Looking at buying the SC

[MZ SKEETER 4,708]

Yes, some of those small cutters have to have a carrier sheet to cut anything.  I'm not saying the SC does, I'm sure someone can chime in.. and say how small of scraps they can cut in width..  I do know my Graphtec and Seiki can.   I can put 2 pinch rollers, right side by side, and cut ..

[busterbay 326]

Can the SC units cut mylar ?

[slice&dice 2,450]

Can the SC units cut mylar ?

 

Yup, sure can.

Just increase the pressure.

 

I have the SC unit set to 10g for regular vinyl

It goes as high as 800g.

Plenty of downforce for mylar.

 

(Of course, it will likely dull your blades quickly, but that's another issue)

[MZ SKEETER 4,708]

Yup, sure can.

Just increase the pressure.

 

I have the SC unit set to 10g for regular vinyl

It goes as high as 800g.

Plenty of downforce for mylar.

 

(Of course, it will likely dull your blades quickly, but that's another issue)

Will your SC cut 2" wide scraps without putting them on a carrier?   Can you put the first and 2nd pinch roller side by side and cut? 

[OWJones 1,981]

That's actually good news since we are very thrifty.

 

You'll need to get over that mindset pretty quickly in the vinyl cutting world (trust me, I'm a long time cheapskate).  Vinyl is the cheapest part of doing what we do (well, maybe app tape is a little cheaper) and you'll find that the more you try and cheap out, the more you'll later regret it.

 

For example, first time I tried to cut a large quantity of the same design, I minimized my panel margins and reduced the weed border margin as small as I could and cut a bunch of the same design.  Then when I started weeding I discovered that there was very little room in between the individual designs and once I cut them apart to tape them up there was practically no backing surrounding the design for the tape to stick to.  Another time I dialed it down so far that the weed border actually intersected the edge of the design and gave the last letter on every one a flat edge that shouldn't have been there.

 

I've found that the more you try to save the more you end up having to redo your work and end up spending more in the long run.

 

You're going to have a lot of waste in vinyl - it sucks, but you need to accept it sooner or later.

[jaybyrd 3,770]

It is not waste vinyl if you approach it right. I don't try to overcompress my designs or squeeze every last bit into a given space but I do have 5 bread trays (like the grocery stores use) setup to store the larger cutoff pieces of scrap. I think the smallest I save is around a 6" square and goes up from there. When something comes up that needs a small piece I go over to the tray and take a quick peak to see if I can stay away from the rolls of vinyl. On scrap large enough, I roll them up and have a shelf next to the the trays that I stand them up on. And anything 12x24 I have several Cricut users who come in and buy sheets from me for their crafts. If you get busy enough you will overflow your scrap pile in which case I pick 1 lucky person to get a flat rate box packed full of my excess and build some good karma along the way (last time it was Madhatter and I practically had to stand on the box to get it closed).

[CarolinaTraffic 4]

Has anyone ever used the SC to cut any type of reflective lettering / vinyl? I know in the buying guide it says that it won't cut high intensity or low intensity reflective material but this machine supposedly has 800g of downforce. Is that not enough or is there another factor that I'm overlooking? Surely there is a way to cut reflective letting to go on trailers that doesn't involve buying a Graphtec FC or high end Roland.

[Dakotagrafx 7,297]

Has anyone ever used the SC to cut any type of reflective lettering / vinyl? I know in the buying guide it says that it won't cut high intensity or low intensity reflective material but this machine supposedly has 800g of downforce. Is that not enough or is there another factor that I'm overlooking? Surely there is a way to cut reflective letting to go on trailers that doesn't involve buying a Graphtec FC or high end Roland.

haven't used that machine in particular but can't imagine why it wouldn't cut most reflective materials - I have done it on a p-cut when I had one.  Reflectives will eat thru blades - just something to keep in mind to have extras on hand as it has a metallic layer.  also engineering grade (the stuff you are really looking for to be highly reflective) is very expensive so you want to practice on something cheaper first  - it could get way more expensive than your cutter, just in material, if you wasted much of it

[Monkey 252]

The specs say it cant but mine cut magnet

[Dakotagrafx 7,297]

it also says it can cut card stock but not tint - there is something fishy here

[Monkey 252]

yeah i never understood that either

[Dakotagrafx 7,297]

I think it loses something in the chinese to english translation.  can cut card stock but not wispy thin plastic . .. 

[Monkey 252]

maybe a static generating issue?

[Dakotagrafx 7,297]

Heck there is more static on this site than on a ungrounded mh series   

[slice&dice 2,450]

It certainly cuts 3M SCOTCHLITE reflective (for non-regulated signs & vehicle markings)

That stuff is relatively lightweight and there's no issue with cutting it whatsoever.

 

 

 

[CarolinaTraffic 4]

Nice, thanks for the responses. After much debate and reading a bunch on this forum I went ahead and ordered my first cutter. I did go with the SC 50“. One of the things I plan to use it for is cutting single use custom stencils for painting on asphalt in parking lots. That's why I went with the larger machine, plus there is plenty of room in my shop so space isn't an issue. I plan on using it with a laptop so once it gets here I'm going to just try it out with the USB and see if I'm really going to need to buy a keyspan or serial pcmcia card.

I've been reading a bunch of stuff on here for a while and debating the different machines, I feel like this machine should serve my needs well. I've been collecting EPS files and learning InkScape for a while now in anticipation. So once this thing gets here I plan on making all kinds of stuff, much of which has been inspired by other people's creative work that they have shared on this forum.

[Dakotagrafx 7,297]

There have been some killer deals on used large graphtecs on ebay in the last week - seams nobody wants the wide ones so they are going cheaper than normal.  but then again all cutters are - its a buyers market