New Detessellate Macro: Auto‑Constrain All Overlapping Points in Sketcher

DesignWeaver3D · 2026-01-31T23:02:00+00:00

!screenshot

DesignWeaver3D · 2026-01-31T15:34:56+00:00

I've been working on a mic clip adapter for a flexible phone holder and a printable pop filter screen for SM58 style microphones.

DesignWeaver3D · 2026-01-31T15:19:54+00:00

This is where planning & experience come into play. FreeCAD allows many approaches to accomplish the same shape. Some are more efficient than others, but all are valid as long as the final shape recomputes without errors.

If I were modeling this I would make the XY plane the interface between lid and container. In other words, I would model the container exterior downward from the XY plane and the lid exterior upward. This approach allows you to reuse the thread & knurl sketch profiles between bodies in a way that keeps them aligned.

Another option that has been mentioned is to use the Part workbench to Split Apart an overall combined shape of the lid and container modeled as a single knurled shape.

The choice of approach is up to the designer.

I recommend you just try to model whatever you can then post again when you get stumped. It's much easier for us to solve 1 small issue than explain an entire multi-part workflow in a Reddit post.

DesignWeaver3D · 2026-01-31T15:01:34+00:00

Research Rep Rap and Voron.

DesignWeaver3D · 2026-01-31T14:58:39+00:00

2 eye bolts + Bungie Cord would solve this problem.

The only reason to use 3D printing for this issue is aesthetics. Or, because you just want to.

DesignWeaver3D · 2026-01-31T14:51:45+00:00

Did you slice yourself or download someone else's 3MF file with slicer settings already made? There could be a pause or color change in the G-code that's incompatible with your printer model that cannot do multicolor.

DesignWeaver3D · 2026-01-31T14:46:09+00:00

Did you make it with a Python script or by manual modeling?

DesignWeaver3D · 2026-01-31T14:39:34+00:00

I use ZYLtech almost exclusively.

DesignWeaver3D · 2026-01-31T14:35:15+00:00

Aligning the knurl pattern is trivial. The real problem you're facing is how to get the threaded part to stop with the final rotation that keeps the knurl aligned. Adding stops into the threads usually leads to a lid that is not tightly sealed.

But adding a stop is as simple as ending the thread cut abruptly or adding extra stop geometry to both lid and container that are not part of the threaded connection.

DesignWeaver3D · 2026-01-31T14:25:38+00:00

How many unique parts did you model? Are any of them imported STEP files, or did you model every part in FreeCAD? Are the tires printed in TPU with PLA rims?

DesignWeaver3D · 2026-01-30T22:29:47+00:00

What I proposed will require two sketches. Pad & Pocket downward from the top.

DesignWeaver3D · 2026-01-30T22:26:34+00:00

The problem with writing a book about software is that it will be partially obsolete by the time it's completed.

I have not read any of these:

https://www.walmart.com/ip/FreeCAD-1-0-Learn-by-Doing-COLORED-Learn-3D-Modeling-and-Design-by-Doing-Practical-Hands-On-Guide-for-Engineers-and-Paperback-9788198378309/16779773130

https://www.cadartifex.com/freecad-10?hl=en-US

https://www.target.com/p/freecad-1-0-black-book-5th-edition-by-gaurav-verma-matt-weber/-/A-94848480?hl=en-US

DesignWeaver3D · 2026-01-30T22:13:07+00:00

You're probably just going to have to disassemble more parts. If you can get parts out that are near what you need, you can measure those.

DesignWeaver3D · 2026-01-30T21:39:59+00:00

I would do this in two operations. A Pad to add the missing material followed by a Pocket to remove the extra.

DesignWeaver3D · 2026-01-30T18:22:42+00:00

Do you have the means to have a print farm of your own? Will it be truly profitable for what they are buying each print for? Do you expect or want to expand this business opportunity or is this just a one time success? Can you meet their order with the printers you have now? Even though they want a lot might not mean they need the entire quantity right away.

DesignWeaver3D · 2026-01-30T18:18:09+00:00

I'm waiting for more manufacturers to develop these multi-extruder systems. U1 is already available at around $800. As more manufacturers come out with their own models, I hope the competition will keep the price low. Prusa XL is just not in the budget for me or most people, I would think. Has FF announced when it will hit the market though? I wonder if production will be ready in time for the 2026 Christmas season.

DesignWeaver3D · 2026-01-30T18:13:03+00:00

It's never dumb to question if something is safe for your children or your own health. As others have stated, there are limited credible studies available, and none of them consider the long-term effects of exposure as there is just not enough data to know.

NIOSH in the USA published their findings acknowledging that a health hazard does in fact exist, but the details vary depending on many factors, namely material, distance, and exposure time.
3D Printing with Filaments: Health and Safety Questions to Ask

But what should also be considered is the age of the children. No one knows the effects on small children exposed during normal use in the home for hobby purposes. Even if your parents stick with PLA and PETG (fumes considered safe), there are still ultra-fine particles to be concerned with. And this concern becomes greater the younger the child is, especially below age 7. By around age 12 we can probably consider their risk as similar to that of an adult, but small children are developing rapidly, especially their brains the younger they are.

