Sketchup make 2017 to dxf conversion, please help!!

[Steambike]

Hey guys, please help if you can, sorry for asking again!
I have spent a large chunk of time working on designs in "sketchup make 2017" (pro demo version) and cut a few pieces with not bad results (which has been great), I have a fairly good silhouette of a cafe racer I drew from scratch which I'm going to fix up and share (well I like it, my first real attempt:). ).
Yesterday however I guess my demo expired and I can no longer export in dxf format without spending nearly $700 US to upgrade...........(out of the question at this time. I've tried the plug ins (Ruby)they are for older versions of Sketchup too, and the resulting dxf's don't work with sheetcam (if I'm lucky I get a couple of odd lines) I've tried going to Inkscape and exporting as dxf files but have the same (or similar) issues and so far it seems that the conversion files are either on line & / or very expensive........& I don't know if they will work either .......I also tried via one of the vectorizing programs with no better success.
I guess I am not going to be the only one to end up here once others upgrade to Sketchup Make 2017 ( which it appears will be just a matter of time ......) I have been working on this and researching for the last 14 hours trying to salvage my work, and so far all the results are only relevant to older versions of Sketchup........ nothing seems to work:(
Please, if anyone can help me to get my old (and future) skp files into sheetcam (& ultimately Mach3) I would be very grateful.........the alternative right now is to change software for 2d drawing, but I need some freehand capability as well as cad (any suggestions). I was really hoping to learn and stick with one or two programs, but here we go again!!
I'm kinda still hoping that being tired, cranky and now desperate has made me miss something stupid and obvious and simple, feel free to slap me round the head and show me what it is, please!!!:)
Thanks guys

[BanksAg]

I'm not sure if this will help you right now, but do you have the option to export as a PDF? I have SketchUp Pro on my machine at home, and it shows export to pdf as an option (I'm not sure if that option goes away with Make). I have found several times in using Inkscape that it was easier to save the file as a pdf, then open that back up, vectorize it, and go from there. Not as easy as simply exporting, but may be worth a shot.

As a last resort, if you're just trying to salvage files & don't come up with a better work-around, you could change your style to 'Hidden Line' so that you have a completely white background, select 'Top View' so you're looking straight down on your picture, then export as a JPEG, which you could then open in Inkscape and vectorize. Far from ideal, but might work if all else fails.

I have SketchUp Make on several student computers in my classroom, so if I get a chance tomorrow morning I'll hop on one and see if I can help out any.

[Larry83301]

Try using Blender it's a free program that will convert you files to another format such as DXF or DWG.
https://www.blender.org/
Open Source 3D creation. Free to use for any purpose, forever.


Larry

[Steambike]

Thanks for the replies, i have just checked and no I have no option to save as a pdf file from Sketchup, going to start looking into the blender
Option later tonight or tomorrow.......

[Old Iron]

I don't know anything about Sketch Up but, have you tried this plugin
https://www.guitar-list.com/download-so ... dxf-or-stl

[Steambike]

Thanks "Old Iron", to be honest that link is the one that got me started into thinking that Sketchup (alongside Deltacad) was going to be the answer for me (that is why I wasn't worried about the demo licence expiring, just download the plugin and straight back at her, right?:).......as it turns out the plugins only run up to either 2015 or 2016 versions of Sketchup, and I tried those and they don't work with 2017 (more accurately then, I can't get them to work with my copy of 2017, maybe others can, maybe it should work......maybe I could write my own plug in, but I'd have no idea where to start, (I'm a sparky, I could wire one ), I just get junk out whichever way I export files, and I have tried every way they offer.....) nor can I find any indications that anyone is going to make a plugin for 2017, just that the option to export as DXF is one of the "pro-features"...............Tim I'm hoping you might come up with something that I missed and Larry, I am trying to download the Blender option right now I'll try and keep you updated.
Thanks again all!

[BanksAg]

No luck on any workarounds. I didn't realize how locked down SketchUp Make is versus SketchUp Pro. Can you redownload the 2016 version and use that? This is a bummer, but good to know.

