If you think about it, the only time you need to cut it is if you have a 90 degree edge. Even if you combine the UVs from SG 2 and 3 and leave the UVs for 1 separate, you can still have the entire model have 1 SG except the back if there's mesh there since that is a 90 degree edge. The bake will grab more information that…
cant sg 2 and 3 be combined (sorry. not 1 and 2).. id imagine both are planar in the UVs, so why not just put them together as one in both sg and uv islands.
Awesome. I usually add more sides on parts that are closer to the camera, and where the silhouette doesn't overlap onto the gun. I'm curious, what does the other side of the gun look like? lol. Message me on Skype or msn man! :3
whoops. i made a mistake in my post too sorry. yeah combining sg 2 and 3 will do the trick. typcially i find it helps to keep everything in 1 smoothing group, though if you're bringing the model into an engine it may have issues. but 1 sg is so much easier to work with because you can make your UVs however you want. :D
Since you're really detailing this, and modeling pretty damn accurate, I thought I'd show you some places that could use some adjusting/edits :) (sorry the image is a mess) -The main fixes are stuff like the shape/silhouette of the lower receiver, such as the extension plate on the back. It has a different shape than the…