ZModeler3 unable to import certain vehicle components properly

Troubleshooting gudes, solutions and other ZModeler3-related discussion

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TacticalDonut
Posts: 7
Joined: Wed Jun 05, 2019 11:07 am

ZModeler3 unable to import certain vehicle components properly

Post by TacticalDonut »

I am having a problem with ZModeler where it is unable to properly import certain components of a vehicle. The components I've had issues with include:

Tow wires on the Vapid Towtruck: The upper wires aren't imported properly, so when the tow arm is lowered in-game, the wires don't move with it and instead hang in the air. Furthermore, the wires are not aligned with the tow arm and have several missing polys.


Any soft-top convertible roof: There are always quite a few missing polys on the roof.


Bravado Halftrack: Both the treads for the rear wheels and the support arms don't import properly, so there's a few missing polys in-game. Sometimes, ZModeler even decides to crash on export, or throw a bunch of BeginScene failed errors after exporting.


Are there any solutions or workarounds to these issues?

Thanks
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Oleg
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Re: ZModeler3 unable to import certain vehicle components properly

Post by Oleg »

These models use soft-rigging on model when some polygon vertices are rigged to one bone and other polygon vertices are rigged to another bone. In game, when bones are moved, such a polygon can deform.

you can import and edit such a rigged model with no "Slice to parts" option on import. Note, if you imported and exported your model, then soft rigging is ruined already, so you should revert to original model and import it again.

Rigged model will be loaded as skeleton and one .mesh object. It is likely for .mesh object to be a group of objects, so you might need to use Group->Open on right-click menu to access objects inside a group for editing.

Editing soft-rigged models is much harder than regular models, as you can't deal with "parts". Instead, you will need to deal with bone's weight assignment to specify that certain vertex "belongs to this or that part".
TacticalDonut
Posts: 7
Joined: Wed Jun 05, 2019 11:07 am

Re: ZModeler3 unable to import certain vehicle components properly

Post by TacticalDonut »

Ah. Sounds way above my skill level, but I'll still look into it. Thanks for your answer!
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