My Liyu df631 came today..few questions?

[dvddvd 14]

I had delivered my Liyu DF631.

Installed really easy, just a few clicks on the install and it was up and running.

Im waiting for some vinyl to arrive so I thought I would have a play with the plotter.

A couple of questions?

When it plots it's fine but inbetween each letter it leaves a line? Does that mean the pen needs adjusting? Wants to be a little higher and then more pressure?

What is the origin button for?

Thanks

 

[haumana 1,220]

picture? if you're still getting a pen drag mark, if you can see if you can seat the pen a little higher.

The origin tells your machine where the "new" 0,0 is so that it's the starting point (or point of origin).

[dvddvd 14]

Many thanks, I'm sure I will have more questions....impressed so far, it very quiet when in use.

Is there any benefit on running it on a faster speed? Is it to just make it work faster?

At slower speeds would you always get a better cut?

I'm in no rush when I cut out so would it be better to just leave it at its slowest?

 

 

[arty-rc 719]

The slower the cut, the better the cut. The only time I speed up my cutter is when cutting 5" and larger block letters and larger solid shapes.

[dvddvd 14]

Is that because it cuts better of just because it speeds the process up and due to the large size of the letters going faster doesn't matter?

[slice&dice 2,450]

Honestly, I would not waste any major effort on adjusting and fine-tuning the pen plotter, especially if you have no further use for it besides this preliminary phase of testing. Spend your time with the program -- learn that in detail, read through the Help topics; create some stuff; organize your saved files with a folder hierarchy for various types of jobs and/or dates; practice node editing; explore the fonts (familiarize yourself with the different Serif and sans-Serif typefaces) and browse through the vast Graphics library, making mental notes of the things available in there.

And for the record, I have NEVER reduced my cutter speed below the top end, I run it full blast always. ( I am a sign maker, and all my work is text-based, not detailed small graphics).

 

 

[Wildgoose 4,200]

I tend to run my cutter about 1/4 to 1/3 speed capability most of the time. I have actually had issues with messing up a big job because I had it set so high (just to try it out) it was throwing the vinyl back and forth to the point it folded poorly in the catch basket causing a crease which in turn caused feed issues and ended up wadded up before the project was complete. I look at it like why would I want to cause premature wear on a fine tuned machine. Take a corvette, CAN it run at 6500rpm? Yep. Will it do it for consecutive hours and days? Yep. Will a car that has been ran like that show signs of excessive wear as compared to one that has been treated differently after a few years? You better believe it. In my humble opinion this is true on all levels of cutters. My current cutter is Belgian made top of the line equipment and can take it but the time saved between running at 600 or 800 mm/sec vs 200 is negligible. I don't think running at super slow speeds is necessary unless you are pushing hard through something heavy like sandblast resist. I recommend starting out about there and you can start winding her up as you get some more experience and see what seems good to you.  

I agree with Slice on spending very much time dialing in the pen although if it has an actual pen attachment it should be capable of having the tip at roughly the same elevation above the material as the blade would be. It's a great idea to play around with pen and paper to be sure you completely understand the basic operation of the thing before you begin to cut. You will later have to dial in your blade exposure, down-force and offset once you are cutting actual vinyl. 

[MZ SKEETER 4,708]

I'm with Wildgoose at running slower.  And the same reason I run slower. I make very large long decals, and yes, the vinyl doesn't always go back and forth perfectly in the catch basket.  Yes the vinyl can fold a little bit and get creases in it from moving just a little bit the wrong direction.  The vinyl can stand up, instead of roll into the bottom catch basket nicely,  jamming up.   8-12 ft vinyl does not always roll up into it's self at the bottom of the catch basket. 

[slice&dice 2,450]

I have been running full-blast from day one, on MH, SC, LP2, and SC2 machines, (yeah, I've owned them all over the years).
Never lowered the speed control below max, not once. Your mileage may vary.

Regarding ORIGIN ----  you go OFFLINE, adjust the vinyl & cutter head (x and y axis) manually with the arrow keys, and when the tip of the blade is at the lower right corner of the vinyl, hit ORIGIN. The machine will start cutting from there.

[haumana 1,220]

For me, on the longer decals - the faster I ran the machine, the more drift I would get overall.

I'm usually never in a rush to get the decals done, and if I am - it's usually because it's a last minute/rush request, and even then, I tell them that the machine only works so fast, and I cut it at my usual speed and not let their 'emergency' turn into my urgency.