# Is there any way I can change how the scissor tool works in segment editor?

**URL:** <https://discourse.slicer.org/t/is-there-any-way-i-can-change-how-the-scissor-tool-works-in-segment-editor/16472>\
**Category:** Development\
**Created:** [March 10, 2021, 3:12pm UTC](https://discourse.slicer.org/t/is-there-any-way-i-can-change-how-the-scissor-tool-works-in-segment-editor/16472 "2021-03-10T15:12:48Z")\
**Posts on this page:** 5\
**Page:** 1

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**Author:** ![akshay\_pillai](https://sea2.discourse-cdn.com/flex002/user_avatar/discourse.slicer.org/akshay_pillai/32/8301_2.png) [@akshay\_pillai](https://discourse.slicer.org/u/akshay_pillai)\
**Post date:** [March 10, 2021, 3:12pm UTC](https://discourse.slicer.org/t/is-there-any-way-i-can-change-how-the-scissor-tool-works-in-segment-editor/16472/1 "2021-03-10T15:12:48Z")

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Operating system: Windows 10  
Slicer version: 4.11  
Expected behavior:  
Actual behavior:

I want to use the scissor tools to make dents or cuts on a 3d model. But the scissor tool completely removes everything inside the area drawn or selected. Instead, I want to control the depth of the cut. Is this possible, is there any way I can change that. Or are there any other tools for it?

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**Author:** ![muratmaga](https://sea2.discourse-cdn.com/flex002/user_avatar/discourse.slicer.org/muratmaga/32/3622_2.png) [@muratmaga](https://discourse.slicer.org/u/muratmaga)\
**Post date:** [March 10, 2021, 3:31pm UTC](https://discourse.slicer.org/t/is-there-any-way-i-can-change-how-the-scissor-tool-works-in-segment-editor/16472/2 "2021-03-10T15:31:37Z")

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I think the surface cut is meant to do exactly that. You can get that via SegmentEditorExtraEffects extension.

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**Author:** ![lassoan](https://sea2.discourse-cdn.com/flex002/user_avatar/discourse.slicer.org/lassoan/32/13_2.png) [@lassoan](https://discourse.slicer.org/u/lassoan)\
**Post date:** [March 10, 2021, 3:41pm UTC](https://discourse.slicer.org/t/is-there-any-way-i-can-change-how-the-scissor-tool-works-in-segment-editor/16472/3 "2021-03-10T15:41:18Z")

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Yes, using Surface cut effect is a good idea.

If you use Scissors effect then you can control the depth of the cut in slice views. In 3D views, you can use masking to restrict cutting to a specific region; or use two cuts as demonstrated in the [craniotomy segmentation recipe](https://lassoan.github.io/SlicerSegmentationRecipes/Craniotomy/).

You can also change the Scissors effect to make it work exactly as you need. The source code is available [here](https://github.com/Slicer/Slicer/blob/master/Modules/Loadable/Segmentations/EditorEffects/qSlicerSegmentEditorScissorsEffect.cxx), build instructions are [here](https://slicer.readthedocs.io/en/latest/developer_guide/build_instructions/index.html). If you make any improvements or customizations that you think could be useful for others then please send a pull request with the proposed changes.

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**Author:** ![akshay\_pillai](https://sea2.discourse-cdn.com/flex002/user_avatar/discourse.slicer.org/akshay_pillai/32/8301_2.png) [@akshay\_pillai](https://discourse.slicer.org/u/akshay_pillai)\
**Post date:** [March 10, 2021, 3:51pm UTC](https://discourse.slicer.org/t/is-there-any-way-i-can-change-how-the-scissor-tool-works-in-segment-editor/16472/4 "2021-03-10T15:51:09Z")

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Thanks, I’ll try that out. Are there any tutorial videos for that?

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**Author:** ![lassoan](https://sea2.discourse-cdn.com/flex002/user_avatar/discourse.slicer.org/lassoan/32/13_2.png) [@lassoan](https://discourse.slicer.org/u/lassoan)\
**Post date:** [March 10, 2021, 3:53pm UTC](https://discourse.slicer.org/t/is-there-any-way-i-can-change-how-the-scissor-tool-works-in-segment-editor/16472/5 "2021-03-10T15:53:09Z")

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There are lots of tutorials, you can start from here [Image Segmentation — 3D Slicer documentation](https://slicer.readthedocs.io/en/latest/user_guide/image_segmentation.html#segment-editor-module-overview), but you can also just search on google and youtube. If you have any specific question then you can ask here.