How to convert PDF to DXF then to SKetchup

A quick video on how to convert a PDF to DXF, the import to Sketchup.

Update:
Here's a DXF import Extension for Sketchup Make 2016! Thanks Kevin Matusik!
http://sketchucation.com/plugin/838-freedfx

Links:
Inkscape https://inkscape.org/en/
Sketchup 7 http://google-sketchup.brothersoft.com/google-sketchup7.0.8657

SketchUcam http://sketchucam.jimdo.com/download/

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Closed Caption:

hello everyone
Todd optional here I've had a lot of
questions for quite a while now i take a
PDF file and convert it over into a
usable file format either get into
Sketchup or take it into another cat
sweet and get it into a cam software to
be able to program for cnc usage so
let's go ahead and we're just going to
start with this this drawing right here
from flight test we have the one of my
very favorite planes the bloody baron
this is the file will start on and I'm
do i'm just showing it here in adobe
acrobat what looks like in Adobe Acrobat
is a PDF the first software we're going
to use is going to be inkscape as you
can see here the file comes in identical
to what you get with adobe acrobat so
just to bring this in yeah
inkscape is great for converting
software it's also a great graphics
suite too but just to bring in a PDF and
convert it pretty easy just file open
select your PDF here's your import
screen it's pretty easy your sheet one
here is just too drunky there's no use
for that
not for doing any type of G cogeneration
for cnc machine but everything else here
is stock nothing's nothing set and it's
just the way everything is right from
word go
we're not gonna worry about sheet1 so
we're gonna go and click this up to
sheet2 as you can see she to gives us
what i have in the background here I'm
not gonna worry about importing it
obviously because i already have it so
i'm gonna click cancel but you click ok
so cancel their now nothing else really
needs to be done with escape
it's quite easy we just go ahead and
file save as right here in the save as
type go ahead and select our dxf file
format as you can see I already have it
saved here
one of the things i always do whenever a
save a sheet out of escape
I always add a sheet number two she one
she tushy three depending upon how many
sheets your drawing actually is this one
here fuselage sheet1
don't worry about saving it because uh I
already have it so i'm going to cancel
you can go ahead and click the Save so
that's it for xscape unless you're gonna
go through obviously and add more sheets
and whatever but that's all you have to
do with inkscape the next piece of
software they were going to use is an
older piece of software i will post some
links in the description for some of
these softwares hear that i'm using I
like to do things on the cheap so I'm
all about the free stuff you know what
I'm saying
so the next software we're going to use
is going to be google sketchup this is
the older versions of sketchup seven and
the reason why i use Sketchup seven
sketchup seven allows you to be able to
import dxf files now if you already paid
for sketchup and you're all good you can
bring in your dxf files you can pretty
much not worried about downloading
sketchup seven but if you cheap like me
and you want to bring in a DXF file into
Sketchup you're going to want to
download sketchup seven so as you see
already have the drawings here it's
quite easy though obviously we're just
going to file import and select your dxf
file you dxf file format and then go
where your dxf files are and you're
pretty much all good to go
just click OK want to go ahead and
select the file and it will go ahead and
bring it in when it imports into
Sketchup it will export it in as a group
I've had it sometimes where it just
comes in as just lines but that's not
very often there it seems like mostly
comes in as a as a group
you're going to want to take this group
and you're going to want to explode it
to go ahead and get to your individual
lines going to take this these lines
here and you're gonna clean it up you
get rid of a lot of a lot of all the
extra information that's in these
drawings when you bring them in
I love the way that the new plans are
for flight tests they do dance
bondholders just some great work really
really does but for doing your cuts and
generate energy code all these little
lines that you see here are just not
needed at all so it should separate the
wing I had head up a page around it and
everything at one point time with the
flight test community and all that but i
have taken it and deleted it just to
show the information that you need to
get rid of a little dashed lines you can
take a moment and turn them into just
solid straight lines get rid of all the
little hashes and hatches and all that
stuff that's there no need for it at all
something I like to do too when I build
flight test planes the little fold lines
