Sandbox Tools

This section of the user's guide covers the sandbox tools within SketchUp. Sandbox tools are those tools used to create and manipulate large surfaces (TINs) in your models. These tools include the Sandbox From Scratch Tool, Sandbox From Contours Tool, Smoove Tool, Stamp Tool, and Drape Tool.

Sandbox tools are not just for modeling terrain, they can also be used to model other organic shapes such as the curved portions of a hand-built wooden chair or a wooden bowl. Organic shapes are those that have a hand-made or custom appearance.

Tools in this section are covered in the order they appear within the Draw > Sandbox and Tools > Sandbox sub-menus.

Enabling the Sandbox Tools

The sandbox tools do not appear in SketchUp by default, but can easily be enabled using the Extensions Manager (the Extensions panel of the Preferences dialog box). To enable the sandbox tools:

1. Open the Extensions Manager (SketchUp > Preferences > Extensions)
2. Click the check box next to the extension that you want to enable.
3. Click Ok