Slicing Without Common Sense

[hopmedic]

Please take a look at this attached STL, and the attached gcode file. Look around layer 50, at how Simplify3D sliced it, which defies common sense. There are overhangs which are meant to be solidly attached to the wall that they are attached to, yet Simplify3D sliced the file as if these are separate pieces, greatly weakening the structure. These should be integrated with the perimeters of the walls that they are attached to, not having separate perimeters. This doesn't make sense.

Granted, I'm brand new to S3D, but this just seems to defy logic.

[dkightley]

Try using the Separate Connected Surfaces option on the Mesh dropdown menu.

The .stl is made up of three separate meshes that result in S3D slicing them separately unless you separate them first...and then the slicer combines them into one object!!

[hopmedic]

That works. Thanks! It seems rather counter to common sense, though, as "separate" connected surfaces sounds like the opposite if what I want, since I wanted to join them.

Regardless of the word, it works. Thanks!

[danielhenley]

Machines don't have "common sense," if you give it multiple objects it will print them as multiple objects, to avoid this you need to merge them.

Microsoft's model repair website does a great job at merging multiple meshes into one model:

https://netfabb.azurewebsites.net/

[hopmedic]

The common sense that I was referring to was in naming the command. I used the separate command and it joined the meshes together. It did the opposite of what "separate" means.

[dkightley]

The option I suggested DOES separate...it separates un-joined meshes that exist in one model into separate models having one mesh each.

S3D has a whizzo feature that where SEPARATE models overlap, they are automatically joined for the purposes of slicing.

Put these two entirely sensible and logical process steps together......and you get what you call "without common sense"....but what I call a very useful feature.

Just goes to prove differing opinions!!