Bad Files In MakerWare

[Casey Arvin]

Does anyone know what to do with stl files that are "greyish" when you import them into MakerWare? When you send the file to print it just prints the first two reference lines, stops, and then just says print complete. No error code. Thanks for any help.

[Jetguy]

Run the file through netfabb first http://cloud.netfabb.com/

[David Celento]

The grey parts are flipped normals -- meaning, all polygon faces have an inside and an outside and they all must face the same way to make a "watertight" surface, even if there are no gaps, etc.

As Jetguy suggests, Netfabb should be able to fix this. If not, you can manually flip the ones facing the wrong way in most software. Rhino (Windows version) has a feature which colors the backfaces, making them easier to find than the little perpendicular lines (normals) that face out and make your model look like a chia pet.

[Casey Arvin]

Thanks guys, everything worked great, appreciate all the help.