ZBrush Sculpt Brushes - Startup Problem

Support Basics & Interface
1

Hi 2 everyone,

Im trying to use this…

…according to its “manual” I want to make these brushes load each time I start Blender so I moved all the files needed into the “config” folder mentioned on that picture here…

http://i.imgur.com/x4YrvbN.png

…start Blender, append all the brushes starting with “A|” from the “Brushes” folder and save the startup file using CTRL+U shortcut. Afterwards I switch to the Sculpt mode and all the brushes were present so until this everything was fine.

Problem is that when closing and re-opening the Blender the brushes are gone despite I saved the startup file, so I have to re-append them and thats not how it should work so … any tips?

Sincerely, Jan

PS: Im using Blender 2.79a (Win7 x64)

Really NOBODY knows how to append these files and save startup to keep them “forever”?

2

Don’t know if you’re still trying to figure this out, but I struggled with the same issue until finally getting things to work. Here’s how to do it:

  1. Open up a new Blender window and start by Saving a .blend file right off the bat (doesn’t matter where):
File > Save > my-new-startup.blend
  1. Now instead of Appending the brushes Link them:
File > Link > [navigate to your brushes and select them for linking]
  1. Now go into Sculpt Mode and select one of your new brushes. You’ll see this button:
    localize-brush-button
    localize-brush-button1233×756 53.3 KB

Note that the preview thumbnails for these brushes may not appear. Don’t worry about that for now.

  1. Click it. Do the same for each of your new brushes (it’s a pain, I know).
  2. Almost done. Now we make all paths to external data absolute:
File > External Data > Make all paths absolute
  1. Save your .blend file again
File > Save
  1. Finally, you can save the Startup File:
File > Save Startup File

All done! You should now be able to close Blender and your new brushes will be present each time you open a new session. The preview thumbnails for each brush should also appear upon re-opening Blender.

At first it may appear that there are duplicate brushes when you’re selecting a brush in sculpt mode. This is not the case; Blender just has a terrible brush selection UI.

As a side note, you can delete the “my-new-startup.blend” we created during step 1.

Also, it’s worth noting that with this method you can save the source files for your custom brushes anywhere you like; you don’t necessarily have to save them in “C:\Users[USERNAME]\AppData\Roaming\Blender Foundation\Blender\2.79\config”. If you, for example, have a folder where you keep all of your custom Blender assets you can stick them here.

Either way, another benefit to this method is if you upgrade to a new version of Blender and migrate your startup file, your brushes should still be present. This is due to us making all paths to external data absolute. I have tested this by upgrading from 2.79 to 2.8 and haven’t noticed any issues thus far.

Honestly this whole process is way more difficult than it needs to be, and I suspect it may have something to do with v2.79. Either way I hope this helps you and whoever stumbles across this post during their travels. Good luck and happy sculpting.

1 Like
3

GREAT! THX for the reply - test it ASAP and let U know Bro!

4

I’m late to the brush party, but it worked like a charm. Thank you!