Surface Modeling 101

** skip the countdown 3:11 **
In this live stream, Jason will explain the differences between solid modeling and surface modeling. He'll cover when to use solid modeling and when to use surface modeling. He'll also cover the basics of how to use the surface modeling tools. If you are new to surface modeling, this live stream is for you!
If you would like to continue your learning on more advanced surface modeling, click here: • 360 LIVE: Intermediate...
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This Live Stream was created by Jason Lichtman

[@abdelrahmanmohamed5691]

I can't thankyou enough for this tutorial. It was very valuable in helping me understand how surface modelling works!!!!

[@AthanCondax]

What an amazing tutorial. An hour and a half just flew by. I've been slowly dipping my toes in the world of surface modeling after much hesitation due to the perceived complexity of it. These tutorials presented by the Fusion 360 team are filled with valuable tips, great practices and strategies.

[@Hairing]

What a great video explaining the power of combining the Solid and Surface editing tools... I stuck to solid before, but this makes me more interested in the Surface modelling.

[@easyriderj]

So glad I piqued your interest. I very much hope you spend some time learning how to surface model. There are so many useful tools in there. Thank you for watching!

[@furkankaplanoglu3858]

It was an amaizing tutorial as you mentioned in the begining I always thought that surface modelling is so complex, confusing but now I can see that every steps requires only 4-5 tool.

[@easyriderj]

Thank you for your support Furkan!

[@isaiahw6550]

Incredible tutorial! Very easy to follow along, and very informative.

[@lurkworkz3989]

Thumbs up! Lots of good info followed by explanation and examples. Please make more of these videos!!!

[@easyriderj]

Will do!

[@2danshepherd]

Extremely thorough and helpful Jason. Thanks.

[@easyriderj]

Thank you! I very much appreciate your support.

[@andreydoichinov1683]

Jason is the best teacher ever. He can teach you everything. It is something in his voice and the way he explains the stuff.

[@easyriderj]

Thank you Andrey!

[@vitymp007]

This is gold for manufacturing process. Thanks

[@adskFusion]

Glad you'll put Jason's knowledge to good use! Cheers!

[@adamantportraits]

Thank you Jason, making a vacuum forming mould is something I've been really intent on achieving! Surfacing is definitely the way to go with it! Just to let you know that since I know how to do that now, I will be going ahead and purchasing a year of Fusion 360 for our development at Pyramid Plastics UK. Thank you again! :)

[@adskFusion]

Pyramid Plastics, this is Jason. Glad to hear you are officially joining the Fusion 360 community. Welcome!

[@tomc6791]

I have been involved with Autodesk software for years at CAD Technical LLC, I must say Jason is appreciated!

[@easyriderj]

Thank you Tom!

[@danballarin]

Thank you! This "Clark Kent" guy was really clear and informative! I learned a lot!

[@dbruh5829]

Another fantastic info filled webinar. Thank you!

[@adskFusion]

Thanks Dave!

[@easyriderj]

Thank you Dave!

[@terrymueller1041]

My kind of tutorial! Great, clear speaking voice, good pace. Thanks!

[@easyriderj]

Thank you for your kind words.

[@87osvald]

@@easyriderj are you going to have some tutorials again anytime soon? Your tutorials are Great!

[@jasonlichtman2064]

@@87osvald I'm glad you enjoy my live streams! I was actually thinking of doing a more advanced surface modeling live stream. Right now, I'm looking for good data sets to use.

[@87osvald]

@@jasonlichtman2064 yes please! 🤩

[@americorosales2085]

thanks Jason great lessons I learned a lot

[@twm4259]

I have created and presented a significant amount of technical training in my career and even won an award or two for it. I can say that that Jason is absolutely excellent! More please...

[@easyriderj]

Thank you so much for your kind words TW! I appreciate it very much. More to come!

[@adskFusion]

What a fantastic reply! Thank you much, and I see Jason's already responded.

[@F3f33f]

He's really good at explaining things. Thanks a lot !

[@alejandroperez5368]

He's gifted with high teaching skills.

[@shaikabdurrakib7993]

Very helpful tutorial, thanks dear.

[@stevesilva6478]

Fantastic presentation. Well explained and very informative.

