Jigsaw Puzzle Pattern Making

[ZooHead]

To begin the process I start with a Spline defining one edge of one puzzle piece.
• Adjust the Approximation Angle to 2 or 3.

Extrude the Spline with an Extrude Creator and then make it editable.

In Polygon Mode, Copy, Paste, Rotate and Snap each side
into place until you have the four sides of the puzzle piece.

Use the Weld Tool and the Optimize command to weld it
together and you have one piece without a front and back.

Use the same method, with the addition of
the Split command, to start the next piece.

Continue this way until you have all the pieces you need...

More to come

 

[ZooHead]

In the world of jigsaw puzzle manufacturing there are two
main types of puzzles, Ribbon Cut and Random Cut.

And with Ribbon Cut there are two types- Strip and Grid.

This is about making a Grid Ribbon Cut pattern.

 

[ZooHead]

To make things easier I've included a puzzle piece spline if you don't want to make your own.

 

[ZooHead]

The first thing to do is extrude the spline by adding an Extrude Creator.
As a Creator Object it must be a parent to the spline.

Under Extrude Properties, Set Cover to None.

Then Copy and Paste the Extrude and make the copy editable.

 

[ZooHead]

Delete all the edges as shown.

 

[ZooHead]

Now I use the smart selection tool, Group Select, not to be confused with Select Group.

This is the most powerful and versatile selection tool in Cheetah 3D.
With this tool set this way, you only need one click to select an entire side.

 

[ZooHead]

Now select a side and Copy, Paste and use the Split
Command to make the selection into a new object.

 

[ZooHead]

Copy, paste and Edge Rotate three times to build the next
puzzle piece. (Tip: set Edge Rotate to 45 or 90 degrees)

 

[ZooHead]

Select the top and bottom of the new puzzle piece and Flip Normals.

Then Optimize to weld things together.

 

[ZooHead]

Build as many pieces as you need, but to demonstrate I've built four.

Select all pieces and use the Merge command to make them into one object.
Be careful not to use the Optimize command at this point so they stay unconnected.

 

[ZooHead]

Now use the Fill Hole tool to fill the back of each piece.

 

[ZooHead]

After filling the holes, select and delete the inner walls and Optimize.

 

[ZooHead]

Now you can add a Symmetry Modifier or use the Mirror Tool to close it up.

 

[ZooHead]

Once made editable, it is "watertight".

 

[ZooHead]

To make this version I had to go back and start from scratch to reduce the number of edges in tight corners.

PS: This is Cheetah 3D version 8's preview window. This is a screen capture, not a rendering.