tlzimmerman

Sound off! Lets get to know eachother from a cutter standpoint!

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yeah,lol.ill tell you what though,anyone that has not ridden a race has no idea.robbie jenks from KTM lives here in our town.man he pushes us.

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I understand  :thumbsup: . I have done 6 hour enduros in 100 degree weather . My toungue was dragging about 10' behind me when I finished , but my heart rate was still ALOT slower than " other " moments  ;D

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AS Richard Pryor says "three minutes of that, and I'll need 8 hours of sleep" :rolleyes:

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Hello all... My name is Jason and I have been cutting for awhile now... I have had a brief recess in doing so (year or so?) and hope to be back up in full swing within a few more weeks.

I started up back about 5 or 6 years ago with and idea... My whole Idea was to sell on ebay part time... Well what I was looking for was something which I could keep little to no inventory on hand, and still be able to turn a decent profit... I thought about it for awhile, thought about drop shipping, i even thought SMC might be a good deal, then all of a sudden it hit me...

One day at work, one of my co workers showed up with a decal for his toolbox.  I still cant rember to this day what it said. But anyways, Thats where it all started.  I have bought decals in the past, but I could only rember that I could buy them at some flea markets or swap meets and thats when then came to town.  I researched and researched, and like others on this board, didnt know the accurate term of 'plotter'. 

My job was barely paying the bills, and needed some additional income fast but didnt want to pick up another job.  I scraped up most of the money that I had and found what I thought was a nice little machine on ebay, a 15 inch roland sticka cutter...  once I got the machine home and unboxed, I realized I needed some vinyl for this machine...  I played with the Dr. sticka software, till my next paycheck came in to buy a 10 yard roll of 15 inch vinyl.  Finaly it arrived...  I made a 6 inch decal for my buddy just to try it out and he threw me 5 bucks. (i was just begining, i didnt expect payment, he insisted)...

Well if anyone has ever used the Dr sticka software, knows that its not very good, thats where it all started... I scanned some images into the software, applied them to glass, took some pictures and my business took off..  I sold on ebay for about a month with only white decals and quickly realized, my $700 15inch cutter was all paid off... My paypal account was at about $750 before I had to pay ebay fees! Ouch, What a rip off... But anyways, I gladly paid my $200 in fees and kept the rest...

My better half suggested that I re-invest into this business and think about doing them localy.  I scouted some of the flea markets in my area, and for $10 bucks a day, I started doing that localy...  Little did I know that it was going to be a hit.  The owners of the market actually let me set up for free, or for trade for decals for there use... I was there a month before the building was sold out and the business closed....

A car show/flea market was coming to town and I thought, Hey, Ill try it...  I set up there with 2 tables, and a power inverter running from my car to run the plotter and DESKTOP computer.  Yes, Desktop, LOL.  but anyways, I didnt turn much profit.  My business didnt even have a name except the decal guy.  A gentleman approached me and was talking to me about what I could cut..  Turns out, he was a vinyl cutter as well... He asked me If I wanted to see his booth, I went over there and wow, Tons of boards with pre made decals, tents, awnings and his own trailer.  I complimented him on his stand, as he knew I was envious... I went back to my tables and continued.... It was getting late and I was shutting down and packing stuff up... He came back to my booth, he brought me 10 cds of vectors and all kinds of graphics.  He told me that He normally wouldnt do this but he knew I was just starting out and didnt fear that I would be much competition to him beings how he was from a totaly diffrent state.  I was greatful  for his donation.

My business soared to a whole nother level... I found my 15 inch cutter was getting too small for what I needed.  I found another cutter on ebay and bought it... a 24inch Master brand plotter, with WinPCsign...  It was hard to learn that program, but I feel I am quite skilled in it now....

But anyways, Im rambling...

My business consists of now 24 inch refine, 24 inch Master, 36 inch master, a dozen tables, 3 awnings, 2 might pro heat presses, a hat press, winpcsign, flexi, signblazer, adobe illustrator, etc. Tons of vinyl and shirts and hats, Thousands of images, 3 computers and a nice little chunk of change in the bank...

All part time... Just doing this when I feel like it or whatever, I have a full time job that Keeps me occupied most of the time.

For bad luck reasons, I have not been cutting decals for about 1 1/2 years now, but hopefully up and running again soon....

Oh, the business is T-Town Graphix now...

