Rhino mesh settings for best 3d printing

Big Train James

Western Thunderer
I normally create 3d models in Autocad, as that's the program I'm most fluent in. I'm preparing to send some models out for print, and in light of recent discussions here regarding facet resolution and print quality, I'm curious if I can create higher quality .stl files in Rhino.

I have Rhino, so I can export files from Autocad without a problem. The question I have is how to massage the mesh settings in Rhino to make curved surfaces as smooth as possible. In Autocad, I can set Facetres to its max and get a reasonable result. In Rhino, it would appear that the only limit on resolution is file size and total facet number, as those two criteria are limited by Shapeways.

I've done some reading, and it would appear that the "max distance from edge" parameter in the mesh settings is critical. However, there are six or seven variables, and hence a vast number of combinations. Does anybody have a list of standard mesh settings they find performs best? Or which of the handful of settings is most critical? The models are mostly flat planes (it's a diesel hood) but there are a handful of curved surfaces and complex objects that would benefit from an increased facet resolution.

Thanks,
Jim
 
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