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I have a .stl file I created in Freecad and I want to put a stone texture onto it for 3d printing out. I figured out how to attach an image to my part but that doesn't print out the stone texture.

Do I need to attach a 3d image to my part or can I use a regular image and somehow make it a 3d image on my part?

I downloaded a stone texture 3d image displaced 3D model of a stone pattern from the internet and that actually printed out on my printer but I cant figure out how to attach it to my part. I've watched 8 videos and none cover that.

I would attach my .stl file here but I don't see an option for that. It's just a round cylinder and I want to attach a stone texture to it and it wrap around the part and then be able to 3d print it out.

It's a gaming piece I'm making for my son.

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Similar issues have been asked many many times before, see .fbx export why there are no materials or textures? or Issue with Importing 3D Models into Blender

The STL file format doesn't support textures, its a geometry only file format suited for 3D printing and computer based fabrication processes.

It doesn't include any color or texture representation structures, as far as I know it doesn't even support UV Coordinates.

UV coordinates are what is needed for 'wrapping' a 2D texture around a 3D mode, they can be either automatic, or obtained by UV Unwrapping

There is no such thing as '3D textures', at least not in the way you mention. Those are generally either procedural textures or voxel based textures for volumetric data representation (like smoke or sparse mediums)

If your 3D printer does indeed support color information you will have to look into its documentation what file formats it supports and what it uses for color information. And you will most likely need a separate image file for the texture.


Edit: Ok I think there some confusion and wrong terminology use here hence the misunderstanding from my part.

What you downloaded is not a 3D texture (textures are images with color information), it's a 3D model of a stone pattern albeit one achieve with an image texture through displacement, but that is irrelevant.

If you want to wrap it around in a cylinder shape, forget your STL cylinder, it is useless, its probably easier to just do it from scratch.

Use the .blend file from the download archive, open it, apply Displacement Modifier, then add a simple Deform modifier set to Bend.

Add a an empty object, rotate it -90 degrees in X axis and use it as a origin object in the Deform modifier.

Increase the angle of the deform modifier until it wraps up into a cylinder.

Now it's only a matter of closing the caps and removing doubles so that it forms a manifold closed shape.

Wrap

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  • $\begingroup$ I searched 12 different tags and saw no answer and was on link 32 before I broke down and actually asked a question, so I looked. I don't need color. I don't know where that came from. I'm printing this out in black ABS . My printer I made from spare parts lying around. It supports grbl files. But I downloaded a 3d stone picture off of a webpage the other day and it printed it out fine after i imported it to blender then exported as a stl file. And the stl file I made in freecad imports into blender without any issues. $\endgroup$
    – Embed
    Commented Sep 27, 2016 at 1:36
  • $\begingroup$ I'm not sure I understand what you mean by a "3d stone picture". Could you please edit your question and post some images of what you got, or perhaps a link to where you downloaded it from? I'm confused about what you are trying to achieve $\endgroup$ Commented Sep 27, 2016 at 1:41
  • $\begingroup$ Well here's a link to the stone I downloaded but I don't see anyway to attach a picture of my stl file cylinder. [link] (tf3dm.com/3d-model/cobblestones-3-86328.html). I want to wrap that stone around my cylinder and merge the 2 together . Then export as an .stl file and then print in ONE color of ABS plastic. $\endgroup$
    – Embed
    Commented Sep 27, 2016 at 1:55
  • $\begingroup$ Ok I read your answer about a dozen times before I realized I'm either not going to be able to use blender for anything or learn all aspects of blender and model the stone from scratch. What you done works for that shape but I'm probably going to have a dozen or so more shapes to add that same texture to. And not just straight lines, cylinders, cubes and all. Another thing that's going to throw me off if I do learn blender is I'm all lost on textures. Here in the US, If I close my eyes, walk up to a wall, rub on it I feel the "texture". I cant feel colors with my eyes closed. $\endgroup$
    – Embed
    Commented Sep 27, 2016 at 3:28
  • $\begingroup$ What's the correct term everyone uses here for what I call "textures " ? $\endgroup$
    – Embed
    Commented Sep 27, 2016 at 3:30

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