Here is a simple mesh, a cylinder with two pipes connect to it. I want to add an even outward thickness to it, basically offset all the faces in the direction of face normal. Solidify modifier is distorting the out side faces for some reasons.
Is this how solidify modifier works? How do you offset all the faces in the direction of face normal without using solidify modifier? Thanks.
Solidify Modifier.blend (1.7 MB)
Is it not an option to model the cylinder seperately and then use a boolean modifier (union).
Or use the bevel after boolean addon, or if you have Mesh Machine and make a plug?
Solidify Modifier2.blend (1.7 MB)
Here a quick try with boolean.
Thanks for checking it out. I need to have a clean topography with all faces offset equally, plus it would be good to learn how to offset faces uniformly. Solidify modifier result in this mesh is surprising, it should offsets all faces equally.
I think what you want is very difficult because we are dealing here with two curvatures. (which is most challenging).
And what you are looking for is something that slides multiple vertices along their edge. I haven’t seen something that can do that. Closest that comes to that is Mesh Machine which has various tools to fix.
Really? Offset surface and thicken (solidify) tools are basic tools in Solidworks and Fusion360. It’s easy as one click, given that the surface isn’t super complex.
The outer object just looks scaled up and not connected?
What’s wrong with duplicating the mesh, scaling it up and connect it where it needs connecting? Sorry if I misunderstood.
So duplicate mesh, scale up (or shrink/fatten) flip normals on smaller mesh, bridge the two circular tubes with the larger mesh.
That method doesn’t create an uniform offset of all faces. While it can work with multiple steps and adjustments. But I’d like know if Blender has an offset tool that can offsets faces uniformly.
Blender is a mesh modeling application, and modeling functions in a CAD application like SolidWorks or Fusion CAD will not work in exactly the same way in a mesh modeling application because the model geometry is described in a completely different way.
I’m not saying you cannot get the results you want in Blender, but you may need to think or work differently. It may take longer to accomplish the same task.
OK, so the result I got is the limitation of solidify modifier. Just want to make sure it’s not some settings that I missed. Thanks.
I am waking up this topic to conclude it 
Oct, like you I am coming from engineering CAD software and i am trying to find my usual tools in blender : to create faces offset, you can use the shrink/fatten tool (alt+s)
shrink/fatten tool still runs into the same issue as solidify modifier for this particular form. But it’s a great tool for offset simple surface, thanks for sharing.
