First time modeling issues! Help!

[jstahl1970 0]

Sorry for the noob question. I am a software designer, and the learning curve for this is so steep for me! I created a simple model in Blender. I just took a 2D logo for my band, and extruded it to be 3D. It looks great, and seems like it should be fairly simple.

My first issue is that even though the size of the object in Blender is large, when I open the .stl file in Cura it is about 1mm big. How do I save it so that it opens in the correct size? I was able (after a while of dealing with some issues of the CuraEngine.exe crashing) to resize it in Cura and save a .stl file in the size I want.

My second issue is that I can't get Cura to generate gcode at the larger size. Cura becomes very sluggish and unresponsive. It never updates the estimated time to print the object, and won't let me save the gcode. Sometimes it will let me save a gcode file, but it is empty. I have no idea what I'm doing wrong. I've used Cura several times to print files that I found online, with no issues. Is there something wrong with my .stl file? Why wouldn't it tell me if there is something wrong with it? Like I said, it is a very simple model, much simpler than some I've printed already. I could send my .stl file to you if someone would be willing to take a look at it for me. Thanks!

[Nicolinux 288]

Hi,

I don't know much about Blender, maybe someone else could help (you should attach the blender file if possible).

Here is my guess. Since Cura has such a hard time to work with the model, maybe you exported it in such a way that the file is broken or has way too many polygons. You could check the .stl file with this tool:

http://www.netfabb.de/basic.php

Depending on your source 2D file it might be easier to extrude it in 3D, without Blender. Found this for example:

http://blog.cubehero.com/2013/11/11/how-to-generate-extruded-3d-model-from-images-in-openscad/

If you like, just attach the 2D file and I'll give it a try.

[jstahl1970 0]

Hi,

I don't know much about Blender, maybe someone else could help (you should attach the blender file if possible).

Here is my guess. Since Cura has such a hard time to work with the model, maybe you exported it in such a way that the file is broken or has way too many polygons. You could check the .stl file with this tool:

http://www.netfabb.de/basic.php

Depending on your source 2D file it might be easier to extrude it in 3D, without Blender. Found this for example:

http://blog.cubehero.com/2013/11/11/how-to-generate-extruded-3d-model-from-images-in-openscad/

If you like, just attach the 2D file and I'll give it a try.

 

Thanks, I will try that netfabb tool and see what's going on.

[jstahl1970 0]

Hi,

I don't know much about Blender, maybe someone else could help (you should attach the blender file if possible).

Here is my guess. Since Cura has such a hard time to work with the model, maybe you exported it in such a way that the file is broken or has way too many polygons. You could check the .stl file with this tool:

http://www.netfabb.de/basic.php

Depending on your source 2D file it might be easier to extrude it in 3D, without Blender. Found this for example:

http://blog.cubehero.com/2013/11/11/how-to-generate-extruded-3d-model-from-images-in-openscad/

If you like, just attach the 2D file and I'll give it a try.

 

I'm not sure how to attach files here. I'd love if someone could take a look at the .stl file that I created in blender and tell me what is wrong with it.

[Nicolinux 288]

Not sure about .stl files either - but just put it on Dropbox or some other free file sharing service.

[jstahl1970 0]

Not sure about .stl files either - but just put it on Dropbox or some other free file sharing service.

 

OK, here is a dropbox link to the .stl file:

https://www.dropbox.com/s/u87wecmq869a6pp/msresized.stl?dl=0

[Nicolinux 288]

Alright, I don't know what went wrong in Blender, but the file has over 400k triangles. I think this trips Cura. If you like, just send me the 2D file and I'll create a 3D version of it.

[jstahl1970 0]

Alright, I don't know what went wrong in Blender, but the file has over 400k triangles. I think this trips Cura. If you like, just send me the 2D file and I'll create a 3D version of it.

 

Here is a link to a .png version of the 2D file:

https://www.dropbox.com/s/jqied941kmcohya/ms2a_vectorized.png?dl=0

and here is a link to a .svg version of the 2D file:

https://www.dropbox.com/s/95lsy3mxrezy8ha/ms2a_vectorized.svg?dl=0

Unfortunately, I'm at work, and I neglected to email myself the version with a transparent background that I used to create the file at home. Hopefully you can do something with one of these. Thanks!

[Nicolinux 288]

Hey no problem. I won't be at home for the next 3 hours, I'll do it when I am home. But as I know there forums, someone else will beat me to it for sure

[jstahl1970 0]

I'd really like to know where I went wrong. This whole world is new to me, and extremely frustrating. If a seemingly very easy thing can go so terribly wrong, I'm not sure how I'll ever be able to do some of the things I've seen.

[madzteir 6]

I'm not familiar with Blender either. I downloaded and opened your STL, and it's quite large for its size. Regarding the size of the model, are there unit settings in Blender you can check? I have found that if I have a model in Rhino that is 3"x4"x5", it will import into Cura as 3mm x 4mm x 5mm. Converting to mm in Rhino or using a uniform scale factor of 25.4 in Cura solves this issue.

I also found this topic on a Blender help forum that sounds like it might be relevant: http://blender.stackexchange.com/questions/15581/remove-extra-geometry-from-objects

I can take a stab at it myself, but not immediately. Chances are Nicolinux or someone else will get to it first!

[jstahl1970 0]

I'm not familiar with Blender either. I downloaded and opened your STL, and it's quite large for its size. Regarding the size of the model, are there unit settings in Blender you can check? I have found that if I have a model in Rhino that is 3"x4"x5", it will import into Cura as 3mm x 4mm x 5mm. Converting to mm in Rhino or using a uniform scale factor of 25.4 in Cura solves this issue.

