Page 379 - Kitab3DsMax

Chapter 12: Drawing and Editing 2D Splines and Shapes

Fillet
The Fillet button is used to round the corners of a spline where two edges meet. To use the Fillet command,
click the Fillet button and then drag on a corner vertex in the viewport. The more you drag, the larger the
Fillet. You can also enter a Fillet value in the Fillet spinner for the vertices that are selected. The Fillet has a
maximum value based on the geometry of the spline. Figure 12.24 shows the Fillet command applied to an
eight-pointed star with values of 10, 15, and 20. Notice that each selected vertex has split into two.
Caution
Be careful not to apply the fillet command multiple times to the selected vertices. If the new vertices cross over
each other, then the normals will be misaligned, which will cause problems when you use modifiers. n

Note
You can fillet several vertices at once by selecting them and then clicking the Fillet button and dragging the Fillet
distance. n

FIGURE 12.24
The Fillet button can round the corners of a shape.

Chamfer
The Chamfer button works much like the Fillet button, except that the corners are replaced with straight-
line segments instead of smooth curves. This keeps the resulting shape simpler and maintains hard corners.
To use the Chamfer command, click the Chamfer button and drag on a vertex to create the Chamfer. You
can also enter a Chamfer value in the rollout. Figure 12.25 shows chamfers applied to the same eight-
pointed shape with the same values of 10, 15, and 20.

FIGURE 12.25
Chamfers alter the look of spline corners.

Tangent Copy and Tangent Paste
If you spend considerable time positioning the handles for the Bézier or Bézier Corner vertices just right, it can
be tricky to repeat these precise positions again for other handles. Using the Tangent Copy and Tangent Paste
buttons, you can copy the handle positions between different handles. To do so, simply select a handle that you

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