Hole through gear

[Curor 0]

I have drawn a gear in Sketchup. See attached screendumps 1 & 2.

There is a hole for a shaft through the gear.

I have also attched the .stl file exported from Sketchup with the help of a plugin.

My problem is that when i try to print this the shaft hole will not start from the bottom but only goes from the top of the gear to the top of the boss.

Any and all suggestions to solve this would be much appreciated.

The rest of the gear prints beutifully on my Creality CR10.

 

Regards

Gear.stl

[kmanstudios 1,120]

Sketchup is really bad at making suitable 3Dprintable models. There are ways to fix it, but I do not use it so cannot advise. But, it is sketchup that is creating the issue.

[rowiac 53]

@Curor

If you really must use Sketchup, add the SolidInspector2 plugin to check your model for errors prior to exporting it as an STL file.  Many times even that will not be able to correct the model automatically, and you will have to edit the messed up vertices manually.

 

In any case, I was able to correct your gear model in Sketchup with a couple of minutes of editing, and I've attached it here.  You may want to look at different modeling tools for 3D printing, such as Fusion360, DesignSpark Mechanical or others.  Sketchup can be made to work, but you need to know what you're doing.

gear_fixed.stl

[Curor 0]

Hi,

 

Thanks for the fix. It looks fine in the layer preview. I have not had time to print it yet,  but it will probably be fine.

I have just bought my first 3D printer and I had some previous experience with Google Sketchup, so that was natural for me to use.

I am a retired aircraft engineer and do not want to go for any expensive software solution for this hobby, I just want to have some fun

 

I will try the Solidinspector2 plugin and see what that does for me.

 

Your reply was very informative and appreciated.

 

Best regards.

 

[Curor 0]

Hi again,

 

What software do you use to edit the .stl files?

 

 

[gr5 2,170]

sketchup is not great at making 3d models but you can do it if you follow these tips:
https://i.materialise.com/blog/3d-printing-with-sketchup/

 

[rowiac 53]

8 hours ago, Curor said:

Hi again,

 

What software do you use to edit the .stl files?

 

 

 

I first checked your file with Meshmixer using the Inspector function in the Analysis menu.  Many times you can fix the errors in Meshmixer, but in this case the errors were quite severe.  So I opened it in Sketchup, checked it with the SolidInspector2 plugin, which showed me the bad areas highlighted in red, but it was not able to fix them automatically.  Using the pencil tool, I drew one line to fill in a open face on the gear, ran SolidInspector2 again and this time it was able to fix it.  I then re-exported the STL, and that's what I uploaded for you.

 

The link that gr5 provided is very helpful to understand what needs to be fixed in Sketchup files for 3D printing.  Like you, I had previous experience with Sketchup and I still use it for some things if they aren't too complex.  Even though almost everyone here will recommend against using Sketchup (including me), it is useful sometimes.

[stu_le_brew 42]

Hi Curor

I would echo the thoughts of @rowiac I started out trying to use Sketchup but eventually fixed on using Fusion360.
It has many advantages - its free, has a history feature which means you can go back in time and edit the design, plus lots of training on Youtube.
An interesting feature for you is the links to a company called McMaster-Carr where you can download design files for hundreds of items (including many gears) you can edit them to suit your requirements

 

good luck

[geert_2 557]

If you are familiar with SketchUp, then another free editor you might want to try is DesignSpark Mechanical. It only requires registration, which is a fair price. It is a limited version of the commercial Spaceclaim. The user-interface is very similar to SketchUp, and there do exist lots of good training videos. (And you can also use Spaceclaim's, if you keep in mind the limitations.) I have made hundreds of models, and *never* had any problems with the STL-files.

 

[gr5 2,170]

Here is a very simple, very good guide - the best I could find - of what CAD program one should use.  Just follow answer the questions and it tells you what the best choices are.  

https://www.gliffy.com/go/publish/5271448

[Mothboy 1]

Also an option is Netfabb online services. If you have a Google or Windows account just login, upload the stl file and after a few minutes (depending of the filesize) you'll get back the fixed stl file to download.

https://service.netfabb.com/login.php

Edited January 8, 2018 by Mothboy

[kmanstudios 1,120]

>/Sounding like the old man yelling at the kids to get off the lawn/<

 

There is nothing like knowing how to successfully make a model and do it consistently. All these free places get your work and who knows what will happen, or how long they will be free. I just printed a Batman bust that I have seen in two locations:

 

1. For sale on CGTrader

2. For free on thingiverse claiming to be a free scan sample from a 3D scan company.

 

Which one is the one to use? And, I think neither is paying DC for a copy of their model because you can see the original (well, mass production of it) in the background of the comic shop in "The Big Bang Theory." To the left of Raj's shoulder.

[Mothboy 1]

Netfabb is a free service of Autodesk. Did you pay DC to print yours?

[kmanstudios 1,120]

2 hours ago, Mothboy said:

Netfabb is a free service of Autodesk. Did you pay DC to print yours?

I was pointing out that models can either be really free or stolen. Knowing how to make your models is invaluable. Not everything remains free, and usually the price of the free stuff you get is access to your models.

 

I choose what models I make available or not. Not some service or person who works there.

 

The Batman Bust was an example of one person selling a model that is not theirs to sell, or someone putting it out there for free and it is not theirs to put out for free.

 

DC was brought up because of the licensing issues that can be involved.

[Mothboy 1]

I totally agree with what you write. If you wanna use Netfabb or other online services first read their Imprint, Privacy, Terms of Service.

If you agree, use it. If you don't agree then don't.

[kmanstudios 1,120]

29 minutes ago, Mothboy said:

I totally agree with what you write. If you wanna use Netfabb or other online services first read their Imprint, Privacy, Terms of Service.

If you agree, use it. If you don't agree then don't.

Exactly.