegroundColor from the material list, they are not used in the model, it's just a bug in the SU export. You can use Shift-Click to paint every face at the same time, good thing to do before final export. Floor is something you definitely don't need and good practice is to extend the building below the ground, something like 50cm below is a must. Unless you're putting the building in totally flat surface you need to sink the building in to the ground anyway.
 
Ok. I made a new version of this building. Placed all textures i need into one separate map. Out of this map i imported all textures.
It looks great in SKU7 and SKU6. Export into BTB. Result horrible. Some textures are replaced by textures, that are not even in the separate map. Others are doubled. For instance i have 2 textures from the same wall. I could replace all textures in BTB. So in BTB the building would look like it should be.
Export to rFactor. Throw a bomb on it!! Looks horrible. 1 texture overall.

I don't know. Even when i try to be carefull with names and be clean with working on this building, the result is horrible.
 
SU7_6HH2.jpg


Underlined are the textures that are double. The two textures that are not exported are the grey texture (also used inside the building) and the front window texture.
When i export this into rFactor i get a wall texture on the roof. The grey texture gets replaced with a wall texture also.
The doors getting roof textures which is not used in this building....
 
You can double textures upload as one in Xpack, but I would be like if you make one texture sheet 1024X1024 or 2048X2048 and place on it, all textures from all houses. Yes, it's take more times, but it was much easy for game and others track exporting...
 
Hey,

Sorry to be a bother...but I have read through the thread and spent more time scratching my head than understanding:rolleyes:

I have started using Sketchup to put Pitbuildings and Grandstands into my track...and they look pretty good IMO:D

However, there are a few things that I am having problems with...

I Made a Grandstand and put in some advertisement by making my own material and putting it on one of the panels...however when I exported it to Xpack and checked it in BTB, the advertisement had taken over the floor and roof of the Grandstand...rather than the original materials I had put there.

Also, I remember seeing somewhere that when having multiple Sketchup items, as they call all their textures the same that there was issues with that...but I can't seem to work out how to resolve that.

Thanks Guys...sorry to be soooo noobish:confused:
 
Reverse your faulty faces in Sketchup it self.
If you have a shape, only draw textures on the white faces.
Never on the blue faces, that's a sign the textures will appear are inside out.
If you are pasting textures on blue "inside" faces, the export will make strange random placements of textures.
 

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