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Hello all... My name is Jason and I have been cutting for awhile now... I have had a brief recess in doing so (year or so?) and hope to be back up in full swing within a few more weeks.

I started up back about 5 or 6 years ago with and idea... My whole Idea was to sell on ebay part time... Well what I was looking for was something which I could keep little to no inventory on hand, and still be able to turn a decent profit... I thought about it for awhile, thought about drop shipping, i even thought SMC might be a good deal, then all of a sudden it hit me...

One day at work, one of my co workers showed up with a decal for his toolbox.  I still cant rember to this day what it said. But anyways, Thats where it all started.  I have bought decals in the past, but I could only rember that I could buy them at some flea markets or swap meets and thats when then came to town.  I researched and researched, and like others on this board, didnt know the accurate term of 'plotter'. 

My job was barely paying the bills, and needed some additional income fast but didnt want to pick up another job.  I scraped up most of the money that I had and found what I thought was a nice little machine on ebay, a 15 inch roland sticka cutter...  once I got the machine home and unboxed, I realized I needed some vinyl for this machine...  I played with the Dr. sticka software, till my next paycheck came in to buy a 10 yard roll of 15 inch vinyl.  Finaly it arrived...  I made a 6 inch decal for my buddy just to try it out and he threw me 5 bucks. (i was just begining, i didnt expect payment, he insisted)...

Well if anyone has ever used the Dr sticka software, knows that its not very good, thats where it all started... I scanned some images into the software, applied them to glass, took some pictures and my business took off..  I sold on ebay for about a month with only white decals and quickly realized, my $700 15inch cutter was all paid off... My paypal account was at about $750 before I had to pay ebay fees! Ouch, What a rip off... But anyways, I gladly paid my $200 in fees and kept the rest...

My better half suggested that I re-invest into this business and think about doing them localy.  I scouted some of the flea markets in my area, and for $10 bucks a day, I started doing that localy...  Little did I know that it was going to be a hit.  The owners of the market actually let me set up for free, or for trade for decals for there use... I was there a month before the building was sold out and the business closed....

A car show/flea market was coming to town and I thought, Hey, Ill try it...  I set up there with 2 tables, and a power inverter running from my car to run the plotter and DESKTOP computer.  Yes, Desktop, LOL.  but anyways, I didnt turn much profit.  My business didnt even have a name except the decal guy.  A gentleman approached me and was talking to me about what I could cut..  Turns out, he was a vinyl cutter as well... He asked me If I wanted to see his booth, I went over there and wow, Tons of boards with pre made decals, tents, awnings and his own trailer.  I complimented him on his stand, as he knew I was envious... I went back to my tables and continued.... It was getting late and I was shutting down and packing stuff up... He came back to my booth, he brought me 10 cds of vectors and all kinds of graphics.  He told me that He normally wouldnt do this but he knew I was just starting out and didnt fear that I would be much competition to him beings how he was from a totaly diffrent state.  I was greatful  for his donation.

My business soared to a whole nother level... I found my 15 inch cutter was getting too small for what I needed.  I found another cutter on ebay and bought it... a 24inch Master brand plotter, with WinPCsign...  It was hard to learn that program, but I feel I am quite skilled in it now....

But anyways, Im rambling...

My business consists of now 24 inch refine, 24 inch Master, 36 inch master, a dozen tables, 3 awnings, 2 might pro heat presses, a hat press, winpcsign, flexi, signblazer, adobe illustrator, etc. Tons of vinyl and shirts and hats, Thousands of images, 3 computers and a nice little chunk of change in the bank...

All part time... Just doing this when I feel like it or whatever, I have a full time job that Keeps me occupied most of the time.

For bad luck reasons, I have not been cutting decals for about 1 1/2 years now, but hopefully up and running again soon....

Oh, the business is T-Town Graphix now...

Glad to have you back in the game, TaterNuts.

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Guest round2racing

Hi all,

I'm Bridget and I am a co-owner of a race team (Round 2 Racing).  Website is www.round2racing.com.  Visit and sign my guestbook!!

Anyway, I work for a construction company as a database administrator in charge of inventory and equipment and purchasing.

I bought my cutter to letter our race trailer and our race car.  I knew I wanted quite a few decals and figured it was cheaper to buy a cutter than to have it done.  Besides, I love to be creative and wanted to use it to cut stencils (I airbrush helmets, cars, bowling pins, you name it, I airbrush it).

