# Out of scale when exporting to obj?

**URL:** <https://discourse.shapr3d.com/t/out-of-scale-when-exporting-to-obj/6863>\
**Category:** Modeling Questions\
**Created:** [March 13, 2020, 11:47am UTC](https://discourse.shapr3d.com/t/out-of-scale-when-exporting-to-obj/6863 "2020-03-13T11:47:34Z")\
**Posts on this page:** 7\
**Page:** 1

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**Author:** ![dogdamnit](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/7c8e57/32.png) [@dogdamnit](https://discourse.shapr3d.com/u/dogdamnit)\
**Post date:** [March 13, 2020, 11:47am UTC](https://discourse.shapr3d.com/t/out-of-scale-when-exporting-to-obj/6863/1 "2020-03-13T11:47:34Z")

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I want to use some of my designs in other 3D softwares (i.e. CLO, which need .obj format). My design seems to be correct in scale (using metric/mm), but for some reason, the exportet .obj is tiny!  
When trying to open in “Windows 3D buider”, I have to select “meters” as a scale, which results in the correct size of the design. Unfortunately that means a lot of manual scaling in CLO, which isn’t great.  
Is there something I am doing wrong, or how can I solve the issue?  
Thanks!

(I tried to attach a test design, that according to my shapr3D should be 8.6 x 5.1 x 2 mm, but the system doesn’t allow me to upload since I am a new user 😉 )

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**Author:** ![Victor\_Shapr3D](https://sea2.discourse-cdn.com/flex002/user_avatar/discourse.shapr3d.com/victor_shapr3d/32/3502_2.png) [@Victor\_Shapr3D](https://discourse.shapr3d.com/u/Victor_Shapr3D)\
**Post date:** [March 13, 2020, 3:43pm UTC](https://discourse.shapr3d.com/t/out-of-scale-when-exporting-to-obj/6863/2 "2020-03-13T15:43:00Z")

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Hi, OBJ is a unitless file type, so getting the expected scale is a balance between the source application’s set protocol for embedding numbers into the file, and how those numbers are read when imported.

For now scaling after import will be the workaround until we decide if we will implement a unit selection box on Import and Export for unitless file types. This way you can match units when sharing unitless file between CAD tools  
I found a doc on quick CLO scaling tips:

> **[Scale OBJ Trims](https://support.clo3d.com/hc/en-us/articles/115015735787-Scale-OBJ-Trims)**
>
> List of Contents
> Transform OBJ Trims 
> Scale OBJ Dimension 
>  
> Transform OBJ Trims - Transform OBJ files loaded as trim as needed. - Select the imported OBJ file loaded as trim and select the Scale ...

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**Author:** ![RonJeffries](https://sea2.discourse-cdn.com/flex002/user_avatar/discourse.shapr3d.com/ronjeffries/32/5708_2.png) [@RonJeffries](https://discourse.shapr3d.com/u/RonJeffries)\
**Post date:** [March 19, 2020, 5:19pm UTC](https://discourse.shapr3d.com/t/out-of-scale-when-exporting-to-obj/6863/3 "2020-03-19T17:19:08Z")

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i’ve had the same issue with the tutorial part going to obj. i thought it wasn’t exported, but it was just tiny. to import into Codea, i upscaled it by 1000, so it goes from about 50mm to 5m and is good sized.

can i upscale the object in Shapr? Will that change the perceived size in other apps? I’ve not found a way to scale the whole thing.

thanks!

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**Author:** ![Victor\_Shapr3D](https://sea2.discourse-cdn.com/flex002/user_avatar/discourse.shapr3d.com/victor_shapr3d/32/3502_2.png) [@Victor\_Shapr3D](https://discourse.shapr3d.com/u/Victor_Shapr3D)\
**Post date:** [March 19, 2020, 5:24pm UTC](https://discourse.shapr3d.com/t/out-of-scale-when-exporting-to-obj/6863/4 "2020-03-19T17:24:49Z")

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Hi Ron,

You can try upscaling the file first in Shapr before exporting.  
To Scale:  
Tap on Transform  
Tap on Scale  
Select the body and pull up the scale icon to upscale.

Let me know if this helps!

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**Author:** ![RonJeffries](https://sea2.discourse-cdn.com/flex002/user_avatar/discourse.shapr3d.com/ronjeffries/32/5708_2.png) [@RonJeffries](https://discourse.shapr3d.com/u/RonJeffries)\
**Post date:** [March 19, 2020, 11:11pm UTC](https://discourse.shapr3d.com/t/out-of-scale-when-exporting-to-obj/6863/5 "2020-03-19T23:11:11Z")

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thanks, that helped somewhat, but i set that bracket to a height of about half a meter, exported to .obj, converted that to dae with [convertmesh.com](http://convertmesh.com), imported the dae into second life and the resulting object was about one centimeter or less.

is there any general guidance on this topic or is it just trial and error?

thanks!

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**Author:** ![Victor\_Shapr3D](https://sea2.discourse-cdn.com/flex002/user_avatar/discourse.shapr3d.com/victor_shapr3d/32/3502_2.png) [@Victor\_Shapr3D](https://discourse.shapr3d.com/u/Victor_Shapr3D)\
**Post date:** [March 20, 2020, 2:56pm UTC](https://discourse.shapr3d.com/t/out-of-scale-when-exporting-to-obj/6863/6 "2020-03-20T14:56:28Z")

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Hi Ron,

Please can you set the units to MM in the app before exporting and also in Codea before you import the file?

Most apps seem to read entered dimension numbers for unitless file formats like the OBJ when importing with the unit set as MM.

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**Author:** ![RonJeffries](https://sea2.discourse-cdn.com/flex002/user_avatar/discourse.shapr3d.com/ronjeffries/32/5708_2.png) [@RonJeffries](https://discourse.shapr3d.com/u/RonJeffries)\
**Post date:** [March 20, 2020, 8:13pm UTC](https://discourse.shapr3d.com/t/out-of-scale-when-exporting-to-obj/6863/7 "2020-03-20T20:13:31Z")

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OK. I have created several cubes in various sizes. What Shapr seems to do is to equate 1 meter of Shapr size with a coordinate of 1.0 in the Obj file. So a one meter cube will have corners at 0,0,0, 1,1,1 and so on. If you scale in mm or meters or cm it remains true: 1 meter = 1.0.

If you scale in ft, 1 ft = .3408, which is exactly the number of meters in a foot.

Codea seems to have its internal coordinates in meters, so a standard Codea cube is 1 meter.

Someone should document this 🙂

I suspect that the problem when I went thru mesh [converter.com](http://converter.com) may have been an issue with that program, or with my mistaken interpretation of what I did.

Anyway Shapr makes sense once you realize its native outlook is meters.

Now if we just had texturing and UV maps …

Great program!