Hi Frederick,

re:
> how did you make them fully smooth?

I turned on their control points and used Transform > Align to make these points all exactly in line:




> but I'm still running into some issues when adding fillets to my solid objects. See my latest posts for details.

I posted a reply above, but I'm having a hard time finding the location that matches your screenshots.

Like where is this one for example:



I think I found your #1 which is a normal result and I thought your #2 is here but your screenshot has a sharp corner while the model has a juncture patch:





It kind of makes it hard to answer your questions when the file is different than your screenshot.

- Michael

Michael,

Thanks for explaining how CAD fillets work. I'm more used to polygon modeling, where I always expect bevels (fillets) to line up evenly. As long as the fillets I created are considered normal in CAD, that makes sense. I'll make sure to save separate 3DM files with the correct views for any future questions.

The only thing I still don’t understand is the fillet on the top outer edge of the model. It seems to align correctly in the Front view, but not in the Right view. I fixed it by cutting and deleting a portion of the outer side surface, then closing it off again using a Loft between the top fillet curve and the open curve on the bottom side.

I’ve attached a 3DM file with the camera focused on the problem area. It should match the screenshot I posted earlier.

Thanks again,
Frederik

Hi Frederick,

re:
> The only thing I still don’t understand is the fillet on the top outer edge of the model. It seems to
> align correctly in the Front view, but not in the Right view

Looks like a cosmetic display artifact with the display mesher not generating enough triangles in that area to make it look nice.

The display mesher is focused on doing things fast, when you do an export the export mesher is more tuned towards higher quality.

So it's just something to ignore, it doesn't need to be fixed:



At export, it looks like this:



- Michael

For the fillet widths not matching, the fillet width is purely a function of the angle between the 2 surfaces being filleted:


When each of those is filleted with a radius 1 fillet, it will make this:


So each of those fillets is made up of a radius 1 arc but with a longer or shorter length of the arc:


- Michael

Thanks again, Michael — good to know! I'm making some progress now. There are still a few bumps, but I’m getting there.

Hi again,

I've built a backplate for my holder, and now that I'm nearly finished, I feel like the base is a bit too long. Is it possible to just select and move "the lip" of the model, or is rebuilding the shape the only way to go?

I've attached the two 3DM models shown in the screenshots.

Thanks,
Frederik

Hi Frederik, in general it can be difficult to edit pieces by dragging when you've got fillets and shelling applied.

For your case here though you can use construction techniques to edit it - draw in a rectangle like this:



Select the object and run Construct > Boolean > Difference and then select the rectangle as the cutting object which will make this:



Drag the end piece over:



And then select both pieces and run Construct > Boolean > Union:



- Michael

For your blue object, it is possible to remove that edge using boolean union which will merge faces that are coplanar.

Select this face:


Use Edit > Separate to break it off as a separate object, then select the 2 pieces and run Construct > Boolean > Union.

Or another way - you could delete those 2 faces and prepare a selection like this and use Construct > Planar:





- Michael

That worked great — thanks for showing both of these techniques! I didn’t know that curves could be used for Booleans like that — I always thought it only worked with solid objects.

I used some Booleans to trim the rounded shapes, and I think that caused a lot of broken edges — tiny segments. I can join them, but whenever I separate the edges again, they split into all these little pieces.

Is there a way to merge or “Boolean” these edges together somehow, to get a cleaner model? It gets very tricky to apply a Fillet or Chamfer to these tiny bits. I’ve tried creating Closed Curves from the edge outlines, but I can’t seem to use them to generate a Fillet.

(New 3DM file attached)

Thanks again,
Frederik

Hi Frederik,

re:
> Is there a way to merge or “Boolean” these edges together somehow, to get a cleaner model?
> It gets very tricky to apply a Fillet or Chamfer to these tiny bits.

You can use the Merge command for that:
https://moi3d.com/4.0/docs/moi_command_reference10.htm#merge

Select the whole object, type the Tab key to put focus in the bottom XYZ input, then type Merge <enter> and those fragmented edges will be combined.


> I’ve tried creating Closed Curves from the edge outlines, but I can’t seem to use them to generate a Fillet.

A curve is its own separate object, it isn't connected to the solid.

To make a fillet on the solid you need to select edges which are part of the solid, not separate curve objects.

- Michael

Thanks for explaining curves vs edges. I'm starting to understand the modeling process better. The Merge command worked great, thanks!

/ Frederik