Creating Supports for an .stl original creation

[reachmeplace]

Hi,

My apologies if this is considered an inappropriate post.

I'm trying to help a library patron with their original creation which is an Ice Core.

It's supposed to depict how ice in the arctic captures isotopes and oxygen over time.

It's an .stl file and I've tried creating supports for it in the Prusa Slicer and even lying it on its side ad printing it horizontally but the Prusa MK4 extruder just drags the object, about 40% of the way printed, all over the bed.

They plan on printing about 25 of these we can distribute free for their free class at our public library.

I would so appreciate your thoughts and suggestions of how we could correct this to print correctly.

Thank you so much.

[hfcandrew]

You model had two main objects and thousands of mesh errors and is also only about 2mm tall. Also that is a very very hard shape to print.

This is either going to be moreso tweaking your slicer settings and supports.

[reachmeplace]

Hi Andrew,

Thank you so much for taking a gender at this and for sharing your thoughts.

Is this something one could better create from scratch in a meshmixer?

I'm wondering as I further my 3D printing skills which 3D Modeling
software would be best to learn in order to create something like this
from scratch?

meshmixer? Fusion 360? OnShape? Solidworks? OpenScad?

Thank you so much.

[hfcandrew]

For a weird shape that that, meshmixer or blender.

[reachmeplace]

Andrew ... Thank you.

As I've taught myself software over the years, I;v elwanred that as
many teach you how to do everything at once. That's often where you
see 18-24 minute You Tube videos. I'vr laos leonard that many people
don;t need to know how to perform many tasks a software application
offers.

By analysis, when I learned MS Word I was taught hoe to do Mail Merge
which I've used twice over the years.

I'm exploring how I can economically learn to create this object in
either meshmixer or Blender.

Would you or anyone on this list have any constructive suggestions re:
how to learn to create this object by specific screenshots or video
without having to learn everything in meshmixer and/or Blender?

I wish You Tube videos were vetted and rated by objective, independent
reviewers as "likes" can be lacking either or both.

Or this an object that realistically could only be created by someone
with many years of 3D modeling experience or as their full time job?

My job is not FT 3D modeling so I create at work only when it can be
squeezed in between many other projects and responsibilities.

Thank you for all your help.

[hfcandrew]

Creating anything can be quite the process, you will need a few weeks, a hundred hours of so, to learn the foundational knowledge first to then be able to create a desired shape... but if you google anything you'll find some tutorial.