More fun with moulding

[drmdzh]

OK, so now I finally have my piece of molding, I duplicated it and now I'm trying to join the two together at 90 to form a doorway. I can just lay them together and render and it looks fine, but I'd like to actually subtract the overlapping solid from each piece.

I have tried to Add solid, Subtract solid and intersect solid, I always get a "Cannot be computed" error due to the geometry.

So I figured I'd make a block at 45 to the piece and just "cut" off the end of each and put them together. When I did that and tried to subtract I got a "You tried to create a solid object which cannot be computed" error.

So cutting my moulding on a 45 can't be computed?

[Guest]

Can you post the file?

[drmdzh]

sure.

[G_Hannigan]

David,

Use: Model>Extrude Along Path

Draw a polyline for your door frame - open at bottom.

Select both objects, Extrude Along Path, highlight the path, OK.

It will probably be wrong on the first try. Double click on the extrude, edit the profile by rotating until it sits properly. The profile follows the path based on the center of the profile. You can adjust the size of the path or by editing the profile & move it relative to cross hairs that appear in the edit window.

George

[drmdzh]

That seems a kind of inacurate way of doing it, but I tried it. It says There were objects that were selected that were illegal in extrude... deselected. It deselected the profile.

[Gytis]

Don't work from the object history. Copy your base polygon and Extrude Along Path as George recommends. I tried it with your file, no prob. Lots of users do molding like this.

[Guest]

Try the directions in the attached file:

[G_Hannigan]

When I try it in your file I get an error. When I copy & paste the profile into a new file it works fine.

It's very accurate. After you create the Extrude Along Path object and enter the profile edit mode, the cross hairs are at 0,0 and represent the path axis . You can use the move command to locate the profile relative to the path.

George

[drmdzh]

Excellent, that worked. Now the only problem is, when I render, the wood grain is all going the same way, instead of down on the side and across on top. So I still have to cut it into separate pieces to render it accurately. Which of course I can't do because I get the "geometry" error again.

Why is it that I couldn't add the two pieces of moulding together or "cut" the moulding at an angle? what was up with the geometry?

[Ray Libby]

Use the Split Tool in Line Trim Mode to miter the moldings. Check out the two Line Trim Modes, press the Alt key to only trim selected objects.

[drmdzh]

Split tool doesn't do anything to the moulding, doesn't give me an error, just doesn't do anything. Line mode.

[Ray Libby]

Your profile was too complicated. All the arcs in the profile were made up of multiple segments of lines and the bottom was made of more than one line. I cleaned up the profile and now it works with the split tool. I fixed the molding extrude on the left and cleaned up and pasted your profile beside it. Double click on the extruded molding at the left to edit the profile. Select the profile and choose deselect. Now do it on the extrued molding on the right and you should see what I mean.

Edited August 23, 2007 by Ray Libby

[drmdzh]

Wait, I Ungrouped it, then it worked. Thanks! Sorry I'm such a pain.