Issues tracing an .stl

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1

I am trying to trace an .stl file of a 3D printer hot end to make an adapter for it. I’ve gotten most of it completed, but the heat block has some interesting geometry that I’m having an issue with. I know how to create the geometry, but when I try to trace the geometry with a spline, I am getting some odd behavior, and am wondering if this is a bug or I’m doing something wrong.

There are two issues that I’m experiencing…

  1. I’m not sure why the points and lines on the imported object are highlighted when I place a construction plane on a face of it. They are distracting and not helpful, because you can not edit the points, lines or faces of the imported .stl.
  2. When I try to trace the lines of the imported object with the fit spline tool, as soon as I draw the first segment and lift the pencil, a full control point spline is placed on top of the line of the imported object. When I try to place the next segment of the spline, a new control point spline is placed on the previous one, but with a different alignment. This would be great if the spline it placed was aligned perfectly with the imported geometry, but it isn’t. Here’s a video of it…

I have also included the file I am working on for others to try and see if they are experiencing the same issue.

Mount v1 Copy.shapr (35.3 KB)

2

I checked out your file. First, the imported model is not an STL file. It is a solid body that cannot be edited within Shapr3D. If you want to trace as you intended, move the plane a short known distance from the surface then draw you spline.

As a test, I exported your file as an STL then imported the STL and placed it next to your imported body. The STL is a mesh file and selecting any one surface selects the entire mesh. Here it is.

HotBlock.shapr (154.5 KB)

3

Actually, no need to trace. Move the plane away and use the Project tool.

2 Likes
4

Sorry, it’s a .step file.

5

TigerMike…you are a monster! Thanks for this.

It’s still interesting that when trying to create the original spline, multiple ones are created. I’m still curious what causes that.

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:tiger: Grrrrrrrrr

4 Likes
7

Hey @jcclow,
The spline you see appearing is the projection of the edge. As the control point you place has to be snapped to a sketch object, the edge is automatically projected.