After a new shape is created via Boolean, is there a way to "expand" it?


Sorry if this is explained somewhere already, but I haven't found it if it is.

After a Boolean operation makes a "new" shape... is there a command (similar to Illustrator's "expand"... that can be done?

I'd then like to do another Boolean to that resulting shape.

Thank you.

frank beckmann

Well-known member
No - please don´t. Boolean tools are great for animation purposes but I´d like to say: stay away when modeling.
Give me a short briefing and we´ll find another, more robust way to model.

Frank is right. When you expand Booleans you get a bunch of triangles that are hard to turn into anything useful afterwards. Modeling from the ground up with quads is more efficient and better for subdivision.
How would you make this:

It's a reversible marker nib. Basically, it's a cylinder and one end is like a cone, but instead of a point, the tip is flat, like the point is cut off.
The other end is as if 2 diagonal slices were made on opposite sides of the cylinder, and the remaining part at that tip is a rectangle


Frank, I hope you can please help me understand how to make the inner extrude "grow"... I am clicking and dragging and it is not growing... what is the "trick"?


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On the inner extrude, i was dragging from top to bottom, but the trick is left/right.

You guys must wonder how i can be so dense.

I've managed to get some pen models made successfully. Still have some more to do, but also need to better understand how to get good renders.
And lighting... and some simple animations....

for this kind of work I wouldn't suggest a second Tool and I wouldn't work with Booleans - it is waste of time.

There are many ways to do this in Cheetah or in a 3D App, but Frank's version is easy, fast and perfect for this.

And you can use your object further or where ever you want without any trouble, because there are all smooth and nice quads.