CE5000-60 set up and cutting

[CarterMarkham 18]

So much easier to set up than the USC LP II. That was a nightmare. The graphtec stand is a breeze to put together and the cutter is just amazing. I wish I had saved up and waited to buy this. So many headaches would have been avoided. Here it is in action with my first cut. The only question I have is when using SignCutPro it doesn't cut the weeding frame all the way around. It doesn't cut on the side where the pinch roller is, left side or right side. I am not sure if you can tell in the video or not.

 

[CarterMarkham 18]

You can definitely see it when it cuts the first image, you can see that it cuts the weeding frame top, left, and bottom but not right side where the roller is. Same happens when I cut on the left.

[MZ SKEETER 4,709]

Yes, a Graphtec is a great machine,  When a lot of us say, buy the Graphtec,  people just don't understand the difference in machines.. It is night and day to a value cutter. But people just don't want to pay that extra money, for a lot less headaches, smooth cutting, great tracking, quiet. It is money well spent, on just the savings of time frustration and material. Especially, if you doing this as a business. .

 

Now you can jump in there, and say "Buy A Graphtec"     congratulations...

[Lady_VI 45]

You can definitely see it when it cuts the first image, you can see that it cuts the weeding frame top, left, and bottom but not right side where the roller is. Same happens when I cut on the left.

 

You have to go into the settings and expand the cutting width to go past the rollers.  Chapter 4 of the manual that is on the CD will tell you how.

 

Congratulations on the new machine.  I love my CE6000!!!!!!

[Rodger 527]

Yes, a Graphtec is a great machine,  When a lot of us say, buy the Graphtec,  people just don't understand the difference in machines.. It is night and day to a value cutter. But people just don't want to pay that extra money, for a lot less headaches, smooth cutting, great tracking, quiet. It is money well spent, on just the savings of time frustration and material. Especially, if you doing this as a business. .

 

Now you can jump in there, and say "Buy A Graphtec"     congratulations...

 I think many if not all understand the differences Skeeter . It is lifestyle descriptions about most people that make them decide to buy more affordable cutters . When I read John saying he has cut vinyl for his entire vinyl cutting profession with value cutters , without problems , frustrations or wasting material .. I know a value cutter can do what he needs ( seems john has cut vinyl for 10-20 years ?? ) . John spending more would not have made him happier as he ( like me & others here ) like to do the most with only what is needed . I think there is nobody who would think a Chevrolet would be the quality of a Cadillac , but many Chevys get sold . I am a Chevy type of guy . I don't buy cars new . I like the value of others taking the big finacial hit & buying then . I did just buy a Cadillac . a used 2002 DTS with 103,000 miles for $1250 . It is in excellent condition & fun to drive compared to the 2006 Impala I have ... but to tell the truth , I enjoy driving the 1998 Mazda Protege that was given to me the most . It gets 43 mpg & makes me feel much better , especially on a trip . Like John , if a person is inclined & has the ability .. they can do good jobs with more basic tools .. that is where being a craftsman comes in IMO . I would suggest people buying what they can justify , not afford . Cutters don't cost that much to put it like unaffordable ( unless talking about the Gerbers , they must be even better than the grapghtecs according to price ) . When a person starts out & makes some decals a month & does it with a small investment . They can decide to buy a better cutter if they stay into cutting viynl or decide to do this full time . Many people only want to continue to do this as a hobby ... Especially on this forum . I bought my Copams for $410 & $406 when USc had no reserve . After shipping & another year of warranty ( which was only worth peice of mind as I never had any issue at all ) , they were $600 each . I wonder if I would have been happier buying something that would do the job for much less . As far as the stepper vs servo motor .. I bet 99.99% of the customers ever see the difference . I had to look hard on large circles to see the difference ( LITTLE notch ) . If a customer is too particlualr about that , they probably should go 1rst class & have it done by a painting artist IMO .

