@Holger_Schoenischka
Both are correct.
That being said, I think we need to back up and, for ease of explanation, split what we’re referring to in two different segments:
- Touching/overlapping parts
Some slicers will create issues- weird holes or artifacts that don’t print correctly. Some will handle it just fine. Joining two parts together can leave a gap between two manifold parts, confusing some slicers.
This is where I would generally advise to boolean or voxel merge the two so it’s one piece and doesn’t leave the gap.
- Non-Touching parts
Because these parts aren’t touching, I would definitely Join them. Like the ring joints in the video you referenced, you don’t want to use the voxel function because, as your friend mentioned, they can merge together.
Hopefully that makes sense and answered your question.
So it’s only up to the slicer software whether you have to connect the meshes at all. Because she
do not connect any part with remesh or boolean and her prints are fine.
“So it’s only up to the slicer software whether you have to connect the meshes at all.“
In a way, yes. Because if the slicer does not error out, you don’t really need to merge them. However, I would think that boolean or voxel merging them would be considered best practice for a final export of the model.
In your picture where you have the “only joined” arrows- personally, I would boolean or voxel these parts and make them a solid, manifold piece.
But the two main portions- keep them separate and only Join them. They don’t intersect so no reason to do anything more.
Thank you for the answers. I have to think about it. Because I still don’t fully understand why you use slicer software that can’t handle such geometry correctly. It’s much more practical to have separate meshes to be flexible, I think. So, this cow would print fine on some slicers and not on other slicers - confusing.