So, I thought this would be a great addition to my hobby (or as my husband calls it, my OCD) list.

It took off, so now I am lettering for other racers, and have had a few inquiries for wall art.

Oh, how I would love for this business to take off to a point where I can do it full time.  I love this so much.

In fact, my airbrushing has taken a back seat (but only till after racing season starts).

I do a lot of benefit and charity work, mom died of breast cancer and I have survived cervical cancer.  I was diagnosed one year to the date from when she died.  I survived, so now I put into the cancer and hospice community as much as I can.

I work 50 hours a week at my full time job, 30 hours a week on the vinyl, and any other time that I am not sleeping, I work on the race car.  Luckily I have a 17 year old daughter who loves to weed and keeps the house up for us.

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My computer/graphics/electronics/etc history all spawns from my dad (aka Alien). Hes a jack-of-all-trades, and i have yet to find something that he just CANT figure out. Since I was old enough to walk, he taught me everything from simple computers to full blown industrial electronics. 32 years later, he is still the most amazing man i know. So from the wealth of information that I had access to, i set out to find my niche. First it was mobile electronics, installing car alarms and stereo systems. (you know you have a great electronics teacher when you can be color blind and still install car alarms :thumbsup: ). I absolutely love it, but theres just not enough money in it around here. Then I went to installing Dish Network and DirecTV, which was cool in its own way, but I despise the heat lol. Finally I went to work at the factory where my dad worked (Maytag). and was there for 2 weeks before deciding that I am definately NOT a factory guy, and after 6 years, i still knew it lol.

I have done graphic design/computer repair/website creation/etc for years and years and was a designer for Darkforge Graphics (www.darkforgegfx.com) until i lost my monster comp. to a motherboard meltdown. And me and my dad both have wanted to get a cutter since forever, and neither of us wanted to dish out the funds to get one.

Then came D-Day for Maytag. After 19 years of pure service, my dad was out of a job for the first time in his life. They sold the company to Whrilpool, and they simply closed the doors.

After the initial shock/stress/fear settled down, my mom (the family optimist) had the mindset of 'Why not?' and 'Now you can both do what you want, and do it together'. So after a lot of hesitation, we broke down and bought our first cutter, the copam 2500. Can you say HOOKED! We the aquired a Roland GX-24 and a HP DesignJet 500 42" wide format printer and now its like 2 big kids playing with expensive toys all day ;D .

So we named ourselves Vinyl Visions (www.vinylvisionsonline.com) and hopefully we can make a nice run of it.

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Drove by an empty garage/storefront one day, and it seemed to be a good spot to open a sign-making studio.

Without much capital, I ordered the cheapest US CUTTER equipment, the MH871 (34") and found a laptop on craigslist for $80.

Been operating this little sign store ever since, designing everything on SignBlazer, and slicing&dicing my way along...

post-21408-0-80506900-1342001164.jpg

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Im a semi retired Paramedic/Firefighter with a moderately artistic past. Had wanted a vinyl cutter for quite sometime, purchased a Copam 3050, cut some decals for friends, and the rest is history. Recently picked up a smaller cutter (SC 24") to do local fairs, fests and car shows, along with airbrushing. I will admit that marketing here on the border is a pita....

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Hey guys and gals.

I'm new here and to the vinyl cutting scene.

I was born and raised in Texarkana, Texas/Arkansas.

My parents moved our family up to the Fergus Falls, Minnesota area when i was about 15yrs old (1998).

Ive always loved computers and art..stuff came natural.

Moved out for college and went to Alexandria Tech College and got an AADS degee in computer science, certified web developer/designer/programmer and database development/management.

Started doing freelance work, the economy took a nose dive, had several part time jobs but couldnt get a job in my career field unless ioved further away and didnt have money or resources to do that.

Im also skilled at fixing stuff, wrenching and working on stuff. Got a job as a service tech and assembler for an automation packaging company known as Massman Automation Designs. Been there for almost 5 yrs, good pay and benefits and only 4 blocks from my litle house...so alot of times i ride my atv to work lol.

Anyway i build and work on machines that package stuff..like kelloggs ceral, poptarts, eggo waffles, eggs, butter and cheese, soap, garnola bars..and more...

That pays the bills and puts food on the table and provides medical/health benefits.

