Preparing a SOLIDWORKS model for 3D Printing

[@MuffinManBrander]

Great video. After Fusion 360 shifted to subscriptions for Makers Ive been forced to learn Solidworks. Still a great program but Ive got curious why my STLs were faceted so heavily. This video helped me fix my problem. THANKS!

[@woodtech1951]

Pro tip, add texture, it will hide the 'seam' that 3D printers end up making where the 'step up' is located.

[@andreaherrerajaritas6557]

You're great explaining man, thank you!

[@devaslink]

This was an amazing video, thank you!

[@hawkridgesystems]

Thanks!

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[@cadealfred8360]

@Ali Arturo instablaster :)

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[@sammcentee5624]

Hi! what 3D printer do you use? Also, would you reccomend using Solidworks or Fusion 360? Thanks!

[@fanoman3523]

wow,thank you really i was unable to print on 3d after i have finished the design on solidworks and i hope this video may fix my problem.

[@jme2006]

Honestly, the worst part is not making Z up in solidworks. This should have been a simple checkbox on export save as options.

[@abidullah91]

It was very helpful. Thank you

[@johncorraya1126]

Thank you for a nice video

[@agungwija_]

It works great, thanks man!

[@lonelygamermitch9189]

If I set deviation and angle to max does it just make a big file size or does it increase print times or filament used? Sorry very new to all this.

[@jacobames8768]

Great question! Using the Coarse setting for resolution or manually increasing angle/deviation will actually reduce the resulting file size, but will result in fewer triangles (and therefore a faceted appearance and a poorer surface quality). As far as print time, there may be some minor differences depending on the equipment you're using, but generally it should not be affected much as print time is mostly determined by the size of your object. I hope this helps, and thanks for watching!

[@alexandermendoza1158]

Old but gold

[@WarlordX7]

thanks for this. now my print looks better but i have a problem you might know how to solve, i designed something in solidworks and it has multiple parts but i need it to be printed as one piece, so i assembled it and when i come to save as stl it says saving 10 files. i dont want those 10 to be separate, i need it to be 1 print together. would you have any idea how to do it?

[@jacobames8768]

Hi Warlord, That can definitely be fixed! After setting the file type to STL when doing a Save As, look for an Options button on the menu. This Options button should take you to a settings page for STLs. Near the bottom of that page, you should see a checkbox labeled "Save all components of an assembly in a single file." You'll want to make sure that checkbox is turned on, then click OK and save the STL file. This should combine all the components into one. I hope this works for you!

[@NSEERAPUMANOHAR]

how can we analyse the three-D printed part compared to conventional manfacturing process?

[@elliottbridge2232]

I'm sorry you haven't gotten any comments so far, but your video was superb. I have solidworks student edition and I am 16 (nearly 17) years old working towards the solidworks csw exams. I am going to be using solidworks for 3d printing as something fun alongside. My school has the 3d printer and it is fairly small but I am free to use it whenever. I was wondering if I was able to use solidworks alone to prepare the file for the 3d printer (as in put it on a usb and plug it in for example) or if you need a seperate program to process it. I am completely new to 3d printing and will appreciate your help. Yours Faithfully, Elliott Bridge

[@hawkridgesystems]

Hi Elliott, we appreciate your feedback and are glad you enjoyed the video! Feel free to contact us directly here: bit.ly/2DnIy3J and one of our 3D Printing experts in your area would be happy to help you!

[@darthecirava5285]

Thank you

[@Sana-zm3tn]

Great video, thank you! I do have one question, when I 3D print something I get left with a kind of like 3D printed surface on the bottom that cover a bigger section. I think the 3D printer uses this as its base. Is there a way to get rid of this base?

[@thewolf8660]

Sand it off, or carefully cut it off.

[@cameronication]

That's likely what is called "raft" or it's support material for overhanging geometry. Sometimes those are necessary to prevent warping or bad geometry. Every software is different, but you will find that within the printing software that came with your printer, typically it can be adjusted or switched off. Playing with the settings you will find a compromise between surface quality and getting good results.

[@DanielTorres-lm2cp]

is that considered to be mesh? 5:11

[@jacobames8768]

This is an STL mesh file, but it's being displayed as a graphics body in SOLIDWORKS for better performance. It would look nearly identical if displayed as a true mesh body but would be a bit slower on the system. I hope this helps!

[@zainabalknery1035]

Hello. Please could you help me in preparing my models for 3D printing?

[@ryanlewis2958]

great thank you

[@anhedon7765]

thank you

[@stevenswitzer1724]

Thank You