Hi! I’m trying to figure out why there are gaps in the file when it is uploaded to be engraved. The original file doesn’t have any overlapping parts or gaps… it just looks like parts of the drawing shifted a bit when it was uploaded. Any ideas?
Screenshot of original:
Gaps shown when uploaded to GF:
SVG file:
I looked at the file in Inkscape outline mode and there are clearly separated areas. It might not show under normal display settings, but there are extra sections in the file.
hmm. Ok. I see on the SVG I uploaded, there are gaps there too. Now I have to figure out how to get rid of them…even though I can’t see them in my file in Illustrator.
try saving a PDF and printing from that.
Interesting, when I open the SVG I see the gaps, same as on the SVG preview here on the forum. I have an idea about how this might be happening, but hard to tell without the original AI file.
this is what I might try:
first, save a new copy of the AI file for this test, so you don’t mess up your original file if this doesn’t work.
(the following steps are done using the menu bar. toolbars or shortcuts work fine too)
Select>All,
Object>Expand… check both the fill and stroke boxes and hit ok
Effect>Pathfinder>Trim
save the file and test in the gfui
Thank you! I will try that when I get home!
Everything is shifted in the original file and there’s a lot of little debris and errant lines as well. 
Even if you get everything lined up, I think you’ll be unhappy with all the little extra engraved bits. It’s easier to see them if you look at it in wire frame. (Sorry, don’t know what it’s called in other programs.)
If possible, this might be one of those times when converting it to a rastor program and making an outside cutline may be easier in the long run.
Weird. Ok! I’ll try converting it into a raster and then back into an svg. I need it to be different laters because each color engraves at a different setting. It’s weird because I only run into this issue sometimes and I can’t figure out why.
Did you do a trace on an image to get the file? That’s when I get these issues.
Yeah, that’d be a good solution. Make a bitmap of the good preview and re-trace it limiting the # of colors etc. I use that to clean up messy vectors.
I actually drew it on my Illustrator phone app and then uploaded it to Illustrator on my computer. I might be taking the wrong steps afterward…or maybe it’s just a complicated vector. Not sure. The attached is how it arrives in Illustrator before I make any other changes. 
That makes sense. Your drawing program caught all the little hand movements and wiggles and created all the hidden artifacts and squiggles. It think the stoke widths we see in the colored version hide the artifacts and misalignments that are obvious in the wire view. It’ll add a step, but it’ll be interesting if you can get cleaner results by converting them to rastor then tracing them. Let us know what you come up with and how it works out.
Edited: OK, I had to test it to satisfy my curiosity. 
I used the little partial color image you posted and got this. Looks really clean.
The converted vector result
Yes! That looks much better! Thank you so much!
You’re welcome. Good luck!
Thanks for the help @kittski. I’m going to close this thread - if the problem reoccurs, go ahead and post a new topic. Thanks for letting us know about this!