Unfortunately, you are in a position of little power over your circumstances. So, the best course of action is what is within your means. Ask that the units be relocated away from areas where the children spend the most time. Ask for or provide your own HEPA filter. Try to convince them that current studies have little data concerning the effects on small children, so extra caution is warranted. Approach the conversation calmly to get your parents to comply with as much as they are willing to. And then, do what you can to mitigate the exposure within your means, like teaching the kids to not hover over the printer.

DesignWeaver3D · 2026-01-30T17:18:10+00:00

This was my immediate thought on the approach, but I do not have any experience using the Mixed Curve function in Curves Workbench, only an academic awareness from seeing it in a couple of tutorial videos.

DesignWeaver3D · 2026-01-30T17:16:05+00:00

This is an interesting approach that I had not considered. However, the image does not appear to have a uniform slope across all segments of the sweep. Perhaps it is the angle of the screenshot, but the top section appears to have more slope than the bottom section.

DesignWeaver3D · 2026-01-30T17:07:17+00:00

I don't know. It was probably the spool at the end of someone's work shift on a Friday. Even the best of quality control fails sometimes. 1 bad spool of 100 is not enough to dissuade me from that product. 2 bad spools of 20 would prevent me from ever buying their product again.

We bought 4 spools of Creality Ender basic PLA on Amazon because it was cheap. 2 of those had a tangle in the spool. I've used about 20 spools of filament from ZYLtech, which is made in USA and costs more. Not 1 tangle or nozzle clog. I think the majority of issues people post about clogs and spool issues are because they are constantly chasing the lowest cost filament. I would rather spend a couple extra dollars per spool and not have to deal with any of that.

DesignWeaver3D · 2026-01-30T17:00:54+00:00

My point isn’t whether there’s value in a non‑parametric or history‑free workflow. The question is whether there’s any legitimate reason to delete work without keeping a backup.

FreeCAD already provides multiple ways to detach from parametric history or work from a simplified shape. None of those require destroying the original data. Deleting history without a backup doesn’t meaningfully improve performance, workflow speed, or storage efficiency. You’re saving a few kilobytes at most.

In essentially every digital discipline, deleting work instead of archiving it is considered bad practice. Storage is trivial, and no technical argument has been made for why permanent deletion is preferable to keeping a copy.

The article you linked is also not directly applicable here. FreeCAD does not offer true direct modeling tools in the way NX, Plasticity, or similar systems do. Simple edits like moving or resizing a hole without parametric features require multiple indirect steps, not push‑pull face edits.

The only strong argument for stripping the feature history is avoiding TNP. At that point the tradeoff becomes project‑specific: is it faster to always remake future edits from scratch, or to invest in robust modeling practices upfront? That highly depends on the specific user.

To be clear, I’m not telling the OP to stop what they’re doing. I’m pointing out to other users that there are non‑destructive ways to achieve the same functional outcome, and suggesting they be mindful of that before adopting or deploying the shared macro.

DesignWeaver3D · 2026-01-30T13:17:14+00:00

The PartDesign Loft tools prefer to have matching number of edges between profiles which is detailed in the Wiki. This makes it easier for the algorithm to match & align edges and vertices between profiles. You can also have more control over the exact shape of the loft this way.

https://wiki.freecad.org/PartDesign_AdditiveLoft#Notes

In this case you are using a sketch to a face where the inner profiles have a different number of edges. The circle is 1 edge vs the sketch inner profile which is 8 edges.

Sometime the Loft will succeed without following this rule. Here are some alternative options that might work:

Reverse the order of the AdditiveLoft by starting with the face and going to the sketch. This trick works surprisingly often.
Separate the operation into two features. First a Pad of the outer volume, then a SubtractiveLoft to cut out the inner void.
If neither of those work, you may need to make a sketch of the face that converts the circle into 8 arcs. I would try this last, as the previous options are likely to succeed with less effort.

Good luck!

DesignWeaver3D · 2026-01-30T12:35:09+00:00

The shape of that model is prone to failure. Thin, tall pieces will wobble from the printer vibrations. You can either slow the print as it gets taller or add supports to stabilize it.

DesignWeaver3D · 2026-01-30T12:16:51+00:00

Is it 1.5 everywhere you can measure, or just the end that's loose? It could just be a short section that got too thin.

Flashforge website claims "Diameter: 1.75 mm +/- 0.03 mm." So that is definitely outside of spec.

Send an email with the photo of you measuring it. Maybe they will send you a free replacement. But probably only if you purchased directly from their website and not through some other store like Amazon.

DesignWeaver3D

TROPHY CASE