[@adskFusion]

Thanks much, Steve!

[@trinaryan10000]

Best Fusion 360 instructor ever!

[@tomeikawilliams9742]

This is the best tutorial I've seen! Thanks

[@easyriderj]

Thank you for your support Tomeika!

[@beaugalbraith3242]

Super awesome presentation, thank you.

[@rkmilam1969]

Wow - a wonder investment of time if you need a overall intro with detail to Fusion360 Surfacing. Equally impressive was a 84 minute tutorial in one take! Well done Jason!

[@easyriderj]

Thank you Ken!

[@123prenyvkmg]

You are making me crazy with the capabilities of the software. it is unbelievable.

[@easyriderj]

Sorry not sorry. Joking of course! Fusion 360 can do a lot. You just need to learn how to use the tools that are available.

[@gorto1127]

I have learnt quite a lot, thanks for a great video.

[@easyriderj]

Thank you for your support Gordon!

[@hans6458]

Great Tutorial. By the way.. Is there actually a short key for isolate / unisolate the active model?

[@kavorka8855]

WOW! I learnt sooooooooooo much! Thank you very much!

[@easyriderj]

You put a smile on my face. Thank you

[@jutto64]

Thanks Jason, enlightening as always. My future designs will no doubt exhibit lots of hybrid vigour :)

[@adskFusion]

Thanks much, Justin! Long time no hear...hope 2020 is off to a fantastic start!

[@easyriderj]

Glad you liked the video Justin. Great to see you again! Thank you for your continued support

[@ikbo]

Excellent overview! Would be great to see a project from start to finish which heavily uses surface modeling especially advanced techniques.

[@adskFusion]

Yeah, there's definitely value in that, BUT at the same time I think in forcing surfacing from start to finish would overlook the importance of hybrid design...which is THE most efficient.

[@adskFusion]

That said, we'll make sure Jason sees this feedback! At the end of the day, it's up to him to determine what to show. Cheers!

[@ikbo]

@@adskFusion I actually meant a project that used hybrid approach with heavy surfacing techniques. Like a car or a bike in the example.

[@adskFusion]

Got it! Thanks for the clarification! Sending Jasons way!

[@aokimade]

Thank you, this is an awesome tutorial.

[@easyriderj]

Thank you for your support!

[@varghesevg]

Great webinar.. Learned a lot. Thanks..

[@adskFusion]

Thanks much!

[@AriD2385]

Super helpful. Thanks!

[@dal2888859]

Great tutorial! Ive taken many notes. One problem im having is when i convert my solid body into a surface via unstitch, then back to a sold via stitch, i am unable to modify the edges through Edit Feature. Does the original sketch have to be extruded in surfaces in order to have control over the edge connection method (connected, tangent, curvature)? Thanks again, fantastic lesson!

[@osirismachining6994]

Great teacher!

[@berniewasserman265]

Great video. Learned an awful lot. Thank you.

[@easyriderj]

Thank you Bernie!

[@adskFusion]

Thanks Bernie!

[@JayRussellDuramax]

I'd really like to see the Trim tool be set up like the Combine command. That way you could specify multiple Tools, multiple Targets, and then it would highlight all of the areas that can be trimmed for the user to select/de-select on-demand. The way the tool works now has given me a lot of trouble in some recent surface modeling - even to the point where I'll use a combo of Split-Surface and Delete Face as a workaround. Surface modeling is still super powerful, though! Thank you guys for these awesome videos! Also, it would be really slick if there was a command in Fusion that could replace Splines with Arcs - sort of like how the Smoothing function works in the CAM workspace. When I was surface modeling, I had a lot of issues with Arcs becoming Splines when I projected faces and edges into a sketch.

[@adskFusion]

Jay, this is Jason. I agree with all of your feedback 100% Thank you for taking the time to put it into words. I will get this feedback to our product management team!

[@JayRussellDuramax]

@@adskFusion Thank you for replying, Jason! The way you all consider user input from something as small as KZbin comments really shows your commitment to making the best software possible! Thank you again for all of your videos! You guys are awesome!

[@jamesthompson4062]

Thanks Jason great tutorial

[@easyriderj]

Thank you for your support James!

[@edkeefe]

Excellent stuff👍

[@russskinner5715]

Excellent video. Many thanks.

