darcshadow

Just to be clear, the unit itself is grounded through the plug. The key is grounding the vinyl. People with a stand accomplish this by grounding the stand to the cutter. Since the vinyl sits on the stand the vinyl is also grounded. Don't know about what get's shorted, but I would suspect the main micro controller would be the most susceptible, drivers/FETS are usually a bit more robust.

Yes, the calibration has to be done in the software you use to cut.

Have you checked the calibration of the cutter? Does a test box say 12"x12" come out exactly 12x12? Could be a simple adjustment.

Just so you're aware, the static issue, is static generated by the vinyl as it unrolls and feeds through the cutter. By grounding the stand you are providing a ground path for the vinyl. If the cutter is on a desk and the vinyl is just laying on the desk/ground you'll want to get one of the grounding kits. Basically it's a metal chain that hangs from the cutter and drags across the vinyl. Simple enough to rig up your own if you don't want to buy it.

I've never tried to do this in VM, not even sure it's possible, but in Inkscape it's simple enough, you just do a Pattern Along Path to get the distortion you want. The trick is figuring out the arc of the curve needed to get the correct distortion for the cup. There's a posting on here someplace about how to do this. I think if you search for Truncated Cone you should find it.

If you use the serial port on the cutter you don't need a driver and there's no reason you wouldn't be able to cut from linux. I do have a linux box and occasionally run Vinyl Master on it using Wine, but I have not tried to cut with it yet. I believe VM comes with the cutter so if you have no issues running Wine VM would by my preference over Inkcut. Inkcut was a nice try, but doesn't compare to a true cutting program.

If you can't get it to work with Sign Blazer you're going to have the same issues with Vinyl Master. The problem is not the software per say, but how you have the cutter connected and setup to the computer and configuring the software to match. VM is worth it and a decent upgrade over SB. However, I believe the $50 version of VM is just the cut version which does not have much in the way of design capabilities. I would suggest Inkscape for the design side of things then save the file as an eps and import that into VM. Inkscape is free and a very powerful vector design program.

Doesn't sound like a calibration issue if he can get it the right size by tracing. What software are you using? How are you changing the size of the text? Sounds like somehow you're not actually resizing the text.

You can't cut multiple colors of vinyl at the same time and you will have to piece it together just like you did for the words. Now you can have the various colors all in the design and put down registration marks to help line things up but you can only load and cut one color at a time.

Very strange, does it do when cutting normal large designs or only contour cutting? Be sure to post back if/when you resolve the problem.

Are you wanting the font, or the design. Find a font you like that is bold enough, overlay the graphic, duplicate both the font and the graphic and move one copy up or down so you can easily work on them. Then you'll need to punch the graphic through the font on one pair, and punch the font through the graphic on the other pair. Bring the two back together and weld it all. Some software have the ability to do this all in one step, Inkscape calls it Exclusion. Lay the two graphics over each other, hit Exclusion and you get the effect you're looking for.

Not sure about the Graphtec's but some of the cheaper cutters do not like it if you go through a USB hub, they have to be connected directly to the computer.

Cut the vinyl off the roll and only use what you need can help. The vinyl while on the roll acts to amplify the noise but the machine is just noisy, not much you can do about it other then stick it a room by itself or buy a quitter machine.

A very slight rounding of corners is normal for drag knifes. Post a photo with something for scale and those with a Graphtec can let you know if what you're seeing is normal.

I'm not sure you've got an electrical connection to the board there. Looks like you've damaged the via's (the holes in the board). Best best, forget about the USB, get a keyspan adapter and null modem cable and just use the serial port.

Or are you talking about the large grit roller that actually moves the vinyl?

It might work, but it's a gamble, and not a good one. The tripp-lite keyspan is known to work and used by many on the forums. If you're trying to use the USB connection on the cutter you will need a driver, it is the driver for the FTDI chip in the cutter. If you are connecting serial to serial you do not need a driver, if you are connecting usb-serial adapter to serial on cutter you will need a driver for the adapter.

Standard answer, get the best you can afford. For most on here that is a Graphtech. If that's out of your price range a Titan 2 would be the next best option I believe. It is one of the cheapest cutters with a servo motor. Next stop down will be using stepper motors. They are a bit louder and not as precise but can still do a great job. Just stay away from the cheapest of the cheap. I don't believe the Silhouette software works with anything other than Silhouette cutters, so unless you can export designs from the Silhouette software you'll need to design with something else, AI is good. A new cutter will come with software to cut with so you shouldn't need to buy any additional software. A 24" or 30" cutter is a good size and don't let the advertising confuse you. 24" and 30" cutters really cut the same thing, it's just how the ad people measure stuff. Standard vinyl is 24" wide so as long as the cutter can handle 24" vinyl don't worry if it's advertised as a 24", 25", or 30".

whatfontis.com comes back with Japanese Robot

You load a sheet just like you would a roll. The cutter doesn't care how big of a piece of vinyl you're cutting. So long as the vinyl is big enough that the pinch rollers can grab it that's all you need. HTV can be slippery, but so far, I have not had any issues cutting small pieces on my MH.

Pretty much any vector editing program can do that. Create the black box Put text down, make it red or some other color easy to see Apply shadow to text Weld shadow to black box punch text through box Step 4 will be a bit different for different software because you will need to separate the shadow from the text.

Can't be done with an auto trace. You'd have to trace it manually, or modify the image being traced to fill it in.

+1 on the knifeless tape, that stuff is awesome. Used it to redo some stripes on my car, so much easier than trying to get the vinyl to account for the subtle curves on the car.

I don't know what your process is, but personally if your perf cut is just a simple box around the whole page, I'd just cut it by hand with a straight edge and save the wear and tear on the machine and blades.

You also appear to have an offset issue, which could be another result of too much blade exposed. I've not worked with printed vinyl, but on normal vinyl you can barely see the cut lines. You're cut lines are very clear which doesn't seem right to me. Also, and be aware I've never owned this cutter or done perf cutting, is that the perf cut around the edge and is that normal? I would not have expected to see clumps of material like that.