lilypoo

My SC has been working swimmingly for months. I'm fairly low-volume...do 1-2 jobs a month on it and continue to use my Cameo for the small things I sell. I hadn't used it in two weeks and fired it up tonight. My usual routine is to click "test connection" in SCALP when I'm in the "Cut with Cutter" window. Normally the carriage moves back and forth and the machine goes "clunk clunk" which means everything's ready to go. Tonight the carriage just starts buzzing and moving slowly across the page, blade up thankfully. If I proceed to send info to the machine to cut, it continues the slow buzzing move. It's grounded according to the grounding guide. I've been using it with USB cause I never got it working with serial and the keyspan adapt or straight serial (PC recognizes it and SCALP shows the port but can't communicate with the machine with serial). I have tried everything from un-stalling and re-installing SCALP, trying to re-install the driver (which fails but it has always worked in spite of that) and turning it on and off (which usually fixes everything). Have re-booted the computer too and tried another design....nada. Any ideas?

I bought a 25" SC a couple weeks ago. Was pretty disappointed that it took two of us two hours just to assemble the stand. It wasn't for lack of instructions since I figured out where to find those online and we followed the set-up vid step-by-step, but the assembly was extremely awkward and poorly thought out! Since, I've had problem after problem. I did have it connected via USB and was able to get it to work "better" by changing the baud rate and bps speed and all that good stuff (searched the forum). Added a better surge protector since it can't seem to cut properly if my home's AC starts up while it's cutting. Eventually I got it connected via serial (had to add a card to my PC) and grounded the cutter to the stand. Still...it loves to stop cutting the design and roll out the WHOLE vinyl roll with the blade DOWN in the center of the 24" wide roll. I am cutting a job tonight and I've wasted over 10 yards of each of the two colors I'm using...and now do not have enough vinyl on hand to finish with either color. Considering I had 15+ yards of each color and only needed about 5-6 yards of each color, that's pretty sad. It's also sad that I started cutting about 9 hours ago and still only have about 2/3 of what I need. I've got a client's workvan parked in my driveway and had planned on applying the vinyl around 7pm...it's after midnight now and am tearing my hair out. And I'm dreading telling my client that I can't get his vehicle finished until I get more vinyl in. (We are bartering and he completed his end of the deal today.) And even when it manages to get through a cut without ruining the vinyl, I *always* have to turn it off and back on before I can use it again. If I don't, it will most assuredly not finish the next cut. I'm not consistently cutting huge, complex things either. The one thing I like about this machine is that it tracks well. It never gets off course, so yay for that. The rollers are great. Go SC! So yes, I know it's a "value" cutter but honestly, in my opinion, if you are selling something, it should work well enough. I knew it wouldn't be perfect or even ideal...I knew I'd want to upgrade as soon as I could (really want the Titan with the servo motor thingy) but this thing should be working as well as the craft cutter I started with! But I can't imagine continuing to run my business this way. My husband wants me to order a second SC so we have a back-up but I'm afraid to. I'm afraid to order another "value" cutter but currently, it's all I can afford. I can only imagine that a second SC or similar model would give me just as much grief as this one. I upgraded from a Cameo and while it had tracking issues with anything longer than 36" or so, it never, ever, ever gave me this much grief. Signed, Sad Lilypoo in AZ

Seems to be...a lot of potential customers say, "So, does your husband make signs?" and seem to think I'm just the office girl.

I drive a Hyundai Sonata (2011 in a beautiful metallic dark blue...sigh) and I've done my back window. The husband says that in order to look "serious" that I need to stick decals all over the paint. Phone number and business name on the doors. And maybe the hood! And the trunk! GASP With the Phoenix sun, I really don't want to worry about ghosting/fading after a few years when I'm ready to remove the vinyl. I am planning to maybe trade it in for a cross-over that I can use as a "work" vehicle but it won't be for a couple years yet. It's also possible I might pass this car down to my son, but I need to leave my options open and don't want to risk damaging the paint. Whatcha think? Stick with my back window? Maybe a stripe across the top of the windshield? I don't want it to look tacky.

Well I made new vinyl for the back window and will start there. But yes, that blue sedan is pretty much what my hubby has in mind. I would like to be a little more incognito at times.

I've been doing a lot of research since last Friday when I had an experience with 631 refusing to stick to a particular wall. The design is a globe made up of curved stripes. I went back last night to add three words to the wall and a few of the stripes from the globe had fallen onto the floor! This was after carefully pressing the vinyl into the wall texture for about an hour with my hands and fingers, applying tons of pressure with and without the backing as a cushion, etc. It's an interior wall with fresh (just a few weeks old) semi-gloss paint. The wall texture isn't like anything I've seen on an interior wall and I suspect this is the issue. It's almost like a popcorn ceiling texture but with finer, smaller bumps. Some of the bumps are quite jagged and sharp. I've used 631 successfully on all sorts of textured surfaces. Sometimes it doesn't like to go on but once it's on, it has never tried to come off on its own. So last night I had three 32" wide words which were double layered. I took a hair dryer this time and heated up the wall and heated the vinyl before and after application. I burned my poor finger tips trying to get the heated vinyl to stick. In places it would lift even after seeming quite adhered. I used finger, hand, felt squeegee, normal squeegee, etc. It was sticking when I left but I'm really worried it's going to lift again. I'm at a loss here. From my research I'm thinking my only option might be Avery matte vinyl with permanent adhesive. I'm already barely breaking even on this job since it's discounted for a non-profit and I ordered two 24" rolls of 631 so I'm hesitant to order more vinyl without being somewhat sure this will solve the problem. We really can't do 651 or something similar because glare would be a huge issue with the way the lighting in the room is. Any ideas? Here's a pic of the design...the words are 18" tall so we're not talking teeny pieces.

