# Boolean Failure

**URL:** <https://discourse.shapr3d.com/t/boolean-failure/21803>\
**Category:** Modeling Questions\
**Created:** [October 8, 2022, 6:38pm UTC](https://discourse.shapr3d.com/t/boolean-failure/21803 "2022-10-08T18:38:16Z")\
**Posts on this page:** 8\
**Page:** 1

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**Author:** ![DragonDon](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/a698b9/32.png) [@DragonDon](https://discourse.shapr3d.com/u/DragonDon)\
**Post date:** [October 8, 2022, 6:38pm UTC](https://discourse.shapr3d.com/t/boolean-failure/21803/1 "2022-10-08T18:38:16Z")

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I’m trying to remove some areas from a piece but unable to. Severely inconvenient because don’t really understand why.

 ![image](https://us1.discourse-cdn.com/flex002/uploads/shapr3d/original/3X/e/5/e559836803877e883a30b2a556535617d11ae208.jpeg)

[body kit edits.shapr](https://discourse.shapr3d.com/uploads/short-url/gvRrSgCl6u6SsPhAU6F4enBOQ9w.shapr) (7.0 MB)

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**Author:** ![DragonDon](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/a698b9/32.png) [@DragonDon](https://discourse.shapr3d.com/u/DragonDon)\
**Post date:** [October 11, 2022, 7:08pm UTC](https://discourse.shapr3d.com/t/boolean-failure/21803/2 "2022-10-11T19:08:45Z")

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Hey Gang,

I could really, really use some guidance here. I’ve hit the limit to what I know and am hoping to learn more.

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**Author:** ![Istvan](https://sea2.discourse-cdn.com/flex002/user_avatar/discourse.shapr3d.com/istvan/32/23668_2.png) [@Istvan](https://discourse.shapr3d.com/u/Istvan)\
**Post date:** [October 11, 2022, 7:12pm UTC](https://discourse.shapr3d.com/t/boolean-failure/21803/3 "2022-10-11T19:12:07Z")

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Apparently these are mesh bodies, imported as STL files. The possibilities to edit mesh bodies in Shapr3D is quite limited. Shapr3D is focused on CAD modeling, and mesh files are primarily used as reference bodies.

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**Author:** ![DragonDon](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/a698b9/32.png) [@DragonDon](https://discourse.shapr3d.com/u/DragonDon)\
**Post date:** [October 11, 2022, 7:14pm UTC](https://discourse.shapr3d.com/t/boolean-failure/21803/4 "2022-10-11T19:14:20Z")

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Ok, since they were actually created in Shapr, not quite understanding what needs to be done to fix that(let alone how they changed format). Do I need to export them in some other format and then re-import them?

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**Author:** ![Istvan](https://sea2.discourse-cdn.com/flex002/user_avatar/discourse.shapr3d.com/istvan/32/23668_2.png) [@Istvan](https://discourse.shapr3d.com/u/Istvan)\
**Post date:** [October 11, 2022, 7:16pm UTC](https://discourse.shapr3d.com/t/boolean-failure/21803/5 "2022-10-11T19:16:32Z")

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I assume you exported them to STL and then imported them. That converts CAD data to mesh data (think of vector graphics and raster graphics in the 2D world). STL is not designed to be an input format, but mostly to be an output, and even for that 3MF is much better. You should either export to .shapr format or to X\_T (Parasolid) and import it.

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**Author:** ![DragonDon](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/a698b9/32.png) [@DragonDon](https://discourse.shapr3d.com/u/DragonDon)\
**Post date:** [October 11, 2022, 7:30pm UTC](https://discourse.shapr3d.com/t/boolean-failure/21803/6 "2022-10-11T19:30:48Z")

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Already thought about exporting them as .shapr and then re-importing them, no change.

To be clear, the only time I see the ‘boolean failure’ is when I try to do a subtract. I see no error messages when trying to do an intersect.

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<div class="post-metadata">

**Author:** ![Istvan](https://sea2.discourse-cdn.com/flex002/user_avatar/discourse.shapr3d.com/istvan/32/23668_2.png) [@Istvan](https://discourse.shapr3d.com/u/Istvan)\
**Post date:** [October 11, 2022, 7:31pm UTC](https://discourse.shapr3d.com/t/boolean-failure/21803/7 "2022-10-11T19:31:50Z")

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If you export these again, nothing will change. They are already mesh bodies. You’ll need to export the original CAD data and import that.

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**Author:** ![DragonDon](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/a698b9/32.png) [@DragonDon](https://discourse.shapr3d.com/u/DragonDon)\
**Post date:** [October 11, 2022, 7:39pm UTC](https://discourse.shapr3d.com/t/boolean-failure/21803/8 "2022-10-11T19:39:10Z")

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I suppose this is the problem. I have not used any other program other than Shapr.