Rhino 3D Tip: Rhino Gumball — Precision Move, Rotate, Scale

Accelerate everyday modeling with Rhino’s Gumball: direct, precise move/rotate/scale without breaking flow.

Essentials

• Toggle quickly: click the Gumball button on the Status Bar or run the Gumball command (consider an alias like “gb” → _Gumball _Toggle).
• Move (Translate): drag an axis arrow; type a distance and press Enter for exact values.
• Rotate: drag an arc handle; type an angle (e.g., 90) and Enter. Hold Shift to snap to your Angle setting.
• Scale: drag a square handle to scale 1D (type a factor like 1.25). Drag the center box for uniform scale.
• Copy on the fly: hold Ctrl while dragging a handle to duplicate along that direction.

Precision moves that feel effortless

• Relocate the pivot: click the Gumball origin (white circle) > Relocate Gumball, then snap to an exact hinge, corner, or center. This makes rotations and scales behave exactly as intended.
• Align the widget: set Gumball to Align to Object when working on tilted parts; switch to Align to World for orthogonal assemblies.
• Snappy vs Smooth: right-click the Gumball widget to toggle Snappy Dragging (honors Osnaps) or Smooth Dragging (fluid, freeform edits).
• Type-in discipline: start a drag, then type distances (e.g., 32) or angles (e.g., 12.5) for clean, repeatable results.
• Use Tab to lock direction mid-drag; combine with Osnaps and SmartTrack for construction-grade accuracy.

Sub-object power (faces, edges, points)

• Ctrl+Shift select a face, edge, or control point to get a local Gumball. Relocate its pivot to a reliable snap and transform just that region with move/rotate/scale.
• Perfect for subtle tweaks: nudge panel gaps, align edge flanges, or fine-tune curvature without global edits.

Setup and customization

• Right-click the Gumball widget for Settings: resize the widget, enable/disable handles, and pick alignment behavior.
• Create speed aliases:
  • gb = _Gumball _Toggle
  • gbo = _Gumball _Frame=_Object
  • gbw = _Gumball _Frame=_World
  • gbr = _RelocateGumball

Micro-exercise (30 seconds)

• Select a door component; Relocate Gumball to the hinge axis (use End or Cen Osnap).
• Rotate via the arc handle; type 90 and Enter to swing it open perfectly.
• Hold Ctrl and drag the X arrow; type 900 to duplicate the door down a corridor.

Troubleshooting quick hits

• Transforms feel off-axis? Switch the frame (Object vs World) or relocate the pivot before trying again.
• Scaling behaves oddly? Confirm you’re using the correct handle (1D vs uniform center box) and check Units/Tolerance.
• Dragging misses snaps? Turn on Snappy Dragging and verify the right Osnaps are active.

Why it matters

• Fewer modal commands, fewer dialogs—Gumball keeps you modeling in-context.
• Clean numeric inputs ensure downstream booleans, Make2D, and manufacturing exports stay reliable.

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