I also found this topic on a Blender help forum that sounds like it might be relevant: http://blender.stackexchange.com/questions/15581/remove-extra-geometry-from-objects

I can take a stab at it myself, but not immediately. Chances are Nicolinux or someone else will get to it first!

 

I'm not sure the answer to your Blender question. I will have to check once I get home later tonight.

[madzteir 6]

I'd really like to know where I went wrong.  This whole world is new to me, and extremely frustrating.  If a seemingly very easy thing can go so terribly wrong, I'm not sure how I'll ever be able to do some of the things I've seen.

 

Don't beat yourself up over it, it takes practice

Out of curiosity, why did you choose Blender? Were you already familiar with it?

[jstahl1970 0]

 

I'd really like to know where I went wrong.  This whole world is new to me, and extremely frustrating.  If a seemingly very easy thing can go so terribly wrong, I'm not sure how I'll ever be able to do some of the things I've seen.

 

Don't beat yourself up over it, it takes practice

Out of curiosity, why did you choose Blender? Were you already familiar with it?

 

I only chose it because I found a YouTube tutorial showing how to do what I was looking to do using Blender. Is there another program that is better, or easier to use?

[madzteir 6]

 

 

I'd really like to know where I went wrong.  This whole world is new to me, and extremely frustrating.  If a seemingly very easy thing can go so terribly wrong, I'm not sure how I'll ever be able to do some of the things I've seen.

 

Don't beat yourself up over it, it takes practice

Out of curiosity, why did you choose Blender? Were you already familiar with it?

 

I only chose it because I found a YouTube tutorial showing how to do what I was looking to do using Blender.  Is there another program that is better, or easier to use?

 

There really is no single perfect program -- each one prioritizes different aspects of the modeling world, be it printing, animation, architecture, etc.. Finding the right one for your needs and learning style will likely be a matter of trial-and-error. There's a pretty extensive list here (scroll down a bit). Finding some beginner tutorials for any program you choose will go a long way.

I've mentioned it earlier, but because it's not on the above list, I'll mention that I'm partial to Rhino. I found the basics pretty easy to master, but the program can handle quite a bit of complexity, and there are numerous plugins available to further enhance the experience. I use my printer primarily for architectural purposes and am rarely working on "organic"-looking objects, which seems to be more Blender's specialty. It's not free, but there is a trial.

Certainly give Blender a go -- don't think in any way I'm trying to sway you one way or another -- but if you find it frustrating, perhaps try another program. All of these applications are going to have a learning curve for a modeling beginner, but life is too short to get frustrated by software that doesn't serve your purposes!

[madzteir 6]

Check if this STL will serve your purposes. I can send you a more detailed one if necessary. https://www.dropbox.com/s/xtmfontoqqjdxnk/ms_new.stl?dl=0

[jstahl1970 0]

Check if this STL will serve your purposes. I can send you a more detailed one if necessary. https://www.dropbox.com/s/xtmfontoqqjdxnk/ms_new.stl?dl=0

 

Thanks, I'll give it a try when I get home later, and let you know!

[jstahl1970 0]

Check if this STL will serve your purposes. I can send you a more detailed one if necessary. https://www.dropbox.com/s/xtmfontoqqjdxnk/ms_new.stl?dl=0

 

I just downloaded it at work, and tried running it through the netfabb tool that Nicolinux linked to above, and it can't open the file.

[Nicolinux 288]

Maybe something went wrong with the download. I can load the file fine and it looks good. @madzteir did a great job!

[madzteir 6]

 

Check if this STL will serve your purposes. I can send you a more detailed one if necessary. https://www.dropbox.com/s/xtmfontoqqjdxnk/ms_new.stl?dl=0

 

I just downloaded it at work, and tried running it through the netfabb tool that Nicolinux linked to above, and it can't open the file.

 

Netfabb is a tool to repair invalid meshes. I made sure the mesh I made you was valid before I uploaded the file.

That being said, I ran it thorough Netfabb's cloud service (here) and it spat back an error. Once I removed the underscore from my file name, though, it worked fine. I've never used the download version of Netfabb, but perhaps that's the issue?

In any case, here's Netfabb's "fixed" version: https://www.dropbox.com/s/syyxxdz8oil32jl/msnew_fixed.stl?dl=0

[jstahl1970 0]

 

 

Check if this STL will serve your purposes. I can send you a more detailed one if necessary. https://www.dropbox.com/s/xtmfontoqqjdxnk/ms_new.stl?dl=0

 

I just downloaded it at work, and tried running it through the netfabb tool that Nicolinux linked to above, and it can't open the file.

 

Netfabb is a tool to repair invalid meshes. I made sure the mesh I made you was valid before I uploaded the file.

That being said, I ran it thorough Netfabb's cloud service (here) and it spat back an error. Once I removed the underscore from my file name, though, it worked fine. I've never used the download version of Netfabb, but perhaps that's the issue?

In any case, here's Netfabb's "fixed" version: https://www.dropbox.com/s/syyxxdz8oil32jl/msnew_fixed.stl?dl=0

 

Thanks so much for taking the time to help me! Hopefully I can figure out what I'm doing wrong. I haven't had a chance to try it out tonight, I had to go out searching for ugly Christmas sweaters for the kids for school tomorrow. Nothing like waiting until the last minute to tell me, but that's typical.

[Nicolinux 288]

If your are looking for an easy to understand but still powerful tool, take a look at Moment of Inspiration. It is not free but worth every penny:

http://moi3d.com

[jstahl1970 0]

If your are looking for an easy to understand but still powerful tool, take a look at Moment of Inspiration. It is not free but worth every penny:

http://moi3d.com

 

That does look interesting! It isn't one I've seen mentioned before.