Complete novice, need help extruding to 3D

[vitamanic]

I am extremely well versed in Photoshop and do almost all of my work there, though navigating Illustrator feels like I'm reading a foreign language, so bear with me...

I have an Illustrator file of a logo. I need to extrude the whole thing to 3D and add a bevel.

When I select all of the layers and use the extrude option, it only extrudes the portion of the logo that doesn't have a gradient. The portion that has a gradient gets left behind and I get a warning that 3D extrusion doesn't work on all objects.

Is there a way that I can take all of the layers and like, mash them together into one object without a gradient, so I can then extrude and bevel the logo in 3D?

I'm sorry if this sounds like the dumbest question in the world, but I've tried everything I can find in the menus and nothing seemingly works.

Thank you!

[Monika Gause]

It would help if we could see the thing.

You can select that objet with the gradient and then assign a solid fill using the Color panel.

Unless it is a gradient mesh.

[vitamanic]

Here's a link to the file (apparently Illustrator files can't be attached here?): https://shared-assets.adobe.com/link/e40df242-5abe-4fd7-5562-5bced8f8653d

I tried doing what you suggested but didn't get anwhere.

From what I understand, the gradient comes from an image of a gradient and the path is clipped to the image... Extrusion doesn't seem to work on this portion. 

I guess what I'm simply trying to do is fill the gradient portion with the same color as the right side of the logo, or just flatten everything into one shape filled with one single color. Is that possible?

I'm also not worried about the tagline below the logo, I can easily delete that.

I appreciate any help, thank you!

[Monika Gause · Accepted solution]

You're right. This is a clipping mask.

As a  3D version - should this be just one solid color? In that case: ungroup the thing, (a couple of thimes, since the clipping mask is buried in several groups. Then select it and release the clipping mask (Object > clipping mask > Release). Then select all and make a compound path. Then apply 3D

[vitamanic]

Thank you! This worked after a bit of fiddling. This is a massive relief after spending so much time banging my head against the wall!

I guess I really should just suck it up and at least learn the basics of Illustrator. 99.99% of the work I take on (photo restoration, editing, presentation design, business cards, and so on) never really requires it. I just import/rasterize vectors into Photoshop when needed. But dear lord, when I get stuck needing to actually edit an Illustrator file once in a blue moon, it's a nightmare.

If you were curious about the needed color and use case, I just needed the actual 3D object model. I'm staging and texturing it in Dimension along with other text for a Power Point title slide graphic. I needed to use Illustrator because it's the only thing I could find that would let me bevel the 3D model after I extruded it. Photoshop can extrude it, but doesn't give a way to bevel it.

Thanks again!

[Monika Gause]

Good to hear that you could solve it.

I was already assuming that you were going to apply materials or color elsewhere. Thank you for the explanation.