that you have along here I'll just keep
my solid lines and bring them into my
cam software when I program but I don't
program these i usually just peel the
paper on the inside the top inside of
the wing and when I go ahead and fold it
over the spire in it gives you a nice
airfoil shape a nice fold and they were
all nice nice flowing air foil on it
without having these lines in there and
I like that better but it's just me
so once you have it in here in sketchup
really this is this is another pretty
easy thing here if you want to use a
more current version of sketchup what
you're going to want to do if you're
going to use sketch you cam which is the
extension add-in for sketchup you're
going to want to take this and you're
going to save it save as you're going to
select your your file whatever you want
to do here
Baron sheet1 to save it as that and you
know you can go ahead click Save i'ma
cancel their to have it go into the more
current version of sketchup which is
sketchup make 2016 when you import an
edge can see here I've already taken the
drawings and had cleaned them up this is
what you want when you want to start
working with your file to start
programming your toolpaths either with
with sketchy cam or if you're going to
export it into another software such as
kambam which kambam is the program that
I like I prefer to use a lot of people
like to use sketch you can it's an
extension that should go to the
extension warehouse you can download or
you can go right here and again i'll
post a link you can download the add-on
for sketch you can write to your google
sketchup your think it's google anymore
but i'll just call to sketchup house
that you can just install it right into
your Sketchup and your current version i
don't have it on mine because i use
kambam but there's a lot of great videos
out there back to my web browser
yeah there's a lot of great videos on
YouTube just type in the sketchy
cantorial there is a lot of good useful
information some good watching and
figuring out how to use sketchy cam to
generate all your g-code if you're going
to take your file like I will and I'll
do it in another video I'll show i'll do
i'll do a specific video just for
cambium just to show how I do things on
my little tricks and everything that I
like to do
I've gotten programming these planes
down to pretty much a science sure
that's really quick I can usually take a
you know even though far five sheep
plane and have it done in probably about
a half hour and ready to cut but when
you bring your your drawing in from the
older version of sketchup you don't want
to go through and clean up all the lines
and everything just like I did here all
solid lines don't worry about the dashed
lines or anything like that unless you
want to use that for specific reference
or something like that i don't really
bother even doing that and i'll explain
in the next video and how to use kambam
but this is what this what you want this
what you're looking for right here it's
pretty easy if you're going to go ahead
and take this and use it into another
another camp program such as sketchy
cameras i was saying you're going to go
ahead and click file
export to dxf now this is also another
ad on that I've found through the
extension warehouse which is exporting
to dxf for stl i use obviously just the
XF because that's what cambium reads
otherwise check out the other videos for
sketchy camp a lot of great information
they're sketchy cams a great tool for
generating energy code if you don't want
to spend a hundred fifty bucks for the
software for kambam it's a great great
tool to use now if you are interested in
messing around with kambam to see how it
works
I believe it has 44 uses something I've
done when i first started with kambam I
had it on my laptop and I just didn't
turn my laptop off i think i used for
probably about a good six or eight
months before i actually purchased the
software and i actually prefer actually
i actually prefer kambam i really like
it i spent the money on and I really
really like it
this couple little things that could be
updated on it but you know hey I'm
nobody right so anyway this is a good
start i hope this gets people pulling in
some files and learning some stuff more
videos to come on how to program the
g-code done and start cutting i also
will do a video on the types of foam
they like to use and the bits that i
like to use i know that's a lot of
information that a lot of people have
also been asking for to as far as speed
feeds and obviously different types of
speed and speeds and feeds for the
different types of foams whether it's
the dollar tree foam or the new water
system foam but hey that's it
if you have any questions just go ahead
and ask some questions down below i'll
get back to you as soon as possible and
dont trick
don't forget to click that like button
down at the bottom alright thanks guys
take care