Unable to connect pink lines in my simple pocket project

Fixer · December 12, 2023, 4:05pm

Highly Frustrated after spending (Big bucks $$$$ 4 me anyway) for Carbide Cut Pro and MANY DAYS trying to get 4 circles in a triangle to form a pocket 8" wide and 11" high and its 4 pink lines to connect the 4 circles on the out side edges and then to use boolean to trim the inside of the circle off using boolean.
to form a pocket tray type thing. I am doing this project just to get use 2 CC pro but so far nun, nota, nothing and about ready to give up.! OPPS now in the drawing one of the pink lines has turned “black”
I did nothing to change anything.??

Fixer
(a novice to CNC routers and my 3020 Pro)

WillAdams · December 12, 2023, 4:23pm

The pink line which has turned black has been self-closed — you’ll want to go into Node Edit mode and cut it so as to open it again — when you do so, do that at both ends and you will get two objects, one of which can be deleted.

Please post the file here or send it in to projects@carbide3d.com and we will gladly walk through this with you.

Fixer · December 12, 2023, 7:52pm

Will
Thanks for the quick reply.!
I think ? I have tried that about a gazillion times… But not the right combo of key strokes… I’ll try it again and if I still can’t get it I post the file.
Thanks
Ken

Fixer · December 13, 2023, 3:44pm

Will;
this is one I just started from scratch have not tried to use boolean or node edit on this one yet. hope I have the upload right.?
Thanks
Ken
4cBoolean1.c2d (44 KB)

Fixer · December 13, 2023, 3:59pm

Will:
OH yea in all the hacking I have seen the Boolean selection box empty with no options to choose through out all my try’s to get this to work that info. may or may not be of help or a bug in CC Pro.?

Ken

WillAdams · December 13, 2023, 4:18pm

Could you post a screen grab showing the selection you are making when trying to use the Boolean feature?

Tod1d · December 13, 2023, 5:31pm

For a boolean option to appear, you must have at least 2 closed vectors selected. If one of two vectors is open, there will be no options. With other combinations, only options that will affect the object are available.

For your part, I would zoom way in at the end of each line.

Select the line, and Edit Nodes. Drag the line past the tangent point so you have a good idea where it is

Drag the end point to that position, as close as you can get it. Repeat this for all 8 end points.
Now connect the ends to form a closed shape, and Join the vectors.

Select all the vectors, and Boolean Weld them

Fixer · December 13, 2023, 6:03pm

Tod1d / Will
This gives me something to play with today
I’ll do a screen grab if I get the blank boolean box again
TKS
Ken

Fixer · December 13, 2023, 7:13pm

HIP HIP Hooray the lines are all BLACK now to work on boolean, I have done the weld. and am playing at that point.

TKS Guys U ROCK
Ken

StephenMV · December 13, 2023, 10:40pm

Thank you, Ken and Tod1d for the lesson on how to do this. In the past I have played successfully and unsuccessfully with this. Now I can see what is required. I downloaded your file and worked it to success.

Tod1d · December 14, 2023, 10:28am

For this particular arrangement, since it’s all even & symmetrical & the circles are the same size, you could create a single polyline from the 4 circle centers

And then just offset it 1"

But the manual way above is good to know when it’s needed.

Fixer · December 14, 2023, 3:04pm

Will
here are 3 screen shots for the boolean option
still have not got it to leave just the out side radius MORE PLAYING is needed. and then I need to remember all these steps. I just saw the 2nd way from tod1d may give that a try.
Tks
Ken

Fixer · December 14, 2023, 3:05pm

Screen Grab #2 of 3

Fixer · December 14, 2023, 3:08pm

Will
Screen Grab #3

Ken

WillAdams · December 14, 2023, 3:14pm

Boolean operations only work on closed regions/geometries — the magenta lines indicate unclosed/unjoined lines:

You need to convert them into a closed region:

In order to do this it will be necessary to draw in the gaps so as to close them:

Note that at this point, it is just easiest to use the polyline tool to just draw the entire thing:

Doing this however, shows that things do not line up as well as one might wish:

so arguably one would want to adjust things for a better result:

Note that we already had this discussion:

https://community.carbide3d.com/t/how-to-create-the-shape-of-two-circles-connected-by-tangent-lines-in-carbide-create/42590

WillAdams · December 14, 2023, 3:23pm

(repeat for the other nodes)

until one arrives at:

which will work for a Boolean union:

but that will result in a polyline — better to use Trim Vectors:

(note that we have duplicated the original geometry for reference)

OK

at which point we use “Join Vectors” to close things:

Yes

Attached as a v7 file (note that the original geometry was left in place for reference)

4cBoolean1_v7.c2d (52 KB)

Fixer · December 14, 2023, 6:26pm

Will / TD1
This is what I ended up as this morning ??? how I got their is a big ? mark
now just 2 lines to deal with top and bottom.
TKS
Ken

WillAdams · December 14, 2023, 6:31pm

How many objects are there?

I suspect you have two stacked copies — just select one of the lines you don’t want and delete (after ungrouping if need be).

Post the file again?

Fixer · December 16, 2023, 2:17pm

4cBoolean1.c2d (52 KB)

Will

After many many hours of trying 2 edit on this file I think I have messed it up totally… Anyway here is the file if you zoom in where the radius were the end cuts are visible ragged. I don’t know what else to do it is beyond my knowledge as how to fix it (frustrated again).? It just should not be this hard.!

Tks Again
Ken