issue with stl files from solidworks?

I designed something in solidworks with specific dimensions and saved as stl file. the object I made is only a few inches in size but when I try to open it in pronterface it gives me lots of errors and when I open it in repieter host it drops down on the bed but is HUGGE and I have to manually resize it and save the stl file. Kind of a pain but I can get it close by eyeballing it no biggie.

However I open the file and run it through nefabb and it shows me nothing is wrong with the file however slic3r does not like it and then once it slices the file it shrinks to like have the size it was saved to in repieter. these programs are not playing well together

maybe I can upload the file and get someone to take a look at it for me and see whats up ?

You need to set the dimensions in SolidWorks to be in mm, rather than inches. I have no problems with STL's from SolidWorks, other than occasionally needing to repair one.

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NewPerfection Wrote:
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> You need to set the dimensions in SolidWorks to be
> in mm, rather than inches. I have no problems
> with STL's from SolidWorks, other than
> occasionally needing to repair one.


That was the first thing I did previously I made sure it was in mm I never use inch measurements for anything

The odd thing is I uploaded the file to netfab cloud and it fixed it however the program didn't fix it and it made it useable but it seems like the size thing is still an issue

I've had the same problem quite often. Reducing the output quality when saving as STL solved the problem. The quality was still pretty good.

yes, you can set precision in many programs. I typically set resolution for 0.1 to 0.05mm, as long as the shape is consistent. typically only higher detail is needed for small holes to keep them perfect circles. if i design holes with hexagon or octagon instead of circles this seems to allow for less detail and a smaller stl file.

The dimensions you use in solidworks don't matter at all, but you need to make sure you go into your STL export settings and change the units to mm. Then it will come out properly scaled (but will probably still complain about errors in the slicers, netfabb will clean those up if they become a problem)