EDGE MENU
If one or more edges are selected, RMB in the Geometry window will bring up the Edge Menu. This will allow you to perform operations unique to edge manipulations.
When selecting commands, different sub-menus can be invoked depending on which mouse button is used. Generally, the basic option is chosen by LMB, while the more advanced options are chosen by MMB or RMB, and possibly with additional modifier keys. The information Line will show the available options, and will also guide you through dialogs to select reference points, axis, etc., or input numerical coordinates.
Edge | Move
Moves the selected edges along a chosen axis.
- LMB brings up the submenu:
- Normal - move each of the selected edges along their respective normals.
- Free - move the selection freely in the direction of mouse movement. This can be very useful when in Orthographic mode, since it allows you to use the mouse to move faces in two cardinal directions while “locking” out movement in the third.
- X, Y, or Z – constrains movement of the selection along the standard X, Y or Z axes.
- Last axis – move the selection along the last used axis.
- Default axis – move the selection along the last used axis.
- Planar – Opens a further submenu to choose a plane to constrain movement.
- MMB – move the selection along its normal.
- RMB – choose an axis to move the selection along.
Edge | Rotate
Connected edges will rotate about their collective center of mass. Non-connected edges will rotate about their individual centers of mass.
Free – Will rotate the selected edge/edges in the direction of mouse movement.
Otherwise, constrains rotation about the X, Y or Z axis.
Edge | Scale Uniform
Scales the selected edges uniformly in all three directions at once.
Edge | Scale Axis
Increases or decreases the length of the selected edges along the X, Y or Z axis.
Edge | Scale Radial
- Radial X (YZ) – Scales the length of selected edges radially from the x axis; i.e. The distances in y and z are effected while x remains constant.
- Radial Y (XZ) – Scales the length of selected edges radially from the y axis so that the y dimension remains constant.
- Radial Z (XY) – Scales the length of selected edges radially from the z axis; so that the z dimension remains constant.
Edge | Slide
Slide the selected edge(s) along the connected edges.
Edge | Absolute Commands
Access the Absolute Commands menu.
Move, Snap or Scale to exact position in absolute coordinates.
Edge | Shift
Moves selected edges along chosen paths. The constraints of the pathways may be set to be Planar, Spherical or Cylindrical.
Edge | Extrude
As with vertex extrusions you can use the plus and minus (+ -) keys to increase or decrease the base area of the extrusion.
- Normal – Extrudes the selected edge or edges along their normal(s).
- Free – Will extrude the selected edge/edges in the direction of mouse movement.
- Otherwise, constrains the extrusion along the X, Y or Z axis.
When you extrude an edge, new faces are created to connect the line to the main body of the object it is being extruded from. That is to say, the result will have thickness, you cannot create a “sheet” that protrudes from the object.
Edge | Crease
Creates extrusions (wrinkles) which are useful in organic modelling.
Edge | Flatten
Flatten the selected edges with reference to a standard plane, or another chosen plane from the model.
Edge | Intersect
Moves the selected edges to align with the intersection point between a chosen line and plane.
Edge | Cut
Cuts the selected edges into a number of equally sized segments as specified from the side bar menu. Note that the numerical keys on the main keyboard are defined as Hotkeys, and can be used in lieu of the Cut command. That is: 2,3…,0 – one edge is cut into 2,3…,10 edges.
Edge | Corner
Make corners from edge rings capped by a 3 and 5 sided face.
Edge | Connect (C)
New edges are created that connect the midpoints of two or more selected edges.
Edge | Bevel
Creates a bevel, or chamfer, on selected edges. If used on an edge in the middle of a flat face, Bevel will open up a new face within the original face, on the same plane. Bevels interact with one another, so that if you have adjacent edges selected and then Bevel them, the new chamfered edges will join properly. Many renderers do not work well with large flat straight edged surfaces, causing artifacts to show up in textures and cast shadows. These side effects can be reduced, or even completely eliminated, if you apply a very slight bevel to all such harsh edges. Slight bevels will also help maintain the objects shape when you subdivide the object with the Smooth command.
Edge | Flow Connect
Connect edges wth respect to the surrounding geometry.
Edge | Dissolve (Bksp)
Delete the selected edge(s). Dissolve can be used to eliminate unwanted edges to refine your model or in preparation for other commands. Be careful in the use of Dissolve, for it can destroy the topological relationships between elements (and thus the model) very easily.