[Old Iron]

This may be a goofy question but, do you have a 32-bit computer or a 64-bit

[Steambike]

Running Windows 10-64bit.....,,why?
I'm currently about to try and load an older laptop with Sketchup 2015 or 16, then hopefully I can just leave it there and all me and use the plugin.......I did try reloading 17 onto the original computer, but it found the original and stopped the new demo period:( I'm s ill trying to get Blender lined up too
I'll keep you all updated

Any suggestions on an alternative would be welcome too, I' m running Deltacad /Sketchup/ Sheetcam and finally Mach3

[lockeyone]

Maybe remove 17, install 16, then reload 17. On one of my computers I left the 16 on it and I have access to both.

[acourtjester]

Have you tried to move the computer date back a few months to fake it out into running Sketchup make again

[Tautog13]

Steambike
I think even if you can get an earlier version of SU loaded and working, you will not be able to open your 2017 SU files.
Unless of course you work out a way to save them as earlier versions.

One option I see is "print" to .pdf (not export) if you have that option by either using Adobe Acrobat Pro or a free print driver like cute .pdf or one of several others out there. (Free Adobe Reader may have the "print to" functionality now?)

This will give you a .pdf (vector) file you can open with inscape and do as others have suggested to convert it to a workable file.
(see attached test .pdf to try)

[Old Iron]

Running Windows 10-64bit.....,,why?
I'm currently about to try and load an older laptop with Sketchup 2015 or 16, then hopefully I can just leave it there and all me and use the plugin.......I did try reloading 17 onto the original computer, but it found the original and stopped the new demo period:( I'm s ill trying to get Blender lined up too
I'll keep you all updated

Any suggestions on an alternative would be welcome too, I' m running Deltacad /Sketchup/ Sheetcam and finally Mach3

There's two versions of Sketchup. Just thought you may have loaded the 32-bit version by mistake instead of the 64-bit version and it's acting goofy.

[Steambike]

Update, well kinda!
Ok, having tried several different options I loaded an older laptop with Sketchup 2016, and added in the plugin for file conversion (which SHOULD work when the 30 day free trial is over, but is inactive now, which disturbs me......) I can now save my previous work as Sketchup 2016 files, import them on the other laptop as skp files, and (currently) export them successfully to Sheetcam in DXF format straight from Sketchup (thank-you all so much for the input and advice! ). so the old work is salvageable...............
BUT moving forwards I still don't know if at the end of the 30 day trial period the plugin will "kickin" or if anything I design but don't have exported will end up in the same ugly situation, (obviously I am not going to do anything fancy and unsaved as a test, sorry, but I will do something simple or a copy of something and follow up once I know the result).
in the meantime I have also loaded Draftsight and Deltacad onto the same laptop for evaluation and will make a decision between those two, do you guys have any preferences there or thoughts on which one would suit our needs better? One of the primary reasons for going with Sketchup originally was the option to draw in freehand, which for some things is a great boost, I know in Deltacad I don't have that option.....................this plasma cutting thing is a journey for sure, lots of fun, lots of challenges and lots of headaches, and did I mention, lots of FUN!
Thanks again guys!!!

[tnbndr]

One of the primary reasons for going with Sketchup originally was the option to draw in freehand

Draftsight is very similar to Autocad which I use. I have not used Draftsight but in Autocad there is a command called "sketch" which allows you to draw freehand. You may want to see if Draftsight has similar.
Also your 30 day trial issue can be dealt with in several ways. Generally these timed trials leave something in your registry that prohibits you from just reloading the trial again and again. So you could look in your registry with a program like CC Cleaner and see if you can get rid of any references to Sketchup. Another way , as suggested before is to keep you clock turned back.
Last option is to bite the bullet and pay the $$$ fee and chalk it up to having fun!!!

[Steambike]

Thanks Dennis,
I will look into some of those options for the CC cleaner and turning back the clock if I need to once this 30 days is expired (watch this space), meantime I will work on one of the other Cad packages (I didn't find anything similar to "sketch" in Deltacad, and asked I buddy who uses it quite a bit and he hadn't come across it either) so with that in mind maybe Draftsight is the way to go...............and of course you are correct, I could pay the $$$ and get on with it.............right now though I am trying to get everything working coherently together in my system and maybe even getting the first return on my investment so far without going to the "Minister of Finance" hat in hand for another "$1000 Can. advance" (just kidding!).