# Shapr3D frequently unable to subtract

**URL:** <https://discourse.shapr3d.com/t/shapr3d-frequently-unable-to-subtract/13720>\
**Category:** Modeling Questions\
**Created:** [July 7, 2021, 7:52pm UTC](https://discourse.shapr3d.com/t/shapr3d-frequently-unable-to-subtract/13720 "2021-07-07T19:52:46Z")\
**Posts on this page:** 3\
**Page:** 1

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**Author:** ![Hipcat](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/d78d45/32.png) [@Hipcat](https://discourse.shapr3d.com/u/Hipcat)\
**Post date:** [July 7, 2021, 7:52pm UTC](https://discourse.shapr3d.com/t/shapr3d-frequently-unable-to-subtract/13720/1 "2021-07-07T19:52:46Z")

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[![]( " - YouTube") ](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_VepUK_Iq_c)

Only me? I run into this constantly and have no idea what I’m doing wrong. Maybe the shape is too complex? I can subtract a cylinder from the same face.

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**Author:** ![KPeter](https://sea2.discourse-cdn.com/flex002/user_avatar/discourse.shapr3d.com/kpeter/32/7644_2.png) [@KPeter](https://discourse.shapr3d.com/u/KPeter)\
**Post date:** [July 8, 2021, 11:34am UTC](https://discourse.shapr3d.com/t/shapr3d-frequently-unable-to-subtract/13720/2 "2021-07-08T11:34:06Z")

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Hello! When you are working with the Boolean tools, please make sure to have a clear intersection between the bodies and try to avoid surfaces that are tangent with each other. In this case, please draw a rectangle that covers the filleted cutout shape (or it may be bigger a bit) and select that cross-section also for the extrusion.

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**Author:** ![Spencer.G](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/e8c25b/32.png) [@Spencer.G](https://discourse.shapr3d.com/u/Spencer.G)\
**Post date:** [July 9, 2021, 3:38pm UTC](https://discourse.shapr3d.com/t/shapr3d-frequently-unable-to-subtract/13720/3 "2021-07-09T15:38:43Z")

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Another suggestion. Create a plane that’s offset a little bit back from the cut you’re trying to make and project your cutting tool onto there, then extrude that into your shape. I find shaprs subtract tool tends to work a lot more happily when it has a little bit of a running start to work with for odd cuts. Might not work, but worth a shot