henryjames7

Members
  • Content Count

    3
  • Joined

  • Last visited

Posts posted by henryjames7


  1. On 6/30/2017 at 1:40 PM, darcshadow said:

    Don't save the file as a PNG, that is a raster image so you're forcing your cricut to revector it and that is where you are loosing your detail. I believe Cricut can import ai files, but if not save the file as an eps or svg and import that into Cricut.

    Thank you.  I had previously tried to do an EPS but Cricut wasn't having it. I then did a SVG and some funny stuff happened with layers when I tried to cut.  But I played around with the Cricut "group" and "delete" settings a bit and things improved.  So, now I've got much better, although not perfect, circles. 

     

    Thanks for the suggestions- with all your help, I think now I'm approaching the max of what I can expect out of my Hobby-cutter (which is much better than it was before!)


  2. All I can say is "wow".  What a terrific community! I very much appreciate all the feedback and suggestions- it's so helpful for somebody who is just starting out.

    Based upon the feedback so far, I messed with my source files a bit- trying to improve it.  I'm totally self taught so I probably have been making lots of rookie mistakes.

    Using an ancient version of CS-2 AI, I tried changing line thickness, removing/ using solids etc. and just generally doing a bunch of experiments.  And... things improved quite a bit.  But, they are still not great.  It looks worse in person than in the attached scan.

    Here is the latest source file that's giving me the "best" results. I save it in Illustrator as a PNG and then import it into Cricut and re-scale it to the proper size.  And it gives me this result.  Not bad... but not as good as I get printing the same source file directly to my HP OfficeJet.

    Attached are the AI source file and a 600 DPI scan of the cut vinyl next to the source file directly printed from AI using my  basic HP inkjet.  If you zoom in on the scanned image, you will see that the circle edges of the vinyl cuts are a bit lumpy and in some areas look like linked flat segments rather than smooth curves.

    Any ideas on how I can squeeze a bit performance out of my Cricut are welcome.  Or, if the consensus is I need to upgrade to get a better result, so it is....

    Thanks in advance!

     

     

     

    HP Print vs Cricut - circles.png

    Circles Source File.ai


  3. Hi All- new here.

    I've been using (learning) on a Cricut Explore.  It's been fine so far, but now I need to get greater precision on my cuts.  Most of my shapes are 1-4 inches (imported as JPEGs from Adobe Illustrator) and have intricate curves and circles.  I find the Cricut to be choppy and not as smooth on the shapes and curves as I'd like.  The cuts are very consistent from one cut to the next - each time I cut, they are choppy in the same way- but I need smooth and precise cuts.

    Based upon reading, I think I may need a different machine.  I'd appreciate any recommendations on the most precise cutters I should be considering (preferably 12" width, but not necessary.)

    Many thanks in advance!