I have an .stl mesh shape I need to trim. I Have ViaCAD 2D/3D and am considering purchasing Pro (I have the trial version). Can this mesh be trimmed with either of these programs and if so, how do I do it? I have tried intersecting other shapes and solids but so far haven't found the right combination.:confused:
See attached file

Cutting bits off an .stl mesh changes the way that the edges and vertices of many faces meet, which will mean that the object doesn't fit formal .stl criteria anymore, so many RP devices and programs won't recognise them or will choke on them, which usually leads to folk blaming the program that the object was 'trimmed' in for breaking their file... That being said, you can edit the object in VC, either by converting it to a solid boolean operand (click on the object with stitch-to-solid, yours takes more than a half hour on all of my PCs), by editing the vertices, or by global scaling. Editing the vertices is less likely to break the .stl definition.

Are you looking for something like attached file?

http://www.csi-concepts.com/Demo/misc/partridge2.zip


Tim

Ok, see if this reads in. I've got some extra developer tools that I used to trim away facets not on the shape, then used another tool to create a polyline on the outline. Not sure if this is what your looking for, but it was fun to test out some tools:)

http://www.csi-concepts.com/Demo/misc/partridge2v7.zip

Tim

Mesh modelers are very good at doing the kind of work you wanted done. But they can be problematic in other ways. You might try having a master model in CAD, then exporting it as a mesh, such as in STL format. In this way you can improve your design and output improved mesh files over time? Just an idea.