 

 

 People reading should know that they can do alot of stuff with value cutters & not be limited if they don't spend $1K or more . If somebody is buying a cutter to do long decals like you do , they would be better off buying something that is rated for that

[MZ SKEETER 4,709]

I started with a value cutter, yes, it can serve some purposes, but not all. And time, is a big thing in this business. My time means a lot to me. I was able to expand my services right away, by going with a higher end cutter, and it paid for it's self real quick.  I was already cutting big decals with my Seiki,  8-10 ft. And it did a good job cutting on most. The cutting was smooth. But the problem was memory and tracking on (stripes). ..The value cutters lack the memory, to do the large detailed designs. I had to turn my cutter wide open on some designs, and hoped it made it. Not all times it would. Then I lost all that vinyl and time.  But I can't say my Seiki cut bad, or that you noticed the stair steps of a stepper motor. I used it for 14 months, running a business.  The biggest stripe I have ever cut was a 20ft x 20" w with  1/4" pin stripes on each side.  My Seiki couldn't cut that perfectly straight, but my Graphtec will, the first time. I also accepted a job for 16ft L x 27" wide checkered full side custom order,it cut perfect on my Graphtec. My Seiki couldn't have done that.  One thing about doing full side graphics like I do, Both sides have to match perfectly, You can't have a little off. Or something not there.   I can do jobs that others can't, which gets me more business.  The Graphtec solved both problems.

[Dakotagrafx 7,297]

I started with a value cutter, yes, it can serve some purposes, but not all. And time, is a big thing in this business. My time means a lot to me. I was able to expand my services right away, by going with a higher end cutter, and it paid for it's self real quick.  I was already cutting big decals with my Seiki,  8-10 ft. And it did a good job cutting on most. The cutting was smooth. But the problem was memory and tracking on (stripes). ..The value cutters lack the memory, to do the large detailed designs. I had to turn my cutter wide open on some designs, and hoped it made it. Not all times it would. Then I lost all that vinyl and time.  But I can't say my Seiki cut bad, or that you noticed the stair steps of a stepper motor. I used it for 14 months, running a business.  The biggest stripe I have ever cut was a 20ft x 20" w with  1/4" pin stripes on each side.  My Seiki couldn't cut that perfectly straight, but my Graphtec will, the first time. I also accepted a job for 16ft L x 27" wide checkered full side custom order,it cut perfect on my Graphtec. My Seiki couldn't have done that.  One thing about doing full side graphics like I do, Both sides have to match perfectly, You can't have a little off. Or something not there.   I can do jobs that others can't, which gets me more business.  The Graphtec solved both problems.

same here started with a pcut - it served the purpose to make the money to buy a better cutter- the time and FRUSTRATION that the cheaper cutters caused made the graphtec well worth the money - if if was for hobby I would have a hard time justifying the expense.  But again those that haven't experienced the difference can never understand.

on the car analogy it is like the chevy having a tire that has a buldge in the tread and pulls to one side - it gets you there but you will be far more stressed by the time you arrive.

[MZ SKEETER 4,709]

Rodger,  even you, have not ran a value cutter. A Copam is considered a professional cutter, which is why it is higher priced than the value cutters.It is the top of the line of the stepper motor cutters. The Copam is the Cadilac of stepper motors.  You don't personally know the frustration of a value cutter. I do, And Dakota is right, I would not buy a Graphtec for a hobby, or occasional cutting. But I would not stay with a value cutter to run a business.

 

The guy that started this thread, purchased one of the newer Laserpointer11, and here is what he said

 

"I wish I had saved up and waited to buy this" 

 

He does know from experience with using a value cutter before.

[Rodger 527]

 Especially, if you doing this as a business. .

 

I didn't really pay much attention to that part of your post . I agree 100% with that in mind . I am not sure everybody that reads all the Graphtec praise realizes that ... the value cutters will do what most want , starting out ... even if going into full time decal business is a consideration . If it doesn't turn out to be a fad they are going thru & enjoy the decal business , they can upgrade & have a back-up cutter . If it turns out to just be a hobby/personal use thing , they didn't spend more than needed to try it out . I knew I was going to wind up doing decals as a business when I bought  , so I went for the Copam... I considered it the top of the value cutters or bottom of the business cutters . I might buy something better some day .. same with the software ( I have looked on e-bay for used Flexi pro , but don't find any deals like you do ) , SignBlazer & SCALPro do just fine for me , even though I know Flexi etc is superior . I was asked by an employee of a buddy's excavation business .. how I get so much done with used older equipment/trucks & no employees etc ... I told him " anybody can get any job done with new stuff & being able to call for anything they want , including unlimited help , that it takes skill to do it with what I have " I have the same view about decal cutting . Cutting what you do , you need the best . Most people cut much shorter decals . 

