How to mirror my actions to all parts of same shape.

Armitage19

Hey,

I got a High low mesh and i just tried making 50 screw heads of the same design. But that is really a pain. It is always the same action.
Is it possible to kind of mirror every step i do to the other areas?

Thanks

Joost

Instancing. What software are you using?

Armitage19

Hey,

I am sorry. Forgot to say this, 3ds Max 2016.
And instancing.. never heard of that in Max.

DavidCruz

Instancing is when you make a copy of the object, you have a selection window of what you want that copy to be. I forget of the top of my head but i know Instancing in 1 of the options you can select that when you make your "nuts/bolts" copies select instancing and call them clone1 2, 3, 4 ect and keep the original name whatever the bolt/nuts name is so you know which to edit.

idk if you can edit an instance and it reflect on the others so be sure to edit the parent/main/original version to edit, you can clone/copy say 5 for a test make them all instance and edit the original to see the changes.

That should help, but joost is correct.

Armitage19

I dont make copys of the object. The whole object is one mesh. All bolts are extruded, beveled and so on. Out of the mesh, thats why i want to make maybe a polygon selection of the the areas the are the same. And then all actions in this areas will be mirrored.
I hope something like this is possible.

Eric Chadwick

Can't really do that within the same modifier. Better to use separate objects. Anyhow, those objects are separate in real life, so your model should do the same.

This is worth a read (help file)
http://help.autodesk.com/view/3DSMAX/2016/ENU/?guid=GUID-9F0E9AC3-FAE6-46A6-83F3-591084220B12

I used all three methods recently for a modular building, and References were especially helpful to create the corner pieces. I copied a straight building-side module as a Reference, then added a Symmetry modifier on top to get it to wrap around the corner. Now any changes I make to the straight piece get automatically updated on the corners too. But since the corners are References, only they get the Symmetry modifier.

Armitage19

I fixed my geo and used a Symmetry modie for my problems. That reduces the work to half.
3ds Max has at least for me several bugs so i avoid to do anything like modifier stacks. I use a modiefier and then i delete it or collapse it.
Not sure what Max do if i use a big stack of modifiers.
Thanks for your explanation

Eric Chadwick

Don't avoid modifier stacks. Just learn why they can break, so you can avoid doing that. They're not bugs, they're just a part of the workflow.

Some modifiers are dependent on the vertex count below them. If you change the vertex count, the modifier will reset itself. For example, if you delete some vertices in Editable Poly then the Unwrap UVW modifier will reset its UV edits. This is because Unwrap is being sent a new model from below, with different vertex numbers, so it can't figure out what to do.

The solution is to not edit the vertex order below Unwrap. Use a Collapse To command on the Unwrap modifier, then do your edits. When you do Collapse To, this keeps any modifiers above Unwrap, removes the Unwrap and any modifiers below it, and also stores the UV edits inside the base modifier.

Armitage19

Hey,

Yeah, thanks for the explanation.

With bugs i mean other things.
And because of that i always collapse a stack if not needed.
Because i am scared there could be a bug.
But i also have issues with my graphic card. If i make mistakes in Geo, 3ds Max will jump around if i click into the view. I tested that out a lot and searched online. Changed the settings, and there is nothing i can do about it. Just perfect Geo, Lol. Not sure why it does that. But its doing this.
I use a Laptop with on chip graphic card that is taking a part of the ram. And because of that i cant use some programs. Some other programs make the graphic card drivers crash. And Max is doing the same if i kind of overload it.
But that is no problem.

I got another question if i can do this in the same thread.

I make a model for Unreal and then later in Unreal i want to upgrade the weapon.
Like this, if i find a flashlight or a laserpointer, i can choose to add it to a weapon of my choice. If i do this, do i need a second model of the base weapon, with the laserpointer or flashlight attached to it and set up?
In this case i have to unwrap and texture this second model again.
And this would be a lot of extra work.
Are there other solutions for dealing with this issue?

Thanks

Elrinion

Weird. Max rarely crashes for me. And when it does, its usually related to things other than the stack.

Seriously though, the stacked workflow is precisely what sets MAX ahead of most other modelling software, its non-destructive workflow is a blessing for architectural modelling. No wonder It's almost the sole standard in Arch-Viz, (followed by Sketchup more recently).

About the textures and models. I suggest just reserving space in the UV for the extra element and unwrapping it as one. This saves having different materials and textures for almost the same stuff.

Eric Chadwick

In my experience, weapons with different attachments are often done as separate models, each with their own textures. If you can plan it all out, then yes it's better to use one sheet for all parts, but some game engines can collapse those dynamically (go programmers!).

Then the weapon is set up in the game editor with invisible nodes called attachment points. The flashlight is set up so its pivot matches the attachment point location. Then it is swapped in if the player chooses to use it on their gun. Or a silencer, or a iron sight, etc. You can have multiple points on a weapon.

Armitage19

Max crashes for me for the graphic card reason or if i do certain things. Like bridging polys, for this reason i only bridge edges.

---

I have a Gun and when the player finds a upgrade. He can attach it to the gun. And then he have bigger magazin for ammunition or a flashlight and so on..

Well, in this case i make seperate models. That seems like the best option.
I was thinking i have to make the whole UV process always again if i do any little change to the model.
If i can reuse the UVs for the parts the are the same, i would be very very very.. very happy.