Disappearing Model Letters

For my first project I tried to make a pendant for a necklace on Google Sketchup, with a very typical Mozambican expression "Menenge Nice" where "menenge" is Shangaan for "Very". I exported the file to Collada and uploaded to Shapeways, but the preview shows a bunch of letters missing from the model, as well as the basic loops needed to hold the pendant.

https://www.shapeways.com/model/414993/second_test.html?gid=u g

Is this due to some design problem (walls less than 2mm think and so forth)? Will the actual print follow the incomplete preview model on Shapeways, or will it print out properly? Any help from more experienced modelers and Shapeway users will be much appreciated!

you are not getting any response because your model is set to private... you might get more help if we could see the model in your shop ... and i would also suggest a picture instead of the model itself... if for no other reason then protection from poaching.

as to your problem i would venture to guess that the polygon's in the text part of your model are turned backwards... but that is just a guess and since i am not much of a sketchup artist i 'll leave that up to the people that are.

Hi and Welcome to Shapeways,

I took a quick look at your model and the main issue lays with overlapping faces sharing common 'space'.



To remedy the problem, I loaded your file into MeshLab, saved as an stl and then used NetFabb Basic to give it the once over and then just for kicks saved the file from NetFabb as an stl again - gave it a test upload and everything looks ok. I haven't a clue what dimensions or measurement units you're using for the model, so you'll need to rescale the file (NetFabb works fot this) - file to follow.

Here's the file.

Wow,

Is everyone in the Shapeways forum so helpful? What a great community. Thanks for your help, much appreciated. Uploaded the file which looked great, and now ordered and hopefully dispatched!

A follow up question for the more knowledgeable folk out there. I am new to 3-D printing which I've been looking into in my spare time for a few weeks now. I am very interested in learning more about the history of the industry and the industry in general, companies, business models, software, that kind of stuff. So far I've been looking into companies like Shapeways, Ponoko, and printer manufacturers such as Z-Corp, Makerbot, or 3D Systems. Are there any books and other sources you would recommend for someone like myself trying to get familiarized with this world? So far the only convincing book I have found is this on Amazon, (which I haven't read yet):

http://www.amazon.com/Additive-Manufacturing-Technologies-Pr ototyping-Digital/dp/1441911197/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1 324906959&sr=8-1

I am particularly interested in the applications 3D printing might have in Africa. This isn't a random interest; I live in Mozambique and work with some start-ups there. 3D printing could help solve serious problems with the cost of logistics, and the unreliability of logistics. For example, spare mechanical parts can cost up to 3 times as much in Tete as they would cost in Johhanesburg (let alone in the US), which is 700 miles away. This is due to the cost of transport (bad roads, no rail, long delays at customs) and middle men. It is also highly unreliable, which means multi million dollar investments will stop for days until they receive the critical replacement part, or irrigation systems will go unfixed for months or even years because people don't know where to get a replacement for the parts some aid agency bought in Canada back in the day.

Any orientation you might be able to provide on how to learn more about the industry would be greatly appreciated. I will be in the East Coast of the US during January as well so I can try and visit any companies you might recommend.

Thanks again for your help.