skyline-clone

Clone of GitHub's "Skyline" 3D model generator - but this one uses OpenSCAD

This (tiny) project was created to get past some shortcomings of the GitHub-generated skyline stl:

Minimize errors in file geometry
Create printable file for most slicers without need for repair
Allow end-users to customize the output
Reduce print cost for powder-based printed parts. Comparing original.js with the hollow_base_with_escape_hole.js settings, using Shapeways and in Steel, resulted in a savings of $96.39 ($211.29 solid vs $114.90 hollow).

Requirements

Install OpenSCAD
- OpenSCAD set up as openscad in your shell - see Command Line Instructions
Install node.js (tested with 14, but should work with older and newer versions)

Setup

If you want to change some of the defaults, duplicate one of the files in the overrides folder and rename it. Modify the settings and choose it when you run the script.
Install node.js dependencies

# install dependencies
npm i

Running

# run
npm run start

Customizing

Three default settings files are included in the overrides folder. Just duplicate the file you'd like to start with and make some changes. When the script runs it checks the overrides directory for any .js files and let's you choose one of them to use.

After exporting, you can open the exported .scad file and customize iit directly in OpenSCAD.

Notes

I did this more for the challenge and so I could print one for a coworker/friend. My public commit history is pathetic, this wasn't to make one for myself. However, when I went to slice the Skyline-generated file in PrusaSlicer, the chosen font / text presented a problem:

The year 2020 did not slice well - which pretty much sums up 2020. Perhaps a different font or variant of this font (Helvetica) would slice better with my nozzle size (.4mm). Sure, I could scale up the design, but that means longer printing times and with how wide it is already, I could only increase the size so much. A simple font-chooser or choice of a different font (say, Helvetica Bold) might remedy this problem for most users, but I could not find a repository for skyline to do a pull request against (ermm...) or file an issue, hence this repo.

The next image shows what OpenSCAD generated for me - with "Helvetica Neue:style=Bold" as the font. You may not have this particular font on your system, check out the wiki for help in choosing a font.

Oh, also a shameless plug for a website I built. Pixel-art is a favorite of mine, and so I care deeply about how pixels are generated :D