DWG Import to Max

DarthNater

Anyone here have much experience with DWG importing into Max? When I import a DWG from Illustrator, it has a TON of points. When it's in Illustrator, it has 5 points. Am I missing a setting somewhere? Or, is their anyway to simplify a spline in Max?

Mark Dygert

It might be the interpolation setting? I think it defaults to 6, you can either set it to 0 and it will probably go back to 5 points. Or you can set the verts in the spline to corner so it won't make curves.

DarthNater

Vig wrote: »

It might be the interpolation setting? I think it defaults to 6, you can either set it to 0 and it will probably go back to 5 points. Or you can set the verts in the spline to corner so it won't make curves.

I'm a splines n00b I set the interpolation to 0 and nothing happens. I tried just changing it, then selecting the points and changing it... Nothing... I'll keep playing with it, thanks for the ideas!

nezach

This doesn't address your issue directly, but Max can import .ai files. You have to save them as Illustrator 8 format though.

DarthNater

nezach wrote: »

This doesn't address your issue directly, but Max can import .ai files. You have to save them as Illustrator 8 format though.

Yeah I knew that. I was sent a DWG by the guy that wanted the model. I opened it in AI to see if it really had that many points

I may just use the splines as reference and just model around it vs. trying to make a mesh from the drawings...

cman2k

Is there a reason you need less points? If you are just creating geometry from the spline, then it shouldn't really be a big deal right? If the issue is that you get too many polygons, removing edge-loops should be pretty easy.

What you could also try is deleting all the points except the ones you want to keep (like the 5 control points you have in illustrator), then manually converting those points in bezier-curves. and adjusting to what you want.

I have personally done all of the tricks listed above when in your situation. I don't think there is any way in hell you will get bezier-curves with custom handles to export from illustrator into Max. Would be nice though. Why do 3ds max splines have to suck so much? Illustrator paths are so nice to work with...

DarthNater

That's probably what I'm going to have to do. I just figured I wouldn't have to do that much work when I gave it exactly what I wanted (but it decided to change it ).

I agree though, these spline tools suck...

DarthNater

Well, I had to manually remove the points (they were in clusters, it was odd).

But here is the outcome (after a little sculpting of course). I'm making some instructional videos for fishing techniques :P I think I'm going to set it all up in UDK and make it somewhat interactive. We will see how crazy I get!