Old Modeler, me and the software, how to make a hole in a polygon

n9103h

n9103h

George Collins
I am using modeler for a Makerbot 2x 3d designs. I am struggling for a few days, I can not figure out how to make a hole, precisely a hole for a screw to go through. I have the item made and now I need to make a set screw location. I have tried everything I can think of, keeping in mind I am old and thinking and the word everything are limited. Sometimes I can not remember why I am in front of the computer... smile

Please see attached lwo file. you will see the slider design and it will be clear where and what I am trying to do. I need to make a set screw holder in the location. I don't know how to cut just a little hole.

Would some one be kind enough to point to a video or tutorial. I tried to figure out how to use bridge, drill, etc.. but I don't understand.

Suggestions I really appreciate.

Thanks

George
 

Attachments

  • SupportBar.lwo
    9.8 KB · Views: 297
n9103h said:
I am using modeler for a Makerbot 2x 3d designs. I am struggling for a few days, I can not figure out how to make a hole, precisely a hole for a screw to go through. I have the item made and now I need to make a set screw location. I have tried everything I can think of, keeping in mind I am old and thinking and the word everything are limited. Sometimes I can not remember why I am in front of the computer... smile

Please see attached lwo file. you will see the slider design and it will be clear where and what I am trying to do. I need to make a set screw holder in the location. I don't know how to cut just a little hole.

Would some one be kind enough to point to a video or tutorial. I tried to figure out how to use bridge, drill, etc.. but I don't understand.

Suggestions I really appreciate.

Thanks

George
Click to expand...

the bridge tool can be used to make a hole if you select opposite faces that are at least identical in point count and got a decent almost straight direction towards eachothter in the same object, that is however not what you would wan´t here, here you would simply boolean the object correctly, as far as I see from your second layer, (failed attempt?) the pin bolt/screw isn´t a complete object here, so You can´t use that.

there was a lot of errors in the bolt geo, it isn´t closed..you got gaps and the cap ends, and the main bar is also a bit weird.

you should use construct/combine/boolean/subtract, and use the bolt in background layer...the layer should be half selected if you know what I mean for it to work as background object.

heres a fix of your screw/bolt..you can try boolean with that (supportbar v001)..the second file (construct_combine) is the finnished result.
I noticed an error anyway in the cut out at the end..will have to take a look at that.

Edit..there are nonplanar polys ..which may interfere with a clean boolean, you could triple the main bar shift-t to triangulate and make all polys planar more suitable for boolean, you will end up with more triangulated surface though, you can reduce that after by using merge trigons.

the question should belong to lightwave support..not VT
 

Attachments

  • SupportBar_v001.lwo
    3.6 KB · Views: 294
  • construct_combine_boolean_subtract SupportBar_v001.lwo
    6 KB · Views: 304
Last edited:
a triangular single face can never be non planar, a quad poly with four points can have one point interupting the planar/flat polyface..and thus become difficult to calculate during boolean process, that is why most stuff is triangulated before printing as well I think.
 
Looking at your object, LWO file to be precise:

  • First, save a copy. Always.
  • Second thing you should do is MERGE POINTS. There were a bunch of redundant points in your mesh. 88 points dropped to 32.
  • Third is UNIFY POLYS. In fact, in this mesh there were no duplicate polys, but it's a good practice.
  • Fourth is DELETE 2 pt polys. Especially since you are 3d printing this, 2pt polys have no function. After merging points, there were 30 2pt polys. Kill 'em.
  • Fifth is maybe regularize your mesh: this is optional, but adding a few divisions lengthwise may make the next operations easier/cleaner. Use the KNIFE TOOL in wireframe mode to do this.
  • At this point you can BOOLEAN your hole out of the cleaned up mesh. It's best if you can arrange it so the hole occurs in a nice clean area instead of across a bunch of boundaries.
  • After BOOLEAN SUBTRACTING, Triple or triangularize your mesh. This makes it as simple as possible for your printer software.
 

hi, a very valid question, i think we have all gone through that challenge  :)

i made a video on it, but read the comments from these guys above, they know their stuff  :)




(finished object attached)
 

Attachments

  • SupportBar 2.zip
    4.2 KB · Views: 281
Thank you, I think I got about 80% of your suggestion. I will learn the 20% (old dogs can learn). This device slides in the an angle bar, slides up and down it and the set screw is to secure in one location against the inside corner of the angle bar.(iron).

