In my Fusion 360 Next Level course, one of the projects is creating customizable soap molds. The idea is to have interchangeable back plates that can be customized with text. One problem students started to face was that not all text behaved the same. Some just did not want to cooperate when trying to extrude with a draft angle. So after scratching my head for a few minutes, I figured out a work-around.
The workflow in a nutshell involves creating a sketch on a plane that is located at the height of the intended extrusion and then using the loft tool to connect the two profiles.
After creating the second sketch, you'll want to use the offset tool to make the second profile smaller than the first. This will allow you the transition you need going from a bigger profile on the bottom to a smaller profile on the top, thus giving you your taper angle.
After selecting Modify - Loft and choosing both profiles, you'll find that it didn't exactly work. In my case with the 'S' you'll only get a small wedge of a shape. This is because there's one more thing you need to do.
Within your Loft dialog box you'll see an option that says Tangent Edges with two options for you to select - Merge or Keep. You'll want to select Keep.
There you have it. Problem solved. Watch the video above to see me work through this solution. It's one of those techniques that you'll want to keep in your back pocket and have it ready to go as it will save you hours of frustration. By the way, it doesn't just work on text but can be applied to any profile sketch.
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