A way to design a gear

[MadJik]

This tutorial is available as a PDF. Click here to view or download it

A way to design a gear

 

Note : Since this tuto was published, there is a plugin for that, which could reduce number of steps.

 

Anyhow this tutorial is a good training and shows you some tips with paint.net...

 

Introduction:

You could find in the tuto below how to finish some gears/cog and how to give them

some chrome aspect.

Make some gears/cogs (welshblue) http://forums.getpaint.net/index.php?showtopic=15104

Easy chrome (Ash) http://forums.getpaint.net/index.php?showtopic=12440

Gold metal (Sarkut) http://forums.getpaint.net/index.php?showtopic=20201

 

My examples:

What I'm going to show you is a way to create some shapes of gears only.

 

If you want something like this you'll have to go on with the other tutorials above...

 

Needed plugins:

AA's Assistant (in dpy's pack)

Kaleidoscope

 

My tutorial:

Follow the instructions in the images and in the text.

For this tutorial I've set the brushwidth to 4, but you could let it to 2...

01.

As often, bigger images will give better quality after resizing to needed size...

 

02.

 

03.

(you could also draw a circle anywhere on the area and use the align effect to move

it to the center.)

 

04.

 

05.

Instead ellipse you could use a triangle.

 

06.

 

07.

Menu Effects/Distort, kaleidoscope,

change the quantity and set the reflective mode to normal.

 

08. The result:

 

09.

(this could have been done earlier, between step 3 and 4!)

 

10.

 

11.

 

12.

Menu Effects/Noise, Median, change the radius to (about) 33.

 

13.

Menu Effects/Object, AA's Assistant.

 

14.

 

-------------------

  As you've done a lot of work til here, it's a good idea to save your work now (if it isn't done yet).

-------------------

 

15.

(you could also draw each circles anywhere on the area and use the align effect

to move it to the center. in this case use a layer per circle and merge them after

the aligns are done)

 

16.

(now you can't use the align effect!)

 

17.

 

18.

Menu Effects/Distort, kaleidoscope,

change the quantity and set the reflective mode to normal.

 

19. The result:

 

20.

 

21.

 

22.

 

23.

Menu Effects/Noise, Median, use the previous settings (or test with other values!).

 

24.

Menu Effects/Object, AA's Assistant.

 

25. The result:

 

 

End of tutorial

Enjoy and let me see your gears...

 

More examples:

 

 

 

[Ego Eram Reputo]

Wonderful tutorial!

The only teeny tiny point I would make is that the number of spokes should divide the number of teeth by a whole number. You have 18 teeth and 5 spokes 18/5 = 3.6 Better to have 6 spokes (18/6=3.0 ) as this would make the cog more symmetrical.

[Lance McKnight]

I got to say this is a great tutorial. Keep them coming, and I think Welshy will be tickled to death you referred to his cog/gear tutorial.

[yellowman]

Great tutorial MadJik, I like the Median part, never used it as this way you are using it, thanks so much for that, I have learned a new thing tonight .

I use the kaleidoscope as well to create the cog in this image a while ago, but your tutorial teaches a lot more techniques, thanks again

[barbieq25]

Definitely have to try this one out!

Yellowman, a great image! I need chain & gears for the 400Four Supersport I am restoring. I can come & shop with you then

[skullbonz]

Cool tutorial,I also never thought of using Median that way,nice tip. I must tell you something though,lol,it's really a sprocket and not a gear but I get the idea and with a few changes in settings I think it will work nicely.

Here is my first attempt at it,sorry I went a bit further.

[MadJik]

sprocket vs gear, this is too specific for my english...

BTW : Nice pictures YM and skullbonz, I'm glad I've learned you new stuff with median noise

[Bob11]

I learned a whole lot from this tutorial, especially about precise positioning of the cursor to make elipses and lines. I did get stuck towards the end. After applying the median plugin, the center hole closed up. Also, I've never used the Magic Wand with the Alt Key before. I couldn't get it to do anything. I got rid of the hole by clicking the Magic Wand in the empty hole in the white gear layer (contiguous mode) and then going to the black gear layer and deleting it. I would like to know what the Alt + Magic Wand was supposed to do if anybody knows.

I'll do the other tuts to make this gear shine later. My brain needs a rest. Thanks for the tut.

Thanks for responding. I went back and did your tut again. I didn't realize that when you subtract with the Magic Wand +Alt, you actually tap the Magic Wand on the part you want to subtract. I know. It seems obvious, but I had never used the Magic Wand in this way before. I made four different gears using your tut, but I only "finished" one version. I think in this one I used a triangle instead of the ellipse to form the outside of the gear. This version of the gear seems a little warped, but that's from the other tut.

wand o

Edited July 9, 2011 by Bob11

[MadJik]

Selection tool + Alt Key = substract from active selection...

[Goonfella]

Which version of Kaleidoscope are you using? Mine has a different UI and produces different results with your settings.

Edited August 17, 2011 by Goonfella

[MadJik]

The UI from my screenshot is skeezed (plugin Gravity with "erase similar lines" on) to reduce the size. And it should work with the version available for download (see the link on the first post).

[Goonfella]

Thanks. I`ve downloaded the one you linked to. I`ll have another go at the tut later.

Edited August 29, 2011 by Goonfella

[LeeLaz2008]

Wonderful tutorial!

The only teeny tiny point I would make is that the number of spokes should divide the number of teeth by a whole number. You have 18 teeth and 5 spokes 18/5 = 3.6 Better to have 6 spokes (18/6=3.0 ) as this would make the cog more symmetrical.

That... made my brain hurt.

[PeterPawn]

Here's my go at it. Thanks for a great tutorial.

[Ego Eram Reputo]

That... made my brain hurt.

It's about symmetry and balancing the sprocket/cog when it spins. PeterPawn's image above is a really nice image & will help me explain:

The spokes in the image at 1 o'clock, 10 o'clock and 5 o'clock 'point' to high points on the teeth. This means that taken individually, these areas have more weight than the spokes at 3 o'clock and 8 o'clock - which point to spaces between the teeth (these two spokes will be lighter).

When spun, the cog will be out of balance because there is a heavier point (approx 11 o'clock) which is not balanced by the opposite side of the cog.

Clear as mud?

[barbieq25]

Clear to me - for once. I'm also wondering about the wear & stress factors but this is more about art than engineering. A good point to keep in mind just the same.

I did this ages ago & then never posted it. Sorry Madjik!

I should have kept a copy of the cog so that I could blur the Trail part. Nevermind we all learn. The flowers were made by using the concrete tute & a vector template.

PP, what a lovely shiny cog!

[dynojuggler]

I wasn't able to use this tut in its entirety because I couldn't dload the Kaleidoscope script.  However, it taught me techniques I was able to adapt and inspired me to come up with this...

 

 

Thanks for a tut that didn't just show how to make an object but taught techniques that could be used in other ways as well.

Edited February 28, 2013 by dynojuggler