Beer glass scene creation
This course contains a little bit of everything with modeling, UVing, texturing and dynamics in Maya, as well as compositing multilayered EXR's in Photoshop.
# 1 13-11-2007 , 04:33 AM
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Cutting polygonals based on snap

Hi,
I am looking for a way to cut the end off of a polygonal object. Ordinarily I would use the Cut Face tool but in this case I need it to snap to vertices and from what I can tell there is no way to make it snap. So I guess what I am looking for is a way to cut off parts of polygonal objects based on snapping to vertices. No need to tell me in great detail - if you can just point me in the right direction I can figure out how to do it.

Thanks,
Ron

# 2 13-11-2007 , 06:24 AM
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Would it be possible to use the extract tool?

Select all of the faces that you want to cut off and hit extract,

I hope that's the sollution you're after,

Mat.

edit: if you can post an image of the object you need help with it would be easier to find or hint at a sollution.


Last edited by happymat27; 13-11-2007 at 06:28 AM.
# 3 13-11-2007 , 07:28 AM
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Originally posted by happymat27
edit: if you can post an image of the object you need help with it would be easier to find or hint at a sollution.

Hi happymat27,
I should have been clearer. Here is what I have. The first image shows the object being cut using the Cut Face tool. The second image shows the object after the cut, set to vertices and zoomed in really really close. Notice that the Cut Face tool did not snap to the corner vertex leaving it a kind-of free-hand cut. I don't think it is a good idea to have those little errors creeping in so I would like to find a cleaner way.

Thanks for taking a look,
Ron

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# 4 13-11-2007 , 07:29 AM
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Second image

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# 5 13-11-2007 , 08:02 AM
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Hey there Ron,

I've never used the split faces tool in 4 years of using Maya, prefering to cut objects with the split poly, split edge loop tools or a combination of both to get the results I require.

After trying the split faces tool this morning, I can see it's potential but I can also see that, as you've pointed out, you're going to have a bit of cleaning up after each cut if you want a tidy model.

Mat.

# 6 13-11-2007 , 08:11 AM
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Originally posted by happymat27
prefering to cut objects with the split poly, split edge loop tools or a combination of both to get the results I require

Thanks Mat,
Knowing that the split poly and split edge tools can be used for clean cutting should be enough to go on. I should be able to take it from here.

Thanks for the help,
Ron

# 7 13-11-2007 , 12:12 PM
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Ok, here is what I came up with:

Set magnet tolerance to zero.
Create construction plane – in my case on the YZ.
Snap-drag construction plane to the vertex.
Make construction plane live.
Zoom in really close to the vertex
Select polygon to be cut.
Select the cut faces tool.
Click on the construction plane.
Shift+click somewhere else on the construction plane.

This is not perfect but it gets darn close. I would still like to find a perfect (or better) way if anyone knows one.

Thanks for all the help,
Ron


Last edited by ronviers; 13-11-2007 at 12:47 PM.
# 8 14-11-2007 , 07:59 AM
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why not merging the two verts together?

# 9 14-11-2007 , 08:08 AM
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Hi BadG3r,
Can you give me a little more to go on? Remember I'm a total noob when it comes to this. You can just tell me what I need to read up on - you don't need to give me step by step.

Thanks,
Ron

# 10 14-11-2007 , 08:59 AM
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i just thought that if the cut faces tool comes in handy for you then you could use it and then selecting the two "not aligned" vertices and perform an Edit mesh->Merge.

I think it comes to the preference of the user whats best.

# 11 14-11-2007 , 09:19 AM
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Originally posted by BadG3r
i just thought that if the cut faces tool comes in handy for you then you could use it and then selecting the two "not aligned" vertices and perform an Edit mesh->Merge.

I think it comes to the preference of the user whats best.

I still have not figured out how to merge vertices but I don't think that will work. I see that, if I knew how, I could make the new lower vertices snap to (or merge with) the corner vertices but that only leaves me a single snap-to-able axis on the upper vertices for aligning the remaining vertices. I hope that makes sense. The method you recommend will probably work but I just don't understand how to do it. No problem, I will read up on how to merge vertices then try again.
Btw, I do not have any preferences yet. I just want something that will work without free-handing it.

Thanks,
Ron

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