Convert group items to single object?

Question

In order to make both sides of this shape symmetrical, I drew half of it with the pen tool, then did a copy/paste. I rotated the second piece horizontally, then aligned them to give the appearance of a sinlge item. I want to convert this to a single object so I can apply a gradient effect to it. Can someone help me? Here's what I have:

Answer 1

Pathfinder Merge is just an effect. It doesn't join things physically.
Merge (in the Pathfinder palette) is not a live effect. And it does "join things."
Merge unions (add) contiguous areas of same-colored fills and punches (subtract) overlapping areas of different-colored fills.
So in effect, it creates paths which are actually shaped like what you see, in terms of regions of contiguous fills. It "merges" areas of same color that touch, and removes any overlaps.
(This is particularly useful in prepping artwork for vinyl cutting, because it eliminates crosscuts and overlaps. I have long argued that it should provide a settings dialog to make overlap optional and adjustable so that in such situations, it could serve to build traps at the same time, which is usually needed in artwork assembled from vinyl.)
Like most Pathfinders, it can only work with fills; it doesn't properly handle strokes, so it wrecks artwork containing strokes. You have to use Outline Stroke before you use Merge if you don't want to loose strokes.
I would not, however, have suggested Merge for TC's situation, because it would not perform the union if the two paths had different fills. Union (Pathfinder Add) is the normal and customary way to do this.
As for those situations in which abutting edges may not perfectly align, I often simply draw a third path that overlaps the two being unioned using any closed path drawing tool to make sure of there being overlap; then do the union on the three paths; then use the minus pen tool to remove any unwanted anchors. That is often simpler than tedioiusly aligning anchors, which often doesn't work anyway because a single slightly extended control handle can cause the edges to misalign. It helps ensure you don't accidently create a compound path instead.
JET