I was thinking I'd order the permanent medium gloss and try it? I think it's worth a shot. Maybe. I got a pic of the vinyl's current state and of the globe and three words, only the capital letters on two of the words have begun to peel off. So it seems promising that if I have more sticky, more heat, a tennis ball and sealer for the edges it might work? If I order new vinyl with permanent adhesive I'll still be ahead a tiny bit whereas if I refund, I will be at a huge loss and they will have to come up with another way to decorate their wall. Ugh.

Just got the info that they used Speedwall Interior Semi-Gloss by Glidden. Researched the paint and it doesn't say anything about being particularly smudge-proof but it does say it's a budget paint that is perfect for commercial applications and property management companies. Hrm.

They don't care if it's removable; we went with indoor to avoid glare. They plan to knock the wall down in the next phase of renovations anyway. I really don't think it will seal well enough as a stencil to paint, even with permanent adhesive. I should have taken a close up of the wall but it's so bumpy and sharp that some of the bumps actually poked through two layers of vinyl when I got really aggressive with heat and pressure.

That's an idea! No projector though. Ack. The words are coming off the walls, so I guess my next step is to see if we can do a vinyl with a more permanent adhesive. I will order the Avery 700 since it's supposedly less-shiny than anything else available in an outdoor adhesive. I'll do the heat gun + tennis ball trick too AND get something to seal the edges. I'll also clean the paint at least with alcohol before starting. Thankfully this client is so understanding!!

Stenciling might be an option if the 751 would indeed stick enough. I'm skeptical though. And yeah, on the pricey side. Ugh. So my research led me to Avery 700. Not matte like I originally read but "medium" gloss and less glossy than 651/751. Good news is it comes in lots of colors and is only about $20ish for a 10y roll in 24". Bad news is US Cutter doesn't carry it AND I'd have to redo everything. I'm quite certain it'd stick better and that it'd be less glossy. But not sure they'd be happy with the medium gloss.

I started charging by the linear inch for this reason. It was killing me to cut something 13" tall/wide from a 24" roll to create scraps. I got really tired of cutting and saving scraps so I just started tossing them most of the time. And saving scraps for a friend of mine who cuts as a hobby. I also have 12x12 sheets and 12x24 sheets leftover that I will use for small decals that aren't done in qty. So I don't feel like I'm wasting as much.

I use 651 and 751 pretty much for all my work, but they need matte. There are rows of fluorescent lights all along the ceiling and people will be sitting in chairs while the vinyl is about 12" down from the ceiling. So glare is a concern. Supposedly Avery makes a matte with a 651-like adhesive.

Some type of coating was another thing I was thinking. Of course I don't have anything like it but it might be worth trying. After redoing it all with acetone and a tennis ball. LOL

Thanks for the tennis ball idea! I am at least going to go back and redo the globe b/c I'm pretty sure the pieces I re-stuck won't stick long. They were covered in debris that came off the wall. Acetone won't damage the paint? I wiped it down with a damp cloth but it's so rough I couldn't really rub...had to dab moreso.

Frzn, I thought of painting but I'd need to make a stencil and there's no way I'd get a clean edge on this wall. And they want it right on the wall, so prints, posters, board, etc. would be out. *sigh* I didn't get to see the walls before I took the job since they are about 45 minutes away. When I asked what the wall was like she said it was just like a regular inside wall. Not!

That's what I'm afraid of. *sigh*

My budget is small... I was thinking of having the back window done in that perf. wrap stuff (forget the real name) but was afraid that it would make people think I personally offer that, which I don't.

I started out making up quick proofs for potential clients with no charge up front and it was working for me for a while. Now that I'm busier I don't feel like I have the time to do the artwork for free up front, especially if it's complicated. Especially, especially after having done some detailed logos and never hearing back. Problem is that I have a lot of trouble quoting jobs without first making at least a rough proof for me. I also continue to encounter people who claim they need to "see" what the decal will look like before committing. If it's just text, I don't really have a problem showing them a watermarked proof but if I have to trace/clean-up a logo, I don't want to do that no-charge. Any ideas on how to handle this? Asking for an up-front design fee in certain cases has not been well-received.

Congrats on the Graphtec! One thought on the vinyl size...I decided to stick with 24" for everything because I figured if I had designs that were just under 24" "long" (I do a lot of back window decals on smaller cars for some reason LOL) I could rotate it and have it fit across in one pass, saving linear length. I was tempted to order 15" when I special ordered colors for a 13"x60" wall decal but at the last minute decided to do 24" and am glad I did since the client decided at the last minute that she also needed some larger decals of one letter from the bigger decal. So I can do 23"x23" as requested without having to re-order.

So you are able to determine the final cost before you even sketch it out? That's one of my issues I think...I have to SEE it to price it. I'm hoping in time I'll get better at not having to do that. I still get the "I don't know if I'll like it so I don't want to pay anything in advance" thing. I met a gal who does blinged-out shirts...she charges a $25 artwork fee before she'll show a proof, and it seems to be working for her.

The final product. That center panel on each side was what I was unable to finish after my SC ate all my black vinyl.

I will try that. Thanks!

That's still 2/3! LOL

Thanks BannerJohn. I was able to see what com port the computer was assigning the keyspan to, and made sure it matched in SCALP and SCALP still was saying there was no cutter connected. Things are working OK without it right now, but I went through the trouble to get it so I'd just as soon have it working again as an extra layer of insurance for keeping the cutter running smoothly.