Sign in to follow this  
jbthrock21

SCALP QUESTION

Recommended Posts

i'm really new to everything. I was just wondering could someone help me with a question i have. i have tried to read as many posts as i could to help me with other things. I just bought a mh871 and it came with SCALP. i know this isn't the most advanced software and i knew that buying it but i wanna get started in the vinyl cutting business and i figured this was a cheap way to get my foot in the door. i wanna do some small stuff but just have a question. Is it possible for me to cut out logos for people? If i have a picture of there logo. And what i mean by logo, nothing fancy just some pretty plain logos. Do i need a scanner to scan a pic of it? Can i copy a pic from online? I know someone can give me some advice.  If things workout i will prolly invest in a more advanced software but just wondering can this be done with SCALP?

Share this post


Link to post
Share on other sites

any picture or other form of raster graphic will need to be vectorized - here is a thread to teach you to do that - raster images are pixel base the images your cutter uses are vector based and done mathmatically - going from one point to another -

 

http://forum.uscutter.com/index.php?/topic/12189-how-to-video-simple-vectorize-in-inkscape/

Share this post


Link to post
Share on other sites

You can also do this in sure cuts go to file: trace image and you can vectorize from there. It actually does a pretty nice job on basic designs but if fonts are used it's always better to find the right font because they usually don't trace that well.

 

Jay

Share this post


Link to post
Share on other sites

scalp can cut many vector formats - I know several people that changed to flexistarter for better cuts as scalp is not a fully developed program - they are still chasing bugs in it

Share this post


Link to post
Share on other sites

Dakota where do I find out about upgrading flexi when the time comes

Share this post


Link to post
Share on other sites

Many times the logo was created by a graphic artist who did it in a program called Adobe Illustrator, and if you can simply ask for the original file to be provided in .eps format (vector) then you will be ahead of the game.

Share this post


Link to post
Share on other sites

I have yet to receive a useable file from a designer in 5 years. Either it's a raster image or it has so many overlapping layers that it's easier to start from scratch.

Share this post


Link to post
Share on other sites
Dakota where do I find out about upgrading flexi when the time comes

you will have to find a flexi dealer and it is real expensive - not so much with the ve-lxi software - upgrades are very reasonable.  That is why I was trying to get you to buy ve-lxi-apprenice (flexistarter private branded for sw) then the upgrade is somehwere between 250 and $300.   if you call tffany and ask here sometimes they have the lsi-master plus for $500 - I have seen that special not that long ago - it is a great deal for the equivilent of flexi pro - without the RIP. otherwise - same thing

Share this post


Link to post
Share on other sites

I jumped on the flexi starter for just over $100 so I couldn't beat the price and from what I've seen it's cheaper to hit the big auction site and buy my way up than to actually do the upgrade route. Besides for what I paid for flexi starter I really  couldn't pass on the opportunity to try it.

Share this post


Link to post
Share on other sites

I think the direct price is much much better than on the site - as I recall it is about the same as the ebay price for FStarter

Share this post


Link to post
Share on other sites

I don't know if i have to ask here or make a new feed,

i want to know if it is possible that SCALP when importing .ai files, disable cutting artboard frame.

so it cuts only the work without a frame.

thanks a lot!

Share this post


Link to post
Share on other sites

Yes you can get around the frame by using the "cut by color" option in the "cut with my cutter" panel. Just uncheck the option that has no color (white) and it will just cut the colored stuff.

Share this post


Link to post
Share on other sites
so long as i can get the logo vectorized i can cut it with SCALP?

Yep. You will have to do the vectorizing in most cases but with some practice you can vectorize just about anything, especially simple one or two color logos like most of us cut with our cutters. I haven't used the tracing/vectorizing options much in SCALP but the auto trace seems to do a decent job if the image is dark on a light background. Jaybird is spot on with the text, if you can match the font you are far far better off than trying to trace it. You can usually get away with some slight inconsistencies on a graphic design but any little squiggly will show up on text. I actually design in Illustrator but even with that program I almost never use auto trace, it just isn't precise enough. I sometimes try it to see if it will get close and then clean it up before I cut but most of the time I just trace it by hand from scratch to get a nice clean job. The problem usually shows up if you trace a small object then try to scale it up, all the small issues you can't see become very obvious.  

Share this post


Link to post
Share on other sites

Create an account or sign in to comment

You need to be a member in order to leave a comment

Create an account

Sign up for a new account in our community. It's easy!

Register a new account

Sign in

Already have an account? Sign in here.

Sign In Now
Sign in to follow this