Creating a Custom Shield in SelfCAD
A shield is a piece of protective equipment typically made of sturdy material such as metal, wood, or composite materials, designed to be held by hand or strapped to the arm to deflect or absorb blows from weapons or projectiles. Shields have been used throughout human history for various purposes, including military combat, personal defense, and ceremonial or symbolic roles.
In warfare, shields were crucial defensive tools, offering protection against melee weapons like swords, axes, and spears, as well as ranged weapons such as arrows and javelins. Different cultures and time periods have produced a wide array of shield designs, ranging from small bucklers to large tower shields, each tailored to the needs and preferences of the users.
A Step-by-Step Guide to 3D Modeling a Shield in SelfCAD
In this guide, you will learn how to use the face selection and other tools of SelfCAD to create a simple shield. You can follow the interactive tutorial to learn how to design it. In summary, begin by launching SelfCAD and open the workspace:
The next step is to select the base object. On the toolbar, from the 3D Shapes category, select the Sphere:
Set the parameters as shown below:
Set the Rotation, by setting Z axis to 90:
Click on the check mark to finalize the sphere. On the right panel, click on the Wireframe to set the rendering mode:
On the right panel, activate the Face Selection tool. Use it to select the highlighted region. On the top bar, on the Edit menu and select Delete:
The region is deleted and you remain with the region shown below:
Click on Solid to set the rendering mode:
Activate the Face Selection and select the regions below. On the right panel, click on the Color Picker and click on the Picker:
Set the colors as shown below by typing in the value: #ff0000 on the picker:
De-select the regions. Select the middle part as shown below and go to the Color picker. Select the white color:
Select the region shown below and on the Color picker, select the black color and click ok:
Click on the region below and go to the Color picker again. Select the Blue color and click ok:
De-select the region and then select the entire object. Go to the Modify category, and select Add Thickness:
Set the Thickness to 3 and finalize the thickness:
On the toolbar, select the Scale Tool. Scale the X-axis by setting it to 45:
Click on the “X” to close the panel. There you go, you are done with designing the shield.
You can modify it further until you achieve the intended design. After designing, you can then use the in-built online slicer of SelfCAD to slice your designs and generate the Gcode to send to your 3D printer. Get to know how SelfCAD slicer works in the video below.
Enjoy powerful modeling, rendering, and 3D printing tools without the steep learning curve.
Need to learn 3D modeling? Get started with interactive tutorials.