Cleaning up files

[Lt72884]

I have attached a file and a pic and i need some help cleaning it up. Moslty hiding the lines is fine. But on the top or bottom face, if i could get that to be one face,rather than many, that would be great. I need to try oput the fem wb on freed cad with this part and i need to glue down one of the top faces.

Second question, in version 0.19.. I FINALLY got the stl to convert to a shape. I then tried to do part, copy, refine shape and it locked up. The files that i was converting were from the MPCNC primo project.

thanks

[drmacro]

Maybe try the Defeaturing workbench. One click:

Snip macro screenshot-f2265b.png (136.75 KiB) Viewed 955 times

[kisolre]

I dont know why those people dont provide sources. Anyone that can use the design maliciously can easily recreate from available STL-s. Any one that needs to tweak something needs to jump through hoops to do so.
This for example is 8 sketches PartDesign body.

[Lt72884]

because not everyone creates sketches in freecad. This solid coupler was made by me in sketchup pro because i find sketchup pro easier. I am CSWP but prefere the way sketchup pro draws. I do not like the method solidworks,freecad,f360, inventor,pro-e, or creo use to create drawings, even though im certifide in most fo those, i do not like it. I prefere how sketchup draws. I dont have to continually pick which plane to draw on. its literally like drawing on paper for me. This discussion is beyond the scope of this post.

My goal is to create my parts in sketchup pro, and then FEM/FEA test them in freecad. I have gmsh to hopefully convert the stl to a fea mesh that freecad can use. If that doesnt work, then the next bet is to convert the stl to a solid, which i have done in the attached file, but just need to clean up.

thanks

[Lt72884]

Maybe try the Defeaturing workbench. One click:

Snip macro screenshot-f2265b.png

I will try that out. thank you for the post and information. Sometimes refine part locks up my pc alot haha

[kisolre]

My goal is to create my parts in sketchup pro,

So your sources are the SKP files, which as I read are meshes ?!? How did you get different tesselation densities in the other thread?
Anyway here is a remodeled coupler if all else fails...

[chrisb]

Can't Sketchup export to Step format? That is much more appropriate for exchanging 3D models. They almost always work out of the box, no fiddling, no repairing, no tesselation.
STL is ok as an output format, but not as input.

[Lt72884]

My goal is to create my parts in sketchup pro,

So your sources are the SKP files, which as I read are meshes ?!? How did you get different tesselation densities in the other thread?
Anyway here is a remodeled coupler if all else fails...

Because that other part wasnt designed by me. If it were, it would have been alot cleaner haha. I dont know how it was designed. i was just testing

[Lt72884]

Can't Sketchup export to Step format? That is much more appropriate for exchanging 3D models. They almost always work out of the box, no fiddling, no repairing, no tesselation.
STL is ok as an output format, but not as input.

That is one of my MIAN issues with sketchup... they dont export to a step or iges file. So i have to find an inbetween. This is where im hoping freecad can come into play.

Sketchup can export as dxf,dwg, stl,obj,dae, and stl. none of which play nice for fem. I tried using gmsh to open the stl and create a fea mesh but it was failing like crazy and my stl was a basic block haha.

one reason i am trying to get the stl version to work. its one of my assignments for a upper dvsion engineering class. I have to do a cas study on stls, fea and materials. They want to see if its possible to use opensource stuff to fea test on stl files.

i downloaded design spark mechanical to see if it can convert to a step or a solid and then use freecad to do the fem.

any ideas would be great haha

[Lt72884]

FYI, i apologize for any gruffness in speech. Im not being gruff but text makes it seem so. Thanks for all your help