Obj's Exported From SketchUp Into Daz Not Showing UP

mechengineer97

I use a lot of SKP models from 3D Warehouse.  I open the SKP with Sketchup and then export them as Obj's to be used in Daz.  Seems nothing I do will make the imported obj show up.  As shown as I click accept nothing happens.  It use to be 90% success rate bringing in the model, but its down less than 1 in 20 making it through.

 

Any Sketchup users here?

Robinson

Is there a node in the scene for the import?  Often I have found .obj imports end up with zero opacity on the shaders.

McGyver

I used to make my own models in SketchUp and export them as DAEs into Blender, then after tweaking whatever need to be tweaked in Blender, I'd export them a OBJs to DAZ or Poser...

The "SketchUp export DAE, open in Blender and export as OBJ" is the most reliable way to assure a model works in DS.

I've found a way better method that involves using Ultimate Unwrap 3D... that's a bit more complicated, but it yeilds better results.

Many warehouse models are usually a mess with reversed faces, weird grouping, crazy scaling, models made way out of world zero, hidden geometry and other trashy mistakes that make most of them too much trouble to fix or use.

I have a bit of knowledge about SU to DS import and I'd be happy to share whatever I can if you are interested.

McGyver

I can't seem to edit my friggin' comment without messing with code, so sorry to make this a separate post...

I'm not clear as to whether the import has failed or the import seems successful, but you just are not seeing the model... two common reasons for this is the model is either scaled hundreds of times larger than the opening scene and you are actually inside the model and it so large it's outside the camera's range (plus if you are inside you are looking at the back of the normals which make them invisible)... and the other is the model is way outside the world center or world zero (X-0.0, Y-0.0, Z-0.0 coordinates)... the camera is set to aim a world center, but your model was made in Timbuktu 1000 miles away, so it's there but so far away you can't see it... that can be compounded by scale in consistency making it worse.

SketchUp models generally end up being really, really big in most other programs.

If you can see that the model has been imported but you don't see it, try shrinking the scale... it might be gigantic...  DS's import scale is confusing (I generally import to Poser and make it a PP2, and export that to DAZ, but that's because their my own models)... you might have to shrink it down by 95% or more.

 

mechengineer97

Thnx for the reply. No nodes show up.

McGyver

Try exporting it as a DAE into Blender and from Blender, out as an OBJ... 

Are you using SketchUp Pro's native OBJ export or a Ruby plugin like TIG's OBJexporter or the one that comes with SketchUV?

Those are good, but they often fail with bad or complicated models... and to be honest SU's native OBJ export really sucks and I stopped using it years ago because it's just unreliable when used with DS or Poser... it seems to work okay with other programs, but with each version of SU, the OBJ export/Import had some other unique weirdness (Then again... that impression was formed when I worked on a Mac, and everything is weird on a Mac).

To avoid me being too wordy or not wordy enough, I hope you don't mind me asking... How familiar with SketchUp are you?... do you model with it or just use it to bring stuff over from 3D Warehouse? 
Like if you are fairly familiar with it, I don't wanna make suggestions you probably already know, and if you don't give a poop about ever using SU for anything other than getting models into DS, then I don't want to bother you with unnecessary info or potentially unfamiliar terminology.