Graphtec CE7000 loses accuracy on contour cut near rollers

[annarface 2]

I'm a new CE7000 owner and this issue is driving me mad. When I print and cut, I am finding my cuts are accurate in the centre of the job but towards the edges of the media, they are cutting inaccurately - the miscut is replicated on both sides of the machine but mirrored which makes me wonder if there's some kind of distance calibration that is off. It happens the most badly at the bottom and top of the sheet.

I have reduced the depth and force of my blade to be cutting on the bare minimum so there isn't excess drag, I am cutting on speed 10 with CB09 45 deg blade and have attached photos of how my media is positioned with the pinch rollers. This is loaded evenly to the best of my knowledge. Not sure if pinch roller positioning is off and causing some kind of media drift? It all seems straight but not sure what I am missing. It also seems to warp some of my curved edges on the curved boxes I am cutting.

Apologies for all the files - wasn't sure what info to include. I am using Cutting Master 4 AI plug in on Windows

Thanks in advance!

[MZ SKEETER 4,709]

Is that the blade holder that came with that cutter?  (red).  Every CE7000 that I see has the blue tip blade holder.   0.9mm..  Blue tip blade holder is a standard blade holder for Graphtecs. Sign vinyl etc.  Red tip blade holder is for rigid media. and different blades. 1.5mm.   Try learning with only a few graphics, instead of so many at once. 

https://www.graphtecamerica.com/blades-bladeholders

OK.  looking at the brochure,  this cutter came with both the red and blue tip blade holders?    You should be using the blue tip blade holder.   The red holder is for stuff like cutting reflective and other stiff media.  Myself and others only use a 60 degree blade to cut everything. 

This is the correct way to set your blade depth.

To start with, you should set your blade depth correctly, by taking the blade holder out of the machine, and firmly cut across a piece of scrap vinyl, you will be cutting. You should only be cutting the vinyl and barely a mark on wax paper backing, Adjust blade to get there, Then put the blade holder back in machine, and use the force of the machine to get there, same results, only cutting the vinyl and barely a mark in wax paper backing. You should barely see and feel the blade out of the blade holder. Regular sign vinyl is only 2-3 mil thick. You only cut with the very tip of the blade. 

Were you given a license of Graphtec Pro Studio ? (Windows only)  It's would be much better software. It's about the same as FlexisignPro with out the RIP. 

[annarface 2]

36 minutes ago, MZ SKEETER said:

Is that the blade holder that came with that cutter?  (red).  Every CE7000 that I see has the blue tip blade holder.   0.9mm..  Blue tip blade holder is a standard blade holder for Graphtecs. Sign vinyl etc.  Red tip blade holder is for rigid media. and different blades. 1.5mm.   Try learning with only a few graphics, instead of so many at once. 

https://www.graphtecamerica.com/blades-bladeholders

OK.  looking at the brochure,  this cutter came with both the red and blue tip blade holders?    You should be using the blue tip blade holder.   The red holder is for stuff like cutting reflective and other stiff media.  Myself and others only use a 60 degree blade to cut everything. 

This is the correct way to set your blade depth.

To start with, you should set your blade depth correctly, by taking the blade holder out of the machine, and firmly cut across a piece of scrap vinyl, you will be cutting. You should only be cutting the vinyl and barely a mark on wax paper backing, Adjust blade to get there, Then put the blade holder back in machine, and use the force of the machine to get there, same results, only cutting the vinyl and barely a mark in wax paper backing. You should barely see and feel the blade out of the blade holder. Regular sign vinyl is only 2-3 mil thick. You only cut with the very tip of the blade. 

Sorry for the confusion, the red was in there as I use it for the perf cut because I have a 60 deg blade for that and it perf cuts the sheets at the end of the job, so was still in there for the final photos. For the contour cut job, I was using the blue cb09 and the 45 deg blade that came with the cutter. I do have a 60 deg clean cut blade for blue I can try.

When I cut much smaller jobs, I don't really have any issues with accuracy but once I start to go bigger (I know this is still quite a small job in the grand scheme of things but I used to use Silhouette portraits and cut A4 media so it's big to me haha) it seems to have issues. That's why I have so many segmented reg marks, thinking it would help. It cut almost perfectly on a job half the size right after I made this forum post but I'm pretty sure this job (52 inches) should still be possible with accuracy on the CE7000. 

I think my blade depth is set accurately, that is how I set the blade initially - I'm on force 7 with it. 

[MZ SKEETER 4,709]

If you are using force 7,  I would guess you have too much blade exposed out of the blade holder.  Too much blade exposed will cause a drag in your media. The correct combo is less blade, more force. You don't guess at blade depth. If you do as I stated above. it works.   There was also a problem with the Graphtec CE7000 coming out of the factory,  Don't know if that was fixed yet. You might have to contact Graphtec for a part. 

[MZ SKEETER 4,709]

 Grit rollers are made different now.   Here is a post.

 

[darcshadow 1,626]

You also appear to have an offset issue, which could be another result of too much blade exposed. I've not worked with printed vinyl, but on normal vinyl you can barely see the cut lines. You're cut lines are very clear which doesn't seem right to me.