[@easyriderj]

Thank you for your support Russ!

[@adskFusion]

Thanks Russ! This was a very popular subject covered by one our best instructors!

[@eshankid4045]

i cant find mini tool bar like yours when extrude appears so there aren't any options like chaining .

[@LeicaCat]

This was EXCELLENT.

[@easyriderj]

Thank you!

[@maxhugen]

BTW, when you Thicken (30:56), you may want or need to use Modify > Reverse Normal, so that Thicken works in the required direction for each of the different Faces.

[@Auday365]

Very Informative video, thank you very much

[@easyriderj]

Thank you for your support Auday!

[@adskFusion]

Thanks Auday! Long time no see! Hope all's well!

[@timwilliams632]

Thanks. Why not hit A to change the Appearance of the Carbon Fiber part ~59 minutes (where it crashes) so the Fillets are easily seen (then CTRL-5 or CTRL-6 to get edges displayed) and eliminate the fillets. If you click on them while in SOLID tab, Fusion can usually solve to square the edges when removing the fillets (eliminate "rounds"/fillets) if all the adjacent ones are also selected (bits on the corners - I know you know this, just explaining in full for the person reading the comment who may not). Thanks, need more detailed surfacing tricks, especially relate to reverse engineering parts. Also ~1:07:00 - like that intersection trick - thanks... also you can draw a 3 point circle on it and get immediate feedback without making a tangent constraint or using it as a driven dimension or swapping to construction mode on the line, right?

[@elineuman4255]

excellent tutorial. a question: I am trying to patch four vertical wall surfaces with tops cut by curves (exactly like you did) but I repeatedly get tangential connection no matter what I select. any Idea? thanks

[@easyriderj]

So sorry, but I would need to see a screenshot at the very least

[@msasd741]

Great tutorial for Surface Modelling basics, but what bothers me is that the weird top shape on the sample cube is made as a patch. I've learned from another video on this channel that as long as an area has 4 edges, loft is the optimal way of creating a surface over it due to the difference between how each feature forms the surface. I tried both ways myself and noticed some differences in surface shape, and bigger differences in the surface proerties with UV Diagnostic Texture.

[@DaddyScribbles]

How do I get a Fusion T-Shirt! Loved the tut

[@carpadani6766]

Thank you very much man

[@tdtrecordsmusic]

Really cool tut . thnx ! fundamentals & adv topics = coo

[@easyriderj]

Thank you for your support!

[@TheMetallerik]

About that hexagon brick. You can do it way faster by using loft. Hexagon sketch, extrude, then sketch in the middle with the point and cut the top with loft from the top face to the point. That's a sketch, extrude, sketch and loft. 4 operations, equal control over the height of the middle point. Anyway, a good tutorial. Thank you!

[@adskFusion]

More than one way to skin a cat! We dig your solution, BUT, the problem is it wouldn't showcase surfacing! hah

[@easyriderj]

So many ways to do things. Just trying to show a quick and easy benefit of surface modeling. You are correct though!

[@rockapedra1130]

Excellent tutorial!

[@adskFusion]

Thanks much!

[@easyriderj]

Thank you for your support Andre!

[@johndraper123]

excellent Information and presentation.

[@easyriderj]

Thank you!

[@picosdrivethru]

at 1:06:38 why does the measure tool show a length of 2.068 ... what is it measuring if not your selection based on the intersection? When you create a proper arc on the same exact line segment it comes out to 2.00 mm.. could you explain why they are two different values even though they are measuring the same exact selection (though one is an arc and one is a spline segment)?

[@picosdrivethru]

its so curiously odd that with an exact tangent constraint one is 2.068 and one is 2.00 mm :)

[@muhammadayyan4256]

i am veryy happy of your channel nice product

[@adskFusion]

We agree! Thanks (again!)

[@majdiqubabi]

thank you this is very amaizing

[@easyriderj]

Thank you for your support Majdi!

[@TheIronHeadRat]

Thank you

[@kennethmidttun6190]

Is it possible to dimension an iso drawing?

