Thanks for that write up Marco. I actually did try and use some features (like Extrude) in Surface mode and really didn't see much difference. It sounds like using Live Clay in S mode is the secret. I'll have to go back and try again.

Yes, I did take a fast look (on my iPhone) of both the PBR shaders and the contest winners and runners up. While *very* nice, I noticed most didn't have close ups of hard models, which is of course a worse case scenario for topology modelers. The car model was nice but I couldn't get close enough to see it. Plus, the workflow for a car model must be something short of horrendous in 3D Coat-- unless you have mad sculpting skills and a wacom-- neither which I have or intend to have.

Keep in mind, just like MoI, I'm looking for quick 'get in' and 'get out', which is why I like MoI and SketchUp. I can literally go months without using either one and jump back in pretty much where I left off. I'd like to be able to do the same in 3D Coat as it 'fills' a hole in my 3D arsenal.

BTW, as long as you're giving tips, how would you add the flex hose pattern to a hose object created with curve as in this picture. (I know, it's easy to do with flow in MoI!) Also, how does one create 'glass' in PBR?