Also, and be aware I've never owned this cutter or done perf cutting, is that the perf cut around the edge and is that normal? I would not have expected to see clumps of material like that.

[annarface 2]

31 minutes ago, MZ SKEETER said:

If you are using force 7,  I would guess you have too much blade exposed out of the blade holder.  Too much blade exposed will cause a drag in your media. The correct combo is less blade, more force. You don't guess at blade depth. If you do as I stated above. it works.   There was also a problem with the Graphtec CE7000 coming out of the factory,  Don't know if that was fixed yet. You might have to contact Graphtec for a part. 

Oooh okay interesting, I will try to set it again. What force do you usually use a rough ballpark? My vinyl is 80 micron but not sure how it translates to mils. 

I did read about the defected CE7000s a while ago but thought mine seemed fine for the most part until this recent long cut. I'll adjust the blade a bit and see how it goes from there. Thank you!

2 minutes ago, darcshadow said:

You also appear to have an offset issue, which could be another result of too much blade exposed. I've not worked with printed vinyl, but on normal vinyl you can barely see the cut lines. You're cut lines are very clear which doesn't seem right to me.

Also, and be aware I've never owned this cutter or done perf cutting, is that the perf cut around the edge and is that normal? I would not have expected to see clumps of material like that.

I thought I had an offset issue but assumed that was just "the way it cuts" as I meddled with the offset +1 and +2 and it got worse. I will def re-set the blade now and see how that improves. Thanks for the heads up. 

Re: perf cut... I honestly don't know, but it took me about 2 weeks to come up with a setting that "worked" so it's very likely my perf cut is not ideal. Once I dust it away the lines are straight, what you see on the surface is all dust.

I did just think my vinyl was particularly dusty!

[darcshadow 1,626]

I don't know what your process is, but personally if your perf cut is just a simple box around the whole page, I'd just cut it by hand with a straight edge and save the wear and tear on the machine and blades.

[MZ SKEETER 4,709]

You set the blade per my instructions to the vinyl that you are cutting. You always do that with the vinyl that you are cutting.  It does not matter the mil thickness.  Blade depth is very important, you don't guess it.  You should just barely even see the blade tip out of the blade holder. (The actual tip of the blade). Then you set the rest of your settings.  Blade offset is zero on a Graphtec.  I have had 4, It's zero. 

[annarface 2]

38 minutes ago, darcshadow said:

I don't know what your process is, but personally if your perf cut is just a simple box around the whole page, I'd just cut it by hand with a straight edge and save the wear and tear on the machine and blades.

I did consider hand cutting but I want the sheets to be exactly the same size so opted for perf cutting, also to save labour time. That's why I've gone for a separate blade to try and preserve the contour cut blade too - and is the reason I got the CE7000 over other models haha! 

38 minutes ago, MZ SKEETER said:

You set the blade per my instructions to the vinyl that you are cutting. You always do that with the vinyl that you are cutting.  It does not matter the mil thickness.  Blade depth is very important, you don't guess it.  You should just barely even see the blade tip out of the blade holder.  Then you set the rest of your settings.  Blade offset is zero on a Graphtec.  I have had 4, It's zero. 

I've re-set the blade and seems to be cutting a lot cleaner on the corners but accuracy still not 100% across the whole job. It is a lot better though and it looks like there is a lot less strain on the media as it's cutting (this was due to drag before with blade too deep?). I'm now cutting on force 12. I did twizzle the blade up ever so slightly and even force 38 would not cut so I'm confident this is the lowest the blade can be and still cut now. Blade off set is set to zero too. 

 I did notice when it is fed back and forth it's not feeding straight - it was perfectly aligned when I began the job but you can see against the lines on the front of the machine it isn't staying in the same spot. Is this the pinch roller issue from the other thread? Perhaps this explains why my longer jobs are worse.

[Dakotagrafx 7,297]

the feeding straight has more to do with how it is loaded - I would contact graphtec GB directly - seems to be more of a calibration issue from what I am seeing.

https://graphtecgb.co.uk/

[annarface 2]

3 minutes ago, Dakotagrafx said:

the feeding straight has more to do with how it is loaded - I would contact graphtec GB directly - seems to be more of a calibration issue from what I am seeing.

https://graphtecgb.co.uk/

Hmm. I feel if it were loading straight it would probably cut perfectly as the accuracy issues are consistent with where it's becoming misaligned. I'll cut some more sheets and triple check it's not me loading it incorrectly, otherwise I'll drop them a line tomorrow. 

 

Thanks for your help everybody. Appreciate the heads up re: blade too as it has improved my cuts! Will let you know how I get on and would love to hear if you think of anything else  

[MZ SKEETER 4,709]

Are you pre feeding the sheet so there is roller marks to follow when cutting?  That helps to follow the pinch roller marks.   I also measure the pinch rollers an exact distance from the vinyl edge.   Your pinch rollers also can be adjusted down with levers on the back, (more tension)  Have you tried that? 

[annarface 2]

Just now, MZ SKEETER said:

Are you pre feeding the sheet so there is roller marks to follow when cutting?   I also measure the pinch rollers an exact distance from the vinyl edge. 

