Modelling a modular spacecraft with Blender, splitting meshes? Please help!

[Naten]

I want to make something like my own version of the MiG-101 (I think it was), the X-37B, and the Dreamchaser, as well as a bit of trace of Kliper. I can model it, but I want to in one big piece, as it's hard to me to add in a bunch of objects and align them all. If I make it in one big mesh, I need to split it so its center of mass is not just the location of PartTools. Or is that the center of mass? Where is the center of mass? But anyways, if I did that, the drag would also be wacky, and nothing would work out. I'm using Blender 3D, just FYI.

Then I'll split the mesh. Yaay. Woot. Three cheers for Naten. Yay. Yaaay. Woohoo. The mesh where I divided it doesn't even have ends.

How do I make the ends, just extrude all of the edges of the end and then scale to 0? Then how do I reduce polys, decimate modifiers? Will this work? How come I've seen people making mods, e.g. Skylon, and modelling it all at once in one solid mesh. Please help.

So what I'm trying to figure out, 'cause I was probably quite unclear in this situation, how do I split one big mesh into little seperate meshes that I can then split into seperate objects? If I do now with the "Y" key, both meshes won't have end caps where I split them, just as if I pulled and yanked until the thing split right in two.

Well, thanks!

-Naten

(Any help would be appreciated. )

[Dispatcher]

You need to insert a set of points on each line of the mesh where you want to break it, with the idea of deleting the (short) lines between those inserted points. I've not found a way of subtractive intersecting which does the same thing in Blender, but my skills are rather basic so someone else might know how to do it.

I've had more success with making the separate parts and joining them. I'm sure someone else can give you better information but consider this preliminary stuff.

[NoMrBond]

From your whole mesh, select the bit/s you want to split off and hit [P] and choose 'by selection'

[Edit] You might want to duplicate first (shift+D), then separate the duplicated mesh, so that when you separate the mesh, the edges between the separated pieces don't get messed up (depending on vertex/edge/face mode)

Edited February 24, 2014 by NoMrBond

[Naten]

Oh, yeah, thanks. I guess I could use the duplicate trick!

Thanks such moo!