[@BlaiseBarrette]

Hi Jason, this may be for the purpose of the video but I see you a couple of time right clicking and selecting “Find in browser”, than right clicking on the component in the browser to activate and isolate. A major time saver is to double click the component in the 3D environment to select it and then, completely skipping the browser part, right click again to activate and isolate. Once done, double click and right click again to unisolate. It works so well that I hardly use the browser anymore! I love your content! Keep up the great work! Working with large assemblies could be a great topic for a future video. I use reference sketches to breakup large assemblies and make it more manageable but there may be other techniques ? Thank you again! - Blaise

[@adskFusion]

Nice! Another great suggestion Blaise! I'll make sure Jason sees this!

[@easyriderj]

Love it! That's how I'm going to do it from now on. Thank you Blaise!

[@easyriderj]

Blaise, I do this on purpose. If you double click the body and isolate it, you are isolating the body itself. If you find the body in the browser, you can choose to isolate the body OR the component. If there is only one component, it doesn’t really matter. When there are multiple bodies in the component, there is a difference. I use the same technique regardless. Habit. Your feedback is correct. Thank you for taking the time to share it. And thank you for watching!

[@GeoffreyGifford]

Hello - I'm doing the patch exercise around 39.00 - I'm following the steps carefully but when I patch the curved shape I get and error > SurfacePatch3>Compute Failed > Modelling Error: Can't create patch toolbody, please check the inputs. I'm a sculptor and these lofted surfaces are just what I'm after - but I'm new to CAD. What can I be doing wrong? Could point me in the right direction?

[@easyriderj]

Are you making the same shape as in my video or are you trying to do something similar, but with a totally different shape?

[@GeoffreyGifford]

@@easyriderj Hi Jason, Thank you so much for replying. I first tried with a similar shape, but I got the error. So I started again and followed your process exactly step-by-step with the same shape and I still got the error. Other than that strange problem the tutorial was really helpful. I've watched it several times and I've been able to implement the techniques in my work. I really like your presentation style. Well done and thank you!

[@alejandroperez5368]

46:15 actually no, what I first thought about was creating a triangular prism. Use the draft tool to get the right slope and then use the circular pattern tool XD

[@j.p.9522]

I 💓 Autodesk.

[@leade55]

excellent tutorial.i ask how i can create this mudguard part?

[@easyriderj]

I suppose that will need it's own tutorial. Will consider making one

[@ianpendlebury3704]

Very fluid and informative presentation. Thanks.

[@adskFusion]

I concur!

[@easyriderj]

Thank you Ian. I very much appreciate your support!

[@alexandergolubev6358]

thank you

[@shemnegahdar8266]

Some kids always saying what math is good for, for example. Until some teachers prove them the practicality of the math. The same here, you chose to show us what is the practicality of surface modeling. Thanks

[@adskFusion]

Excellent comparison! Thanks much!

[@easyriderj]

It is my pleasure Shem. Glad you enjoyed the video and that it resonated with you. Thank you for your support!

[@MrSimrad]

Joints in fusion is now different, can you show between two faces

[@bigfilsing]

appreciate you leaving in "the crash" @ 56:39 . I guess the cost of all that power is the patience needed when Fusion stalls ! Fortunately i was still smiling from the " im going to show my body" @ 49:17 It wont be long before the YT thought police flag that :-)

[@adskFusion]

The unfortunate thing is Fusion is less stable when live streaming due to the immense load that puts on the system. We're exploring using an external machine to assist with this, but it adds another layer of complexity.

[@easyriderj]

If only I had the patience to wait for Fusion to finish thinking. Live streams don’t leave much room for that. So, I used CTRL-ALT-DELETE and crashed it on purpose so we could move on.

[@bigfilsing]

@@easyriderj It nearly always gets there in the end and its definitely getting better over the years. i think its the never knowing how long it will take that's the most frustrating. Its some how comforting to see others suffering the same issues & frustration.

[@Kuechmeister]

Good Video

[@davidgoff5883]

It can be carbon fibre and vacuum moulded

[@MrCoffeypaul]

You can accomplish this with solids? (Phones Einstein). Another 'Jaw Dropper' by Fusion. Very clever workaround for dimensioning fillets!

[@adskFusion]

Thanks Paul!

[@picosdrivethru]

At 1:07:50.... I have a question... if the arc is snapped perfectly, then how come the original spline curve is not considered an arc?

