One final (hopefully) update: I investigated the gap in the end piece; see below for an image of the problem. The top axle uses LDCad's default flex axle template; note the space at the "hilt" of the cap part on the lower end. (Segment sizes have been adjusted at the lower end of the piece, but not the upper, hence the visible seams there.) The bottom axle shows the problem corrected after making my own adjustments—read on…
I tried using Philo's flex axle template, and it does indeed fix the problem. This template uses additional segments (77.dat) in the "handle" portion of the axle so that it, too, is flexible (it isn't in the LDCad version). It seems that the adjustment of segment sizes in this section creates enough overlap to eliminate the gap—which I bet comes from the same issue of the rendering software scaling the fake seams, because LDCad's version of the handle is a stud3a primitive scaled to a factor of 5. (Also, Philo's 77.dat segments aren't scaled, so any fake seams between them would likewise not be scaled.)
However, I wanted to keep using LDCad's version of the end piece, because I actually want the handle to remain rigid (along with retaining the snap info and path cap auto-grouping). So I made my own version of the LDCad donor part (ldcFlexAxleCap.dat), with some extra overlap hardcoded in by increasing the scaling factor for the stud3a primitive, with an appropriate Y-offset to compensate.
I then made my own version of the LDCad flex axle template, substituting my new cap donor part, as well as adjusting the base and segment sizes for the flexible segments, and setting them to static donor references. Finally, I copied all of LDCad's donor files into Studio's custom parts folder and rendered the file, resulting in the bottom part in the picture, with all of the issues corrected.
Here is my version of the flex axle template adapted for rendering in Studio; use this one if you want the "handle" portion to stay rigid. (If you want it to be flexible, use Philo's template.) There are two files provided: use the second one if you have copied the LDCad donor files into Studio's custom parts folder; otherwise, use the first one. Place the file into LDCad's "templates->path" directory.
technicFlexAxle-Inline.ldr (Size: 3.25 KB / Downloads: 12)
technicFlexAxle-noInline.ldr (Size: 3.25 KB / Downloads: 9)
To use either of these files, you need my modified path cap donor part; place it in LDCad's "donors" folder.
ldcFlexAxleCap2.dat (Size: 309 bytes / Downloads: 15)
I tried using Philo's flex axle template, and it does indeed fix the problem. This template uses additional segments (77.dat) in the "handle" portion of the axle so that it, too, is flexible (it isn't in the LDCad version). It seems that the adjustment of segment sizes in this section creates enough overlap to eliminate the gap—which I bet comes from the same issue of the rendering software scaling the fake seams, because LDCad's version of the handle is a stud3a primitive scaled to a factor of 5. (Also, Philo's 77.dat segments aren't scaled, so any fake seams between them would likewise not be scaled.)
However, I wanted to keep using LDCad's version of the end piece, because I actually want the handle to remain rigid (along with retaining the snap info and path cap auto-grouping). So I made my own version of the LDCad donor part (ldcFlexAxleCap.dat), with some extra overlap hardcoded in by increasing the scaling factor for the stud3a primitive, with an appropriate Y-offset to compensate.
I then made my own version of the LDCad flex axle template, substituting my new cap donor part, as well as adjusting the base and segment sizes for the flexible segments, and setting them to static donor references. Finally, I copied all of LDCad's donor files into Studio's custom parts folder and rendered the file, resulting in the bottom part in the picture, with all of the issues corrected.
Here is my version of the flex axle template adapted for rendering in Studio; use this one if you want the "handle" portion to stay rigid. (If you want it to be flexible, use Philo's template.) There are two files provided: use the second one if you have copied the LDCad donor files into Studio's custom parts folder; otherwise, use the first one. Place the file into LDCad's "templates->path" directory.
technicFlexAxle-Inline.ldr (Size: 3.25 KB / Downloads: 12)
technicFlexAxle-noInline.ldr (Size: 3.25 KB / Downloads: 9)
To use either of these files, you need my modified path cap donor part; place it in LDCad's "donors" folder.
ldcFlexAxleCap2.dat (Size: 309 bytes / Downloads: 15)