I'm not I don't think, I just line it up so it's straight against one of the lines on the front, try and hold it flat so it's tight across the machine when I clamp it down (was having issues previously with it bulging in the middle), then select "sheet" as my media and then it does it's scan to see how big the sheet is.

The distance from the edge was another thing I had been experimenting with and found the distance I am using works better than putting them further in, but if I'm feeding it wonky that probably skewed (lol) my results. My pinch rollers are even but I have better results when the edge of the holder lines up exactly with where my media ends, compared to how they were in the pic I posted. 

[MZ SKEETER 4,709]

I cut very long designs.  12-16 ft  Always prefeed the vinyl. For cuts that long, I lower the lever on my pinch rollers. to the strongest. They have different tensions on them.   I never have problems with vinyl tracking.  Perfect cuts.   Also try cutting speed slower. 

[annarface 2]

Just now, MZ SKEETER said:

I cut very long designs.  12-16 ft  Always prefeed the vinyl. For cuts that long i lower the lever on my pinch rollers. to the strongest. They have different tensions on them.   I never have problems with vinyl tracking.  Perfect cuts. 

Annoyingly I don't have pressure options for my rollers on this model, the 60cm. Should have specified. What does pre-feeding mean with sheet media? Do you just hold the arrows back and forth? Sorry - feels like a stupid question! I thought it was more to do with vinyl on a roll to make sure it isn't wound wonky etc.

[MZ SKEETER 4,709]

You can pre feed the amount you want in your menu.  3 ft and on under Pre feed.  or Yes you can pre feed using the arrows. 

[annarface 2]

1 minute ago, MZ SKEETER said:

You can pre feed the amount you want in your menu.  3 ft and on under Pre feed.  or Yes you can pre feed using the arrows. 

I'll give that a shot, thank you!

[MZ SKEETER 4,709]

too bad, you can't adjust the tension on the pinch rollers.  Ok, give it a shot.   Your welcome 

[Dakotagrafx 7,297]

1 hour ago, annarface said:

Hmm. I feel if it were loading straight it would probably cut perfectly as the accuracy issues are consistent with where it's becoming misaligned. I'll cut some more sheets and triple check it's not me loading it incorrectly, otherwise I'll drop them a line tomorrow. 

 

Thanks for your help everybody. Appreciate the heads up re: blade too as it has improved my cuts! Will let you know how I get on and would love to hear if you think of anything else  

If loading crooked was the problem the cuts up and down wouldn’t be constantly the same distance from the edge.  That is why I think calibration of some sort . . . If the vinyl isn’t punching up when feeding back and forth like the one I had did.  

[annarface 2]

4 minutes ago, Dakotagrafx said:

If loading crooked was the problem the cuts up and down wouldn’t be constantly the same distance from the edge.  That is why I think calibration of some sort . . . If the vinyl isn’t punching up when feeding back and forth like the one I had did.  

I see. No, the vinyl seems to be feeding fine in that respect - better now I have adjusted the blade settings. It used to buldge a little before. Fingers crossed for an easy solution!

[annarface 2]

No reply from Graphtec themselves yet but I have been cutting smaller lengths of media today (27inches in length) and have noticed the cut is always too far to the right on the left side of the sheet - consistently. The right side is cutting perfectly, however it always starts cutting on the right first and does left second. 

I can actually fix it by moving all of my cut lines in Illustrator to the left by 2mm to compensate. So it's a temporary fix but does seem like there is some fault. I checked the scale of my printer and it's 100%, so out of ideas. I messed around with distance adjustment but don't think it's related. 

[MZ SKEETER 4,709]

Check the scale of the cutter is what they were referring to.  Calibrate the vinyl cutter.    You should be able to check it in your cutting software. 

Did you ever try a different cutting software?  Did  Graphtec Pro Studio come  with that cutter?   (if you are on Windows)

[annarface 2]

25 minutes ago, MZ SKEETER said:

Check the scale of the cutter is what they were referring to.  Calibrate the vinyl cutter.    You should be able to check it in your cutting software. 

Did you ever try a different cutting software?  Did  Graphtec Pro Studio come  with that cutter?   (if you are on Windows)

The scale on the cutter is set to 1 and the only calibration I could find is the offset sensor adjust which is perfectly set. Just did mark scan test, results are perfect too.

I haven't tried another software no, I think I do have Graphtec Pro Studio. I make my files on my Mac and cut on Windows but looks like GPS is available for Mac too. 

[MZ SKEETER 4,709]

Cutter calibration, should be in your cutter software.  You would actually make and cut say a 3" square, Then you measure it and it should be exactly 3".on all sides. If not, you adjust so that it is.  That is calibrating the vinyl cutter.  I use Flexi software and mine is listed under resolution.   It actually determines how many steps make an inch.   (I use inches).

Graphtec Pro Studio and Plus  is only for Windows.  You need an activation code for it.     There is also Graphtec Studio which is for Windows and Mac.  totally different software.   Graphtec Pro Studio cost over $1000 and is made by SAI,  (FlexisignPro)  

https://www.graphtecamerica.com/software