Plugin Sketchup - Shape Bender

Rating: 8.5 / 10

Developer: Chris Fullmer (maintained by SketchUp team & community)
Compatibility: SketchUp 2017–2024 (Free, Pro, Web, and Make)
Type: Extension (RBZ file)
Cost: Free (Open source) plugin sketchup shape bender

Shape Bender is one of the most iconic and useful free extensions for SketchUp. It allows you to bend a group or component along any curved path (line, arc, bezier, or polyline). Unlike the native Follow Me tool (which creates new geometry along a path from a profile), Shape Bender warps existing geometry to fit a target curve. Rating: 8

To use Shape Bender without crashing or getting "inside-out" geometry, you must adhere to the "Holy Trinity" of setup. If you skip one of these steps, the bend will fail. To use Shape Bender without crashing or getting

| Tool | Cost | Best for | |------|------|-----------| | Flowify (MindSight Studios) | $39 | Bending onto curved surfaces (not just paths) | | TrueBend (TIG) | Free | Simple 90° or 180° bends along arcs | | Curviloft (Fredo6) | Free (donation) | Lofting along curves, not bending existing objects | | SketchUp native Follow Me | Free | Extruding profiles, not bending groups |

Shape Bender remains unique in its specific use case: bending a pre-built object along a custom curve with texture retention.