Can't create consistent solid groups

Everytime I create a solid group and then click it and unclick it, it reverts back to a group rather than a solid group. How do I get it to stay a solid group. Sometimes I have no problem and creates and stays the group and do the same thing with the next solid group and then it doesn’t work.

Upload an example SKP file which shows this problem.

I am trying to build a phone case. I edit any of the independent objects (white, grey and yellow). I pick edit group, I triple click and select everything and create a group. It shows it as a solid entity. I close the group and and click on it again. It shows the object as a group only. I am trying to use the subtract and trim features but they only work with solid groups and I am having trouble consistantly creating a group. I got the solids inspector 2 off the warehouse, but most of the time it returns 1 error, nested, can fix, inspect manually, but I don’t know what I’m looking for. Thanks

42414 demo.skp (1.51 MB)

Your description says you are making a group within a group. At the point where you say Edit Group it is already a group.

You are putting the geometry into deeply nested groups.

Only the bottom most group can be solid. You’ve got the geometry nested like a Russian doll and there’s no reason for that.

Why do you keep opening the group for editing, selecting the geometry and make a new group inside the existing one?

Do you have a picture of what this thing is supposed to look like? It kind of looks to me as if you are working too hard to get something you can print. You’ve also got reversed faces you shouldn’t have and those will need to be fixed.

Looking more closely at your model, I’m curious about the dimensions you are using. Do you really need the main box to be 94.598563 mm wide? Can you manufacture the thing to that dimension? Surely 94.5 or even 95mm would be close enough.

Does this look like the sort of thing you are trying to achieve?

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You have also placed the back “pockets” so that their inner surfaces are exactly aligned with the outer surface of the main one, causing z-fighting. If you mean for them to merge with the main one, why not draw them without that back wall and just cut-paste them into the main group?

zfighting

Thanks for the clarification. I am going to build a custom phone holder with other things I need, I am in EMS and building and always have at least a leatherman. I didn’t realize I was creating the groups and the nesting, I was just using it as a way to create a solid so I could use the solid tools to create holders. As for the dimensions, I am entering all the numbers via the text line and they are round numbers. I noticed that also that when I remeasure they are all long numbers with decimals and six numbers to the right of the decimal point. My other question is that I try to round off the corners and it usually works perfectly the first time, then after that I constantly get too many segments or something like that as an error until I expand the arc enough to finally work. Thanks for your help.