How to use the custom brush function in Aspire in Vectric software | Modeling Tools

Overview

This tutorial explains how to create, save, and use custom sculpting brushes in Aspire/Vectric software. It covers preparing a brush component from vectors, exporting it as a sculpting brush, and controlling brush strokes with diameter, strength, smoothness, and merge options.

Steps

1. Locate included brushes:

   • Go to Public Documents > Vectric Files > Sculpting Brushes.
   • Pre-made component brushes are stored here.

2. Create a component brush:

   • Prepare vectors, e.g., a circle and a cross-section profile.
   • Select the vectors and use the create/shape tool to generate a 3D component.
   • Name the component, e.g., Brush 1, apply, and close.

3. Create brush variations (optional):

   • In the Components tab, duplicate the component.
   • Edit the duplicate’s properties, e.g., set total height to 0.5 to make it much flatter.
   • Rename the duplicate, e.g., 0.5, and apply.

4. Export a component as a brush:

   • Right-click the component in the Components tab.
   • Choose Save As Sculpting Brush.
   • Navigate to the desired folder and save.

5. Load a custom brush:

   • Turn off brush components/layers as needed and make the target layer active.
   • Go to the Design tab and open the Sculpting Tools.
   • If no model exists, click Yes when prompted to create a component.

6. Activate the custom brush:

   • Select either the Add/Deposit tool or Subtract/Remove tool. The custom brush option is disabled for other sculpting tools.
   • Check Use Custom Brush, click Load Brush, select the saved brush file, and open it.
   • A ghost graphic previews the brush as you move the cursor.

7. Apply brush strokes:

   • Click to stamp, or click and drag to create continuous strokes.
   • In Top view, hold H while dragging for a horizontal straight line, or V for a vertical straight line.

8. Adjust brush size:

   • Use the diameter slider.
   • Keyboard: Left Arrow decreases size; Right Arrow increases size.
   • Mouse: hold Ctrl and scroll down to shrink; scroll up to enlarge.

9. Adjust strength:

   • Use the strength slider.
   • Keyboard: Down Arrow lowers strength; Up Arrow raises it.
   • Strength is relative to the Z-height of the original brush component.

10. Adjust smoothness:

    • Set smoothness low (1) to preserve the brush’s original profile.
    • Set smoothness high (100) to create a smooth linear falloff from center to edge.
    • In the deposit tool, hold Ctrl while dragging to apply additional smoothness.

11. Compare brush height effects:

    • A tall, full-height brush produces strong, visible strokes.
    • A flattened duplicate brush, e.g., 0.5 height, produces much lighter, shallower strokes.

Key Points / Warnings

• Custom brush options are grayed out unless you are using Add/Deposit or Subtract/Remove sculpting tools.
• If you keep the default add mode, each click deposits another brush on top, increasing height. Switch to merge mode so repeated clicks/strokes merge instead of accumulating height.
• The strength of a custom brush depends heavily on the actual Z height of the component used to create it. Flattening a component before exporting reduces the brush’s visible effect.
• High smoothness values cause the brush center to keep the set height while the edges fall away; low smoothness retains the original component’s shape.
• Straight-line constraints (H or V) work from the Top view.
• Use the ghost preview to visualize exactly where and how large your brush stroke will be.
• You can clear sculpting test strokes with the discard option when starting over.