Edge | Collapse
Collapse will eliminate an edge by snapping the vertices on each end together. This is the same effect of Weld Vertices found in many modeling programs. It can be used very effectively in conjunction with [Select | By | Short Edges] to remove microscopic edges that are interfering with your modeling.
Edge | Hardness
Edges can be Hard or Soft; they are soft by default. Hard edges are not moved when a model is smoothed, and therefore are handy for maintaining sharp edges where they are needed in a model to maintain overall shape. To make an edge hard, select it, then [Edge | Hard]. To set it back to soft, choose Soft. If you have a lot of edges you want to make Hard, you can use the [Object | Auto Smooth] which sets all edges at sharp angles to hard, then use the [Edge | Soft] to set selected edges back to soft.
Edge | Circularise
Make a selected Edge Loop circular.
Edge | Loop Cut
Cut the object into two parts along the selected Edge Loop.
This is one of the most important commands in Wings 3D. If you have a complete edge loop that closes on itself you can cut the model in two with Loop Cut. For example, if you have an edge loop that completely encircles the arm at the shoulder, you can select that edge loop, and do a [Loop Cut] to sever the arm from the model. Then you can work with both parts independent of one another or even save one part out as a separate model. This can also be useful in symmetrical modeling. If you create your rough model with a clean central edge loop, you can develop detail on one side of the model, then periodically [Loop Cut] the model, delete the non detailed side, and then Mirror the detailed side to quickly duplicate all the detail from one side to the other. This can be a great time saver.
Edge | Vertex Color
Set the vertex colors of the selected edge(s).
Edge | Set Constraint
- Total Length – Total the lengths of the selected edges and save the result as a distance constraint in the Preferences.
- Average Length – Calculate the average length of the selected edges and save the result as a distance constraint in the Preferences.
- Angle – Calculate the angle between any two edges and save the result as a rotation constraint in the Preferences.
- Subtract Angle – Calculate the differnce between two angles and save the result as a rotation constraint in the Preferences.
- EdgetoAxis – Measure the angle between a single edge and a standard axis or defined vector. Save the result as a rotation constraint in the Preferences.
- Percentage – Calculate the difference in scale between the length of two edge selections and save the result as a scale constraint in the Preferences.
- Difference – Calculate the difference in length between two edge selections and save the result as a distance constraint in the Preferences.
- Centers – Calculate the distance between the center points of two edge selections and save the result as a distance constraint in the Preferences.
Edge | Turn
This command is intended to be used on models that have been triangulated. It can easily destroy models made of quads, so be careful when and how you use it. Some programs, such as game engines, expect models to be composed entirely of triangles. But the overall shape of a model can be determined by how those triangles are laid out. Turn lets you create a better flow for the edges so that you can fine tune triangulated models.
Edge | Optimized Turn
Optimized Turn will triangulate your model by finding the shortest edges possible to create the triangles.
Quick Tip: Creating round eyes from square holes
You can create roundish eyes from the results of a [Vertex | Bevel] by using a combination of [Edge | Dissolve] and [Face | Smooth] commands. To demonstrate this, create a cube and connect the left and right edges of one of its sides. Then Connect the three horizontal edges of that side to form a square cross intersection in the middle of the face. Select the vertex of the intersection and Bevel it to form a diamond shape in the middle of the face. With the Face selected do a [Smooth]. Now select the four edges within the smoothed area and [Edge | Dissolve] them. You now have a roundish single face in the middle of the cube from which you can now extrude and scale several times to create an eye.
Quick Tip: Replace your hard edges with bevels
Not all renderers or other modeling programs can handle hard edges. Therefore it is generally agreed that they should not be used, especially in the final model. But that does not mean that they can not be used effectively during the modeling process. It is sometimes useful to set some edges as hard to hold the local form on a given area of a model and the do a Smooth. You can then continue to work the model. Once you are done, do a [Select By | Hard Edges] and then apply a slight Bevel. If you find that your bevels do not hold the form true after a sample smooth it probably indicates an area of the model in need of more geometry. Try adding some additional edges near the bevels and do another test smooth. Now the bevels should hold the form of the model true while eliminating the hard edges from the final model.