@tatertots I was planning on going through the weekly hard surface modeling challenge from 2014 (though I'm no where near prepared and instead decided to first go through all of Frank's detailed posts here). What you talk about with N-Gons and bevels to create the topology and join them up, I'm getting a good understand of…
@MKO It's likely the current smoothing artifacts are caused by a combination of factors: extruding directly off of the existing cylinder edge segments and the extra edge loops that run down into the corners. Before trying to resolve the issue there's a few things that are worth considering: * Will the object ever be viewed…
@Elarionus There's subtle and not so subtle differences between each manufacturer's designs. Some of the slight variations are down to things like how the blank was created, what tooling was used and how the order of operations was setup. The more obvious variations are usually down to aesthetic or functional design…
@ArcticTauntaun That's understandable: the reality is it's more contextual than absolute. The key is learning when it's ok and when it's not. Sometimes it even comes down to something as simple as budget and object scale. Low budget, small stuff can't be polished to the Nth degree if you plan to make money off it. Using…
@perna That's totally fair to go for such control, especially when aiming for machined edges. However what's stopping you from combining this with OpenSubdiv? They don't appear mutually exclusive to me, and I already work with both depending on how I want to produce my edges. As long as you know where to put the topology…
@SignalFlare07 Welcome to Polycount. Consider checking out the forum information and introduction thread. This reply is a bit late but you're on the right track. Try to match the segments of the intersecting shapes and their support loops with the existing geometry of the underlying curvature. This will help prevent…
I just can't understand - it seems you dismiss other methods as wrong, and pick up on silly things like Hurr durr, of course I collapse Subd, how else could I deliver 200 MB files?? You offend me sir! You're arguing, I'm arguing! :poly122: But anyway, I don't think you can simply follow some rules about using the stack and…
@izmuze The short answer is: the vertical support loops are causing pinching where they meet the curve of the leading edge of the wing. Terminate these support loops closer to triangular notch, delete the remainder of the loop and leave the resulting triangles near the corner of the notch. Here's a break down of this…
I believe that thinking in terms of how subdivison surfaces work fundamentally will help you both in this particular case and in the future, when you'll be facing similar issues. It helps me a lot to understand that, anyhow. Let's take a closer look at your geometry and try to think of what actually happens when you switch…
Outside of specific project requirements, stock 3D certification programs and technical edge cases, there really isn't anything wrong with using triangles and n-gons in subdivision modeling. Flat surfaces are arguably the least effected by messy topology. As long as the corners are supported and the surfaces are co-planar…