kmwhitt

Andrew - Thanks for the reply. I was finally able to figure it out late last night. I opened a newer file and reset all prefs and project settings.

I am unable to open FormZ or any associated files as I am continuously prompted to open library files (.zlb) that do not exist. I loaded some old prefs to retrieve some export settings and I suspect this is what started the problem. How do I go about getting this resolved so that I can actually use the program?

Thanks guys. Works perfectly!

Can someone please tell me why I am unable to get the attached working? FormZ refuses to perform the loft due to the profile shapes not touching the guide lines. I believe they are. guided_loft.zip

Worked great. Thanks.

I am finding it impossible to get hidden line to show all the edges that I need for an elevation - see first pic. The second attachment shows a shaded view of the missing panel. At one time we could specify the cut-off angle for drawing these edges. Does a setting like this still exist and I have overlooked it? If not, what does support suggest?

I appreciate the feedback. Of course, I use object snaps. This form was created using a sweep, so if there was misalignment it was due to that operation and the perpendicular loft.

The gap I found was in the large piece - not the trim pieces. The large piece aside - when I try unioning the two profiles by themselves, the boolean does not take. Are you finding a gap between the trim pieces also? I have attached a stripped down version of the file - just the two objects. I see no gaps between these two pieces and the operation will not execute. If you do see a gap, please point it out. Thanks. two trim pieces.zip

No, the gaps were not intentional. Thanks for pointing these out. Your suggestion regarding the surfaces, is this deriving surfaces from the existing geometry or starting over from scratch? If starting over from scratch, how would it be possible to get the transition from the dented trim to the smooth? Are you suggesting another perp loft?

I was able to get the shape I wanted using the perp loft, however, now that the geometry has differing topology, I am unable to boolean union the entire piece together. Can anyone direct me on how I get the attached to be a solid - all in one piece? I suspect were the 2-source sweep working properly, this would give me exactly what I need as the topology would match up. As it is not working correctly, I will need to find another way... perp loft.zip

Hi VVA - I explored this tool, however, my path has to turn a corner and maintain a flat 90 degrees on the bottom - not like what I get with the perp loft (attached). This should be possible using a 2-source sweep, but it doesn't seem to work. That said, I guess I could perform an additional axial sweep and union these two shapes together. Thanks for the suggestion! Kevin

R2D2 - That's a clever trick. Thanks for sharing it!

Allan - Thanks for your input. The problem with using all solids for the characters is that you can't project a solid or at least not that I'm aware. The goal here was to place concentric text around the base of the knob with the project curve tool. In the future, I will probably take the moderator's advice and give the text a slight thickness without differencing. However, I shouldn't have to do it this way if I want the text imprinted. FYI - I did use object doctor and it detected no abnormalities with the problem geometry. Kevin

I would appreciate it if someone could give me pointers on performing what should be a simple two source sweep. In the first image you see the two sources and path being used. In the second image you see the best I can do using centroid alignment. The other alignments don't seem to work. The result seen in the second image is not acceptable as the shapes on either side of the "channel" are not symmetrical (easier to see in full shaded - third image). In past versions of FMZ I would have approached this using faceted sources. This way I knew how many points needed to be on each source and how they should align. How is this supposed to be accomplished now that everything is smooth? For example, should I be adding more control points to the second source shape? If so, how many and where are they to be located? Something else that troubles me is that I don't seem to be able to use "as positioned" for the 2-source sweep. This would save me lots of time as I plan on creating several sweeps with various sources to outline some geometry. It looks as though I will have to move each generated sweep into proper position if I can even get them to work. 2SOURCESWEEP.fzb.zip

I swear these questions are not meant to annoy. I really am just trying to understand. If I have to rebuild these characters, that's okay, but don't leave me hanging if you consider this post closed.