Hi. I use Rhino for 3D modelling. I have 3d modeled for six years but only been 3D printing stuff for about a year now.
I have successfully printed many models but I am still not entirely clear on what makes a model good for printing (rather than just a 3D rendering.)
I always prepare the model as all extruded surfaces and boolean them together and make sure I have one joined surface. I also always convert the mesh while still in rhino and I use some of the basic repair tools they have there - unify normals, cull degenerate faces.
I then export the model as an stl file. and I use the basic netfabb program to fix the model. I have a basic understanding of this program and have used it to reorient faces and make sure I only have one shell. Other than that, everything in this phase is not clear to me.
my questions:
1) what repair tools do you use in rhino when preparing your mesh for printing. are there any checks that all printable models should pass?
2) I know the model needs to be one shell and that the whole model should show as green in nettfabb in order to be printed. What are the other parameters the model should fit into to be printable?
If anyone has advice, I would really appreciate it. Thank you.
-Susan