PDF file won't engrave

[saramcc90311]

I’m working on a file that was sent to me as a PDF from a customer. When uploading the file into Glowforge it is not allowing me to engrave the full file. A portion of it is showing as a semi solid square where I can vaguely see what needs to be engraved.
Anyone have tips for me in order to correct this before wasting the wood to check.

[dklgood]

Welcome to the forum.

I believe that you are going to have to open the file outside of the interface and see if you can fix it. There is obviously a glitch.

[Jules]

If part of the Engraving looks darker than the rest, there might be overlapping sections there…and that indicates it will not engrave in that spot. You would definitely want to fix that overlap first.

(You can also test it first on scrap of any kind.)

[Xabbess]

Might not be exactly what you’re seeing but it reminds me of what a design looks like when there’s a clip path in it. Maybe it’s like this?

What is This Clip-Paths Error?

Clip paths errors appear when you have objects in your design that overlap each other to provide some negative or positive space. Often they appear when someone uses a white fill color to indicate negative space and places it over an object that already has a fill. The design softwares use clip paths and clipping masks as a useful feature and celebrate it! Yeah! Not good for how the Glowforge processes a vector though. That’s why it’s a challenge. When you search the topic, it generally doesn…

[techquest89]

I’ve ran into this before, use this site to convert the PDF to an SVG, it’ll make thing much much easier and should engrave with no issues.

https://cloudconvert.com/pdf-to-svg

[Faryar.N]

@saramcc90311 I am so sorry you are not able to engrave the full file.

If possible, could you please send me a screenshot of what you see in the Glowforge app when this happens? Make sure to include the rulers in your screenshot and show as much of the bed as possible

To take a screenshot:

• Mac: Press Shift-Command-4 and click and drag a box around your image. You’ll find the screenshot file saved on your desktop.

• Windows: Click on the Start Menu and type “snipping tool”. Open the Snipping Tool > New then click and drag a box around your image. Click the Save icon and name and save your file.

I’d also like to know if you would be able to provide a copy of the design so that I may investigate this on my own app?

Once I have your reply I will be able to investigate further.