[@adskFusion]

Great question...I think splines are basically a series of tangent arcs, so to speak.

[@easyriderj]

PicosDriveThru, my understanding is that the reason is mathematical. The match behind the vector itself doesn't register in Fusion 360 as being the correct math for an arc. So, it doesn't see it as one. The best example of this is a circle. If you export a circle from Adobe Illustrator into Fusion 360, Fusion doesn't see it as a circle. Seems odd at first. After all, a circle should be a circle. But, if you look at that circle in Illustrator, you'll see that it is actually a spline with handles at the top, right side, left side and bottom. You can even warp it funny by dragging any of those handles. Anyway, it is clearly not a circle. It is actually a spline that LOOKS like a circle. It all comes down to the math... Hope that helps!

[@picosdrivethru]

@@easyriderj Pretty cool, good to know, thanks Jason!

[@SamHocking]

Top banana this!

[@erniewallbanger882]

Why the second screen? It blocks the contents of subjected to the tutorial!

[@adskFusion]

Jason does what Jason wants. Some presenters like to add that additional personality with the inset image, while others prefer showing more Fusion UI. I'll pass along this feedback though! Thanks Ernie!

[@easyriderj]

Thank you for your feedback Ernie. I choose to display to the webcam in the corner because I believe it provides context to what you see on the screen. It allows the viewer to see my hands if I am describing something. Also, I think it makes the video more personal. I understand that it sometimes blocks things on the screen. I try my best to avoid that, but it happens sometimes. Sorry for that. I wish KZbin had a toggle button that would let you choose to turn it on/off as desired.

[@tonytucker8651]

Can you upload the file you used in the webinar?

[@adskFusion]

Which one? The moto? If so, we did make that in house, but we're unsure if it's something we're able to share. If you're talking about another file, just let me know which one and I can ask Jason.

[@tonytucker8651]

Autodesk Fusion 360 Thanks for responding. Yes, the bike. I have been looking for a project and that would be perfect. Something similar would work as well.

[@easyriderj]

I was able to get approval to put the file online. Here you go: a360.co/30te8GO Credit for making the file itself: Israel del Toro

[@Marduk135]

How do you move so smoothly around the model?

[@louisfechoz]

probably using a Space Mouse

[@easyriderj]

Space Mouse from 3D Connexion

[@onecarwood]

I tend not to use it exactly for the reasons you said!

[@easyriderj]

You going to give it a try now?

[@adskFusion]

I wanna give it a try now!

[@GeryS.]

Nice crash! Unfortunately this happens WAY too often for me! There is still a lot of stability issues in fusion!

[@adskFusion]

Hey Gery, I'm not going to pretend like Fusion never crashes, BUT what you need to realize is that doing livestreams puts an incredible load on a computer...and that will make it more unstable during these streams. We SHOULD get dedicated rigs to take that load off of our main systems, but we're not there yet.

[@GeryS.]

@@adskFusion Yes it's load related, i know! But there has to be something like an error (cannot calculate so many operation -> canceled) and not completely unresponsive. I don't do live streams, i have always only fusion open when used and it crashed a lot when doing complicated operations. Just saying that there is much space for improvement!

[@adskFusion]

We're always looking to improve...and stability is just one of many priorities. Thanks for the response!

[@easyriderj]

I’ll admit that I’ve had Fusion crash on my before, but in this case I crashed it on purpose. If you go back and re-watch that bit, you’ll hear me say that if Fusion doesn’t finish calculating soon, I’m going to crash it on purpose. I opened the task manager and forced quit Fusion. Then, restarted. Live streams don’t allow a lot of time for waiting and I was impatient.

[@allanrobertson145]

yo yo - do a udemy course because your clear speaking English is good and Fushion 360 is in demand - please

[@easyriderj]

Allan, wouldn't you rather watch me on KZbin for free?

[@steevesmith1573]

How come there is no 102?

[@easyriderj]

Coming within the next month

[@adrianpaligar2026]

"can't patch toolbody. Check inputs"

[@easyriderj]

Adrian, that error is specific to your part or file. Would need to know more about your file to know why you are getting that error

[@adrianpaligar2026]

@@easyriderj Yes sir, I would definitely appreciate that.