[MZ SKEETER 4,709]

I think the person who could compare best, for your comparison Rodger, would be Lady_Vi.   She has been using a Copam for a while, and just purchased the  new Graphtec CE6000.   She has her Copam up for sale.

 

Maybe she will read this, and post her differences, as to why she decided to upgrade to the new Graphtec from a Copam.. And if she thinks it's better..I hope she does.

[Lady_VI 45]

Well when I decided to go into the vinyl business I did not know a thing about it or the equipment.  I researched and read (mainly on this forum) and learned a lot from that.  Then I bought my Copam and that is where the real learning came in !!!!! LOL  Hands on experience is the only real way to learn.

I decided on the Copam because it was the middle of the road you can say.  Top of the value - bottom of the high end cutter.  And it was at the top of my budget for the time. I did not know if I was going to like doing this or if it was going to make enough money for me to stay with it so I was not wanting to invest a whole lot of money to start with.  It made me money while I was learning the trade ( and learning that I do like this kind of work and even though I live in a small town money can be made doing it). Well it did serve its purpose and I can not say anything bad about it.  It was and still is a good machine.

My business has picked up a lot in the last few months and so I decided to upgrade to a Graphtec.  Lucky for me when I went to order it the CE6000 had just came out so I went with the newest model.  I do love this machine but I did love my Copam too!!!!!

The Graphtec is smoother, quieter, tracks better, easier to load rolls, easier to weed cuts, easier to adjust blades and easier on the eyes (LOL....it is a good looking machine).  But it has yet to do anything that my Copam would not do, it just does it better, faster and a lot quieter.  So it is all a personal choice of how much you want to spend.  They are both great machines!!!!!!!!!!  

[Rodger 527]

I think the person who could compare best, for your comparison Rodger, would be Lady_Vi.   She has been using a Copam for a while, and just purchased the  new Graphtec CE6000.   She has her Copam up for sale.

 

Maybe she will read this, and post her differences, as to why she decided to upgrade to the new Graphtec from a Copam.. And if she thinks it's better..I hope she does.

Hmmm , I did not compare them , I said anybody knows a Cadillac is better than a Chevrolet... they should be since they cost at least 2X the $ . I know a Graphtec has to be MUCH better than a Copam or any value cutter the same as I assume the Gerbers are superior to the Graphtecs . It is just how much you want to spend . Snap On tools advertise their stuff as " the most expensive tools you can buy " ( at least they used to when I stayed up on tools ) . Snap On tools are in a class of themselves with no competition IMO & experience . I broke every 13/16"  spark plug socket of every brand except Snap On , I could find & borrow trying to get a plug out of a 534 Ford engine ( 5' pipe attached to a breaker bar ) . Bought a 3/8" drive Snap On socket & the plug came out . In every other situation I have been in Craftsman tools etc did a fine job . Making long decals like you do , I can see buying top of the line , making simple vinyl decals ... sort of overkill spending much more IMO . Just like you did not buy the Gerbers . I think the " Best Bang for the Buck " is what most want ... unless doing something that needs better equipment . Don't you think the Gerbers has to be better than the Graphtecs ?? They cost ALOT more , so it would seem logical .

[MZ SKEETER 4,709]

I would assume the Gerber would be, but I have never heard of anyone on here owning one..  Maybe there is some one who can speak up for a Gerber. 

[Rodger 527]

I think 1 common attribute most members here have is that they are bargain humters & thrifty ( that sounds so much nicer than CHEAP ) . When I was looking at cutters & thinking about buying a package from a USC competitor , I also checked out the Gerbers ( I was at a sign Show ) . The price & my buddy's advice/experience took me away from the gerbers right away . After finding USC on e-bay , I checked this forum out & along with Ken Imnes adice , I bought Copams using the same logic Lady Vi did . I'll probably upgrade at some point , but I suspected I would feel just like Lady Vi does now . I would feel at some point , I should have been satisfied with staying with the Copams .I should have bought a refurbed Zen black a few months ago when they had them for $775 without a stand ....

[Dakotagrafx 7,297]

You have to go into the settings and expand the cutting width to go past the rollers.  Chapter 4 of the manual that is on the CD will tell you how.

 

Congratulations on the new machine.  I love my CE6000!!

 

Congrats LadyVI on the only post that really addressed the question the thread posed.  I applaud you