OK, so I downloaded netfab. but I am clueless. I am trying to determine the size of my models. I want to order two more, and the previous two where both miraculously 10 inches in height. can anyone walk me through the process to make sure they come out exactly the height I want them to come out each time? thanks
Use Nefabb to open the file.. look in the two areas circled below.] The sizes will be the same after uploading to Shapeways. The volume could decrease. If you have overlapping shells, then Shapeway's upload software joins the volumes together so that overlapping areas don't count twice.
So, I d id this. at th every least, it won't come out any SMALLER than the size Shapeways lists, right? in my case, 5.86 inches in height. but it COULD come back talller?
Yes but only to the extent stated under "Accuracy" on the relevant page in the "Materials" menu. The only case where you will get a gross mismatch of sizes is when you choose the wrong units on upload - but the size shapeways lists will always be what they will produce, plus or minus the fractions of a millimeter from printer accuracy.
but here's the thing I don't get. Mini Donatello came in today. tHe size they gave me seems to be 5.56 inches. For mini Leo, the size they gave me seems to be 5.1 inches. However, Mini Leo clearly came back bigger at 7 inches. And Mini Don clearly came back voluminously smaller, even though his height was about right. to me, it seems to be totally random at what you will get. and both where uploaded in obj form.
Which "size they gave me" would that be ? You will see X,Y,Z dimensions that relate to the orientation chosen by shapeways for that particular file format, could it be that you simply looked at the wrong axis dimension ?
yeah,... looking at what I received and what I uploaded, it SEEMS to be going bydiameter size, not height size. so, I've reconfigured to match and ordered two new models. will see if my theory is right.
Measure the length of that staff he's holding. You will probably find that to be the 5.1" measurement. As @mkroker said, the "height" of something is all dependent upon which axis your design software considers to be "up", versus what the Shapeways Upload software considers to be "up". Certain file formats are considered to be "Z-up", but others are assumed to be "Y-up", and that may not match what your design software uses.