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I can't export my object as an .stl. I started with a UV Sphere and I used a boolean modifier on it and joined other objects to it. I removed doubles, re-calculated normals, tried triangulation, selected the object when exporting. Nothing works and the .stl file is empty. I also uploaded it to https://netfabb.azurewebsites.net/ and it was rejected. Any suggestions?

Zowee
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2 Answers2

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The Local View is enabled for this object in your file.

object screenshot

Local view isolates the selected object or objects, so that they are the only ones visible in the viewport.

manual page

Press NumpadSlash to exit it, select the object and try exporting again.

A side note:
- although you recalculated normals some of them are still inverted (the bottom);
- the topology of the mesh is a bit off, especially on the bottom, which can cause unexpected results when triangulated.
- scale of the mesh isn't applied (which can also be undesired);
However, this doesn't affect your current problem directly.

Mr Zak
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  • I know I got a long way to go and I'll have to read up on your comments. I'm on a Mac so not sure what the NumpadSlash equivalent is so I'll look that up too. Thanks for taking a look. You guys are great. – Zowee Mar 31 '16 at 17:02
  • @Zowee see this, could be useful. In general you can remap shortcuts to new ones in order to use them as desired. As for my recommendations, the only thing that should be done is exiting from the Local View. The last paragraph doesn't affect this and was mentioned only for completeness. – Mr Zak Mar 31 '16 at 17:06
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Try this: Create a new default start-up Blender file. Append your sphere from your original file into this new Blender file. When it is appended (so you can see it in your new Blender scene), select it and export it as an stl. Does that work for you? It did for me... this is what I get:

EDIT: Sorry... wrong link: https://www.dropbox.com/s/cxiyub2pu6i10c3/untitled.stl?dl=0 END EDIT

Let me know...

If you need info on appending: https://www.blender.org/manual/data_system/linked_libraries.html

rcgauer
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  • This seemed to work as the file size seems normal. Thanks! – Zowee Mar 31 '16 at 16:34
  • Thanks... and see Mr Zak's answer below for some notes on the mesh... and esp. applying scale. Out of curiosity, what are you printing it on? We're getting a new Form 2 in a couple of weeks... and like using Blender for STLs. If you have a copy of ZBrush, it's really handy for hollowing out shells, however.. it's something that ZB does a little better than Blender... – rcgauer Mar 31 '16 at 16:42