The ten best 3D models and one exceptional 3DVIA Experience uploaded to 3DVIA.com during the week of Saturday, July 10th through Friday, July 16th, 2010 are highlighted here. Places to live, places to drive and fly and a place to relax. Things to explore and things to go to war. It’s another busy week in the Top 10.

(The “Easy links to the previous Top 10 lists” is getting really long, so it has been moved to right after the current week’s models and Scene.)

The Top 10:

I like the simple style, multitude of details and vibrant colors in Appart Tibo by tibo, which he created using 3DVIA Shape. Watch your head! [tibo lives in France]

There are gears galore and plenty more to keep the mechanically-inclined happy in Team Art’s Robot 2010 by Ptkinvent. It was constructed using SolidWorks.

Need to add some excitement to a dull afternoon? Play some 3DVIA Skee Ball 2.0! IainB85 has created a great time-waster (I mean teaser-game that will keep you occupied for way too long) using 3DVIA Studio. Play it now to find out how to set your balls on fire!

If fiery balls won’t do it, then maybe the Gun Sword by Saïd (jackred) will do the job. This novel mayhem-maker was uploaded in 3ds format. [Saïd lives in Morocco]

Detail and beautiful surfacing make A6M2-N by Uhsset a delight to peruse inside and out. The cockpit is exceptional! CATIA V5 was used. [Uhsset lives in Japan]

Refine your eye to take in a subtle view of Pied (foot) by Mr-Acron. Appreciate the subtle curves of the legs as they reach toward the table and then explode into a gorgeous riot of twists and turns! Beautifully modeled and then uploaded using an IGES generator.

It’s short. It’s chunky. It’s a lot of car in a small package and I love it! I want one or three or maybe even a dozen! Theta 2 was modeled by vahid_h using CATIA V5. Great job! [vahid_h lives in Spain]

These Apartments by taxc were created using 3DVIA Shape and look like a great place to live (or visit) when you need some time to relax.

Alfred (alfredix) provided his own internal construction detail image for the M730 Chaparral in the M113 family. His entire web album for the M113 family is a fantastic learning tool for anyone interested in how Alfred constructs his families of vehicle! Pro/E is used for the modeling and the models are then translated into STEP format for upload. [Alfred lives in Germany]

Very Big Axe by maxofp2p cracks me up! What a great name! Be nice or I’ll have to use my “VERY BIG AXE!”. Maxof2p used Blender to create this very direct tool of persuasion. [maxofp2p lives in Poland]

Alexandr (Sanya) puts the spotlight on a Car Muffler using SolidWorks. The cutaway is the perfect technique to make the muffler construction understandable and the model itself interesting. [Alexandr is from Ukraine]

Just so everyone knows, the order that the Top 10 are displayed is based on color, type of model and how I’m feeling, not any particular ranking. I just rearrange them until I like the way it looks. It’s as simple as that!

Easy links to the previous Top 10 lists: 001 – 002 – 003 – 004 – 005 – 006 – 007 – 008 – 009 – 010 – 011 - 012 – 013 – 014 – 015 – 016 – 017 -018 - 019 – 020 – 021 – 022 – 023 – 024 – 025 – 026 – 027 – 028 – 029 – 030 – 031 – 032 – 033 – 034 – 035 – 036 – 037 – 038 – 039 – 040 – 041 – 042 – 043 – 044 – 045 – 046 – 047 – 048 – 049 – 050 – 051 – 052 – 053 – 054 (seven weeks in one) – 055 – 056 – 057 – 058 – 059 – 060 – Best of the Best 2009 – 061 – 062 – 063 - 064 – 065 – 066 – 067 – 068 – 069 – 070 – 071 – 072 – 073 – 074 – 075 – 076 – 077 – 078 – 079 – 080 – 081

Here’s a brief recap of what I look for when I select the Top 10:

Variety – One of the most important factors. I try to show models created using lots of different software products and showing lots of different ways of using 3D. I include brief comments on why I chose each model.

Creativity, unusual subject matter and humor – These are big factors. We should all be having fun and feel free to model our passions!

Models entered in the 3DVIA Challenge contests will not be considered – They’re already getting plenty of attention and I want to spotlight models we may have missed.

There is no reward given – Other than the satisfaction of being noticed, spotlighted and being brought to the attention of more modelers. In my personal experience, the pleasure of having my work appreciated is the ultimate reward anyway.

From time to time I will make mistakes and not follow my own rules – I will review these mistakes on a case-by-case basis. Sometimes I will change the post and sometimes I won’t. I will be consistently inconsistent. I am human.

Your comments are always welcomed and encouraged! Your responses will help the modelers and the 3DVIA community as a whole. Feel free to bring other models to my attention and let me know why they attracted you. (PLEASE NOTE: In order to make it easier to explore, all photos are linked directly to the model’s page.)

One final note of caution: these are my choices (dswavely) and my choices alone. So, aim the tomatoes appropriately.