In my spare time i still do websites and fix computers for extra cash.

Recently ive been designing graphics and selling vinyl stuff, having a local shop cut stuff for me, and i resale online or to friends.

The shop i have been going to is over run and is too busy with big car wraps, race cars, etc.

There are actually like 5 shops around town and they are all busy.

So i said screw it and decided to cut out the middle man and invest in my own cutter.

And eventually a heat press to do shirts.

Anyway i just ordered a Graphtec ce5000-60, yep i went in deep. (Wait that sounded perverted!)

Anyway i have lots of potential customers, from my motorcycle bike chapter, my atv and dirtbike bud, local resort owners, and online forums that i am in.

I got married back in September, yep im a newly wed, my wife works at a daycare/preschool.

We decided to go into this investment, hopefully make some money and have some fun.

Im working on my facebook page and going to be redoing my website soon.

Hopefully my cutter and supplies will be here by friday...and i can start cuttinf and making stuff for my booth at my chapter big bike show in April!

Thanks guys n gals!

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" 3 to 5 years? We will be the new and improved SignWarehouse/ Fellers.

  "

THAT would be VERY KEWL  smile.gif

My friend of 40 years bought a vinyl cutter 20 some years ago . Always made me stuff ( for free ) , but was ALWAYS way too much in the artistic dept . His passion is doing dirt stock cars .. they turn out very pretty , but not readable , which is a must for me . I talked about buying a cutter for a long time & when another friend went ahead & bought a package from SignWarehouse ( we had talked about going into it together as a business ) , I decided to do that also . I within minutes of placing an order of $2500 + & decided to do a search on e-bay & found USCutter . I bought 2 Co-Pams & have not sold many decals , but have really enjoyed learning how to make/install decals .I think the cutters owe me nothing since I have lettered all my business trucks, equipment signs etc & got to do it " my way " . I plan on having a enclosed trailer set up when I semi retire & move to the farm . Livestock auctions , Flea markets , Car -Motorcycle races will let me have fun & make some cash . I am too busy now to commit to doing signs for other people .

p.s. after seeing the Co-Pam do it's thing , my friend wishes He had found USCutter before buying his package from SW .

It's been 4 years do you think they're on par with Signwarehouse/Fellers now? I never would have seen that if it weren't for spammers.

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well about the main change is signwarehouse's customer service has slipped a knotch - fellers has continued to move up the scale though

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I myself went to vocational design for the last two years of high school. (03-05). During my 2nd year we had to do job shadowing for every thursday instead of class, which I helped in production. I ended up getting offered a job, and got job placement so I would work 4 of 5 school days there, and then ended up working there about a year overall as the graphic designer. Lost my job due to too many small mistakes, and got discouraged and ended up going to college for business management. In 2010 I ended up buying a MH721 from USCutter and having buyers remorse for a few weeks until the machine paid for itself haha..

 

Ended up joining up with a buddy who does powdercoating and some light fabrication and added the vinyl to his side business while he's not catching bad guys haha.. www.3amcustoms.com

 

Just a small business for the side, but have done stuff for my previous job, 4 Wheel Parts and my current employer, Pepsi. Also, have done work for some big dealerships, Brinks, and more.

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It's been 4 years do you think they're on par with Signwarehouse/Fellers now? I never would have seen that if it weren't for spammers.

 

Well, since I left, they lost all chances of realizing that dream.  ;)

 

j/k  Looks like they are still growing, and under new ownership, so even if they are behind pace, it could still be realistic.

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Well, since I left, they lost all chances of realizing that dream.  ;)

 

j/k  Looks like they are still growing, and under new ownership, so even if they are behind pace, it could still be realistic.

the hope they have has been boosted by signwarehouses support and shippiing slipping a lot.  the biggest thing they have going is the $9 shipping but they are far from an industry leader.  SW and Beacon have private flexi to bundle with thier cutters that is a huge plus - USC is still messing around with SCALP that has been holding on since being sued by procraft - and the software is buggy - very hobby oriented.  

to put it frankly

USC is like Big lots     -- Pick your deals carefully and don't expect concierge service

SW and mumpower is like Cosco    Mostly great products - still short on service but not bad

Fellers, Advantage, is Like macy's   top of the line products and service

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I'm the guy who always head straight for the discount bins and uscutter is like a giant discount bin. We're made for each other.

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