Corellian GF-150 Light Freighter

 In-Universe History

Despite the flashiness of their other freighters such as the YT-Classes, Corellian Engineering's bread and butter are the smaller freighters with common design features with each other that are cheap and easy to make.  The GF-150 is that working-class variant of the other designs favored by smugglers.  The GF-series features all the basics in a small compact package.  It has three main engines for redundancy, a communications dish, two-place cockpit, and a small calibur blaster for security and general protection. the GF-150 and its larger -250 and -350 are sales legends, with one rolling off the line every 30 seconds.  

Real-World History

Switching from Sketchup to Fusion 360 wasn't as seamless as I thought, and rather than get frustrated with a more complicated design I knew I could accomplish in Sketchup (though it would take me forever given the geometries), I instead decided to go with the most basic and generic design that I could think of.  Therefore, I ended up drawing probably the least-inspired design that I've managed to think of.  But it was a good primer for the work flow that I would need to start using in fusion for more complicated models.  It also forced me into adapting the basics of what I could do in Sketchup to Fusion.  I don't think this model is paticularly interesting or inspired, but it does fit very well into the aesthetic, and could easily be seen in quantity in the background.  It is a good model.  

This was mostly an exercise in finding the design as I went.  I made sure to have a two-place cockpit at the standard 10mm width.  

Then I started to populate out the details.  The side 'wings' (for lack of a better term) I made reminiscent of the Falcon with the same access holes that were deployed so successfully on the Spectre-Class gunship.  

The engines I took off the Ghost as inspiration, since it fit with the overall design of simplicity.  It also was my first attempt at using cylinders in Fusion and it was sooo much easier than Sketchup.  I was also able to do some small detail work inside the engine for the first time.  In terms of rendering, the Fusion program allows for different materials and substances, so for the first time I was also able to put a glow inside the engine bay.  

Then it was a matter of doing the dish.  I used a cylinder and split it along the right part, angled it, and then joined it to the body.  It remains smooth since I was not sure how to detail that surface.  Future workflows would need to account for detailing and panelling.  

Weirdly, this was a more popular model on the instagram site.  I put it together very quickly as a way to start using the proper work flow with the new system.  The detailing took not a lot of time comparatively and I was able to start moving on to more intricate designs.  The more I look at it, though, the more it fits with the design aestetic of keeping it simple and not relying on a complex design for 'coolness'.  My impression of fusion as a software program has improved as well.  After this I was able to get the basics, including rendering and animation.  Making the ship looks somewhat real was a godsend in terms of presentation. I like this program even if the work flows can be a little wonky.  Its a much cleaner product and design process overall.  

Additional Images