I was trying to use the capsule, connect it to the slider, cut off the ends and clean out the inside. Every thing is done on a 45 degree angle. (finish stuff), I build on regular plain and the rotate.

I will work with your ideas today, I really appreciate your assistance, I will move this over to LW, I was thinking because it was a toaster I should be here.

Best wishes, thanks again for your thoughts

George
 
WOW, just turned on the toaster, THAT IS BEAUTIFUL!!! If I get a patient, I owe you a nice dinner out at the least!!!!

George
 

for tricky 3D techniques that i don't get the hang of i do this...

-try over, and over
-look in the manual
-try over, and over
-look in the manual
-read the forum notes 2 more times
-watch the videos 3 more times

tiring, but usually works. if i don't make it, i take a 1 month break, then try all over again :)

3D = time consuming   :)
 
erikals said:

for tricky 3D techniques that i don't get the hang of i do this...

-try over, and over
-look in the manual
-try over, and over
-look in the manual
-read the forum notes 2 more times
-watch the videos 3 more times

tiring, but usually works. if i don't make it, i take a 1 month break, then try all over again :)

3D = time consuming   :)
Click to expand...

OMG, you described me, but you left out getting up at 2 am because you have an idea in your sleep, going without food because the hours pass by... laughing...

thanks

George
 
Hi I have a Makerbot 2X myself. love the machine.
need help just ask

I use lightwave to do all my printing models.. awesome stuff lightwave is.. yep yep
 
Finally got a few minutes to watch the video. I started with a BOX, added points and pulled in the edges. I made A LOT of mistakes, you are teaching me and I owe you dinner at least. Still watching the video.... I will send you a picture of the printed item, then it will become very clear. This is a small piece of a much larger item. WOW, you have made a nice video... I don't know how to say thanks... I live in Santa Ana CA, are you with in an hour? I have a little cancer problem so I can not eat out much, but man I am more then happy to buy you a nice dinner. Your instruction, for me, was the BEST I have seen, hit this key, look at this, hit that key, so many are flipping keys and I have not a clue what the .. are they trying to teach. GOOD TEACHER. I would like to show you what project you have added too. I would really like to treat you to a nice dinner, you and your spouse and just say thanks. Please let me know what city you are in and maybe I can prepay a dinner out at a place you like. You REALLY HELPED ME. I can now make what I need to finish the prototype and apply for a patient. I have no clue how to do it, but invent help I will call. It may end up 'and for this special offer, for 49.95 we will enclose a second widget and only charge you three times for shipping and handling', SMILE My wife is beautiful and Peruvian, she knows how to cook good too. If you are close, you are welcome. Limited shop talk, but I will show my inventions with the 3D printer.. COOL..
 

hi George  :)

thank you very much, i am very happy it helped to such an extent!  :)
unfortunately, i'm waay over in Oslo/Norway so it's quite a few hours i'm afraid..  :)

it would be fun to see the project, maybe you can post some pictures here?

i'm a bit all over the place these days, but please do share, and i will reply when i can.

Very Glad it's coming along.  :)
 
Okay, I have not responded because I have been making holes in my holes, ceilings, walls, did I say holes... Okay what you did with that video and what the others have done. I found I had poly's on poly's. I found how bad, bad can be. The pointers in the video and what I have read, even though I did a lot of searching for tools (cuz I made to many holes and lost some of them),

I learned how to use modeler a little. I can make a design in a few hours now. I think they are complex, not boxes and balls. I am making tools.

So, I am trying to say thank you. I am waiting for a print to finish then start another so I have a few minutes to remember the people that kept me from going over the edge and falling in a hole.

I hope in the next day or so I will slow down and say thank you proper. The video was spot on, OH,,, what I learned that I saw the same issue in the video.

Making a poly from points. CLOCKWISE makes them PERFECT every time. If you hit one and then the next easy one and go back and find the one you miss, it is a really cool design but probably not what you are looking for, so I starting seeing my pattern, once I did all points clockwise, I had perfect poly's for the tool. EVERY TIME and when it was not perfect, I found the point I missed.

Guys, Gals, and others, THANKS

Sincerely

less gray hair then I would have had,

George
 
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