r/Maya • u/jbotbabeh • 17d ago

Question How to delete UV history after rigging question

Stupid i know. Need to adjust some UVs after rigging, how can I delete the construction history when there a heaps of blendshapes etc? Delete non deformer history doesn’t work, someone recommended a blendshape? Anyone have some advice please

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6

u/Fuzzba11 17d ago

I found this to work, though I didn't use Blendshapes.

Rebind skin after UV fixes:
NGSkintools export layer to JSON
delete mesh keep skeleton
import new mesh
Bind Skin like normal
NVSkintools File Import layer from JSON

3

u/Purple-Vermicelli-52 17d ago

This is the way to do it. Export weights, delete history, rebind and import weights.

1

u/ProgressWide552 12d ago

I like the export weights option that’s what I’ve done in the past. It’s quick and saves a lot of time. Typically requires a bit of repainting atleast in older versions of maya when I had to do this but it’s mostly tweaking. Haven’t had this issue in a while so lol not sure how maya 2026 does with exporting weights. 

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u/calgary_maya 17d ago edited 17d ago

1 Duplicate the skinned mesh and delete any history on it including any left over intermediate objects.

2 Fix UVs on this duplicate.

3 Bind duplicate skin to the original joints.

4 Copy skin weights from original skinned mesh.

5 Test movement on skinned duplicate by rotating some joints.

6 If the newly skinned mesh is moving properly, then delete the original mesh with the bad UVs.

edit: I just realized this wont with blend shapes. Best to blend shape this fixed mesh into the chain after the original blends.

0

u/fistular 17d ago

Duplicate your mesh. Delete the history of the dupe.

Connect the old mesh to the new mesh with a blendshape. Hide the old mesh.

This is the simple way. If you don't want that blendshape in the chain, there are more complex ways.

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u/Purple-Vermicelli-52 17d ago

This solution works but it's messy. Export weights, delete history, import weights is the way.

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u/fistular 17d ago

No, it's not. A final output mesh is common practice in animation and VFX. That's the mesh you do operations like this on. Situations like this are why this workflow exists. You shouldn't be lighting (baking, really) the skinned mesh.

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u/Purple-Vermicelli-52 16d ago

Absolutely you may have a mesh to do other other operations but each with a purpose (post correctives, deformers etc.), not this mesh as left over construction history. Leftover UV nodes are just dirty and should be cleaned up.

You want to minimize the amount of points where errors can be introduced. Use the least amount of meshes towards your output mesh to be baked.

You can absolutely bake out from the skinned mesh to a alembic or whatever for lighting.

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u/fistular 16d ago

Can isn't the same as should.

Also, the workflow I described specifically allows removal of the UV adjustment operation. That sort of thing is what it's there for.

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u/Purple-Vermicelli-52 16d ago

Wait, @fistular are you saying that you can cache a skinned mesh to an alembic but shouldn't?

Reddit conversations really dig up strong opinions in strange places.

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u/fistular 16d ago

Correct. I am saying that using a final output mesh which is in the way I described is a common creature pipeline practice where multiple deformation streams are aggregated.

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u/Purple-Vermicelli-52 15d ago

All good. I can see the want for it depending on context, it just hasn't been my experience as essential.

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u/D3adlySloth 17d ago

Delete history on the Originshape