I have a STL file for a model railroad tank car that I would like to convert to a 2D drawing. I would like to get a top, side, and end views in 2D.

I have worked with Punch Support and was told that I could do it by importing the STL file into ViaCAD (I have version 12) and the use the Model to Sheet function. It turns out that the 179Mb file is too large for ViaCAD to handle and that I needed to purchase PowerPack to accomplish what I need. My problem is this will be the only time I will need PowerPack to do this and I can justify spending $300 for it.

I am hoping that I can find someone on the forum who has the capability to do this and is willing to help me out by making the ViaCAD file for me. I am willing to compensate the person who can help me to get the .vc3 drawing file I need.

If you are willing to help me, please reply to this and we can discuss the particulars and compensation. Thank you for taking the time to read this.

Rod

Power pack will definitely NOT help with this. Maybe to reduce the triangles a little yeah but that probably won't help. Unless they were suggesting to make it a solid using power pack, even then you'll have a tonne of lines all over it because of the stl format.

So import the stl file, be patient with it, 100+mb is pretty big. Change your display to 'phong no edges' or the other one with no edges. Something without lines anyway.

Then do model to sheet. Make sure you select something without edges otherwise it'll never work. Leave it for a little and it should display.

I had a file similar. A good 100mb and after seeing Punches Gnome figure example I thought it must be possible. Anyway it is but with no edges shown.

Hi, so when you go to do a model to sheet a dialog box pops up showing some options. There is a pull down tab which says 'polylines', 'precise (slower)', phone, flat and so on. I tried it and the phong one has no edges.

I tend to turn off the edges in 'shade options' which is in the VIEW menu. There is a few options, static, dynamic and so on. I change that to phong no edges, if I have a mesh which is pretty tasty.

Just change Object Type into Solid. http://forums.punchcad.c...sts&t=8066#post30663 But now i fave first to wait until it loaded again, this need some time.

But it works not because this works only with max 3000 facets.

Edited by user Wednesday, June 30, 2021 2:17:41 PM(UTC)  | Reason: Not specified

An STL that size will be too much for SharkCAD and Powerpack to produce clean line drawings. For just a visual line drawing you could use an NPR or Toon shader in Blender or a similar 3D program.
For conversion to a solid, I use Modo's retopology tools to create a subD mesh then export using the Integrityware SubD2Nurbs plugin. Although this plugin can handle far more than the 3000 face limit mentioned here it is better to keep the basic cage as low as possible. Cyborge3D make Mesh2CAD and SubD2CAD as standalone products. It is the same tech that was licensed for the SubD2Nurbs tool in PowerPack Pro and Modo, but much more robust. Mesh2CAD is about $2000 but worth it, as it just crunches through STL files without much intervention. Perhaps you could get the result you need with the 30-day trial??

https://www.npowersoftwa...rgMeshToCADOverview.html

Why not using just SharkFX and subd to nurbs? I will buy a licence now.

I deleted my prev post by myself, because it was useless and that Blender crashes i told already.
Edit: SharkFX have Subd to nurbs, not SharkLT

Edited by user Thursday, July 1, 2021 2:35:18 AM(UTC)  | Reason: Not specified

Why not place infinite planes to pass cut sections through it for outlines, it's a simple object, detail the outlines with standard 2D tools? Power pack not needed, although this tank would need mesh to analytics because it's cylinders, toroidal bands and ellipsoid end caps. Mesh to analytics is still in power pack mesh utilities.