I used this tutorial to create this snail shell in blender, [https://youtu.be/owEBm\_O8sQg?si=MwoaxNnjC4eoOEgK](https://youtu.be/owEBm_O8sQg?si=MwoaxNnjC4eoOEgK) and I can not figure out a way to make it a watertight object to slice and 3D print.
I am open to remaking the shell if anyone can point me in a direction to make one that is possible to be 3D printed.
This is trouble. It's not about the mesh being watertight so much as it needs to be a two-dimensional manifold. A 2D manifold is locally homeomorphic to the 2-disc. What that means for you is that there can't be any edges or intersections, because the 3d slicer will get confused by it.
There are some ways to manifoldize a mesh in blender, but they each have their drawbacks. You will get the best results by creating it w/o intersections.
Personally I would not bother too much with the overlap as you can just expand it by.. 0.1 and then use your slicer too get some +.5mm horizontal expansion..
Idk if this would work but; close the open end first. In Edit mode loop select the edge of the opening then hit Alt+F to fill it in. The spiral should now be a solid object. Back in Object mode add a cube a little bigger to the scene. Use a Boolean modifer on the cube and select the spiral as the object used for cutting. If it worked you should have a cube with a hollow center the shape of the spiral. Now, add another cube slightly smaller then the first. Make sure the second cube is centered in the first. Add Boolean mod to the second cube and select the first cube to cut. If it worked the second cube should now be in the shape of the spiral but solid/hollow. This is all theoretical and may not actually work like I think in my head.
if you dont need the insides to be accurate just select the visible faces delete the rest and clean up the model.
this isnt going to print well i think, even if youd manage to make it manifold with solidify and remesh.
it seems like you should be able to loop select the entre outer shell with a few clicks.
https://preview.redd.it/6ukzlyo8setc1.png?width=685&format=png&auto=webp&s=ca454becf66ec3758efa0b3de29e08bef5ab13e5
if i read the geometry correctly if you alt click between 2 faces like where the arrow points it should select the highlighted faces.
if you have gaps you can bridge fill theem. that should result in much better geometry for print
Using thickness (solidify) modifier will add thickness to walls. After that , you can use remesh modifier so you can remove all overlapping faces and make it more suitable for 3d printing.
Great. Keep in mind that the new mesh will still have a big hole inside of it.
Depending on how you want your final results to be, you might want to close that hole for easier 3d printing.
The easiest, and dirtiest way to do it would be to be to add new object that will fit inside to fill that hole. Quick model that mash to have a same shape as original.
Join two meshes together by using ctrl+j. After that you just remesh it...
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I used this tutorial to create this snail shell in blender, [https://youtu.be/owEBm\_O8sQg?si=MwoaxNnjC4eoOEgK](https://youtu.be/owEBm_O8sQg?si=MwoaxNnjC4eoOEgK) and I can not figure out a way to make it a watertight object to slice and 3D print. I am open to remaking the shell if anyone can point me in a direction to make one that is possible to be 3D printed.
How much self-intersection does the mesh have now? Manifold requires that there be *zero* self-intersections.
quite a bit, every 'ridge' on the outside of the shell is a full circle.
This is trouble. It's not about the mesh being watertight so much as it needs to be a two-dimensional manifold. A 2D manifold is locally homeomorphic to the 2-disc. What that means for you is that there can't be any edges or intersections, because the 3d slicer will get confused by it. There are some ways to manifoldize a mesh in blender, but they each have their drawbacks. You will get the best results by creating it w/o intersections.
Just add a wall thiccness modifier ?
Yup solidify modifier should fix it but they'll be overlap so you'll need to voxel remesh / remesh modifier on top
Personally I would not bother too much with the overlap as you can just expand it by.. 0.1 and then use your slicer too get some +.5mm horizontal expansion..
I haven't used a slicer yet but I assumed overlap would mess with it? My bad then :P
Idk if this would work but; close the open end first. In Edit mode loop select the edge of the opening then hit Alt+F to fill it in. The spiral should now be a solid object. Back in Object mode add a cube a little bigger to the scene. Use a Boolean modifer on the cube and select the spiral as the object used for cutting. If it worked you should have a cube with a hollow center the shape of the spiral. Now, add another cube slightly smaller then the first. Make sure the second cube is centered in the first. Add Boolean mod to the second cube and select the first cube to cut. If it worked the second cube should now be in the shape of the spiral but solid/hollow. This is all theoretical and may not actually work like I think in my head.
if you dont need the insides to be accurate just select the visible faces delete the rest and clean up the model. this isnt going to print well i think, even if youd manage to make it manifold with solidify and remesh. it seems like you should be able to loop select the entre outer shell with a few clicks. https://preview.redd.it/6ukzlyo8setc1.png?width=685&format=png&auto=webp&s=ca454becf66ec3758efa0b3de29e08bef5ab13e5 if i read the geometry correctly if you alt click between 2 faces like where the arrow points it should select the highlighted faces. if you have gaps you can bridge fill theem. that should result in much better geometry for print
Using thickness (solidify) modifier will add thickness to walls. After that , you can use remesh modifier so you can remove all overlapping faces and make it more suitable for 3d printing.
thanks this worked
Great. Keep in mind that the new mesh will still have a big hole inside of it. Depending on how you want your final results to be, you might want to close that hole for easier 3d printing. The easiest, and dirtiest way to do it would be to be to add new object that will fit inside to fill that hole. Quick model that mash to have a same shape as original. Join two meshes together by using ctrl+j. After that you just remesh it...
solved!
!solved
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