fourthsyde

hey everyone... need some insight....

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hey everyone... im looking into getting a cutter... ive never cut vynil before, but i have installed tons of it on cars, boats, airplanes, and plenty of other things...

i dont forsee needing more than a 12" cutter.. the odds i will ever do anything bigger in one piece are very low...

i have a MacBook Pro that it will be used on , so mac or pc works for me...

is the design process hard? what all materials will i need? what model should i get and where?

thanks in advance for the help, i look forward to joining the community...

Evan

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Vinyl is WAY easier to find in 15" rolls.  Also, once you get going, you WILL need more than 12".  For the price difference, it's well worth getting the 24" cutter.  The MH721 is a good machine.  The Copam is better, but more money.

Ross

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ive noticed the difficulty in finding the 12" rolls... where can i find specs on these models?

also... when you buy the vynil... i know the backing is already attached... but what about the other layer that you use to keep everything in place during application... is that extra? what is it called?

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yea its extra, Application Tape is what its called, nothing fancy,,, :huh:

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I agree. Buy the 24 inch cutter,or you will spend a lot of time cutting down the 15 inch rolls to fit the 12 inch cutter.When you do find 12 inch,you'll pay more for it.The price difference isn't all that much.

You will use application tape to apply the vinyl. Its available from several sources on ebay..I buy mine in 48"x300' rolls,they cut it down to the sizes I need.

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alright, so what 24" cutter should i look at? being budget consious ofcourse...

if i buy a $200 unit, what will the differenced be between that and some of the $2000 units i see? speed isnt a huge concern since i have plenty of time to start it and let it go on its own....

as for software, what is good? how easy is most of it to use? say i want to use existing images...  can that be done from jpegs?

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Most Sign Dealers offer slitting of the roll... you can have your 24 inch roll slit to 2 12 inch pieces...

But no, I do not reccomend the 12 inch cutter, liek they said, once you get going, youll see the demand for larger pieces.

Get the MH721...

Whats the diffrence between a 2000 machine and a 300 one?  I really cant tell... They both cut vinyl... Both just as fast..., Yeah, you might get a few more functions out of a Roland brand compared to a Refine...  But really, like i said, they both do the same job...

Most cutting software have specific drivers for the expensive models, however, refines clever use of the Roland driver makes pretty much any software program able to run the refine mh721

Software...

The bundled software that comes with the Refine is SignCut and InkScape... Some people use this software without a hitch... Some people dispise it... Its all a matter of prefrence...  I recommend a all in one design and cutting program like WinPCSign or Flexi... But... Flexi can get expensive and WinPC has the capabilites to do just about anything that flexi can do...

I think that People buy Flexi and Rolands for like a status symbol... Kind of like HighSchool... Nike Shoes compared to an off brand... They both will get you where you need to go... as with plotters, they both will do what you need them too...

I reccomend Buying the MH721, especially if you are an entry level decal/sign maker...  Its low cost will have you putting money in your pocket more quickly then the Roland... As most people have made enough profit in such a short time to more then pay for there machine over and over...

Get the MH721 and try the SignCut and InkScape... If you like it, continue, If you hate it, upgrade to WinPCSign...  Im not saying flexi is a bad product by any means... its a great product... But its like $2000 on ebay for the full version and WinPCSign PRO is just over two hundred bucks....

BTW, I dont think that even Rolands come bundled with any software to get you going... With The refine, there is only supplies to buy... Your up and running right away, as with a roland, you have to buy the Machine and Software...

And?  Wheres the message board for the Roland?  US cutter offers you support on this bord from everyone... If you run into a problem, one of us here can help you thru it...

Good Luck!

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wow... thats a ton of details... thanks for all the info....  i guess thats the cutter ill look into... as for drivers and software... is any of the software they come with mac compatible, or will i have to do it all in windows?

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All of our cutters and software are compatible with Mac or Windows.

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excelent! and it also said the software is compatible with ai... that makes my life even better... hopefully ill pick one up this week then...

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so im finally about to order one... i was looking at them on ebay, and it says that us cutter wont take paypal for a shipment to canada? also that it is AS-IS if with no warranty if i ship it to canada? is all this true?

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We are not setup for international PayPal payments currently, but it may change soon. International buyers do not get a warranty when buying through eBay, our margins are just not enough to justify. If you purchase the cutter directly through our web site at www.uscutterdirect.com however, you will get the warranty.

;D

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what do you mean not setup to take international payments? I can send the payment in US dollars, there should be no issue from there. I apologize, but I'm a little skeptical to be mailing out $400

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Our PayPal is not setup to accept international payments- I do not know why. We get money orders, cashiers checks, and money transfers all week long from international customers without issues.

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Our PayPal is not setup to accept international payments- I do not know why. We get money orders, cashiers checks, and money transfers all week long from international customers without issues.

As a seller myself,I'm not set up in Paypal to take international either,yet people in Canada pay me with paypal all the time. I think I would check into that,Ken. I would certainly rather receive an international Paypal payment than a check or money order from another country. Its a no-brainer. I'm not even sure that Paypal considers canada as being international.

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I was all over the Paypal site and couldn't find anything that says you have to accept international payments in order to receive from canada. In fact,when I clicked on the Canada link,it took me directly to the regular US Paypal homepage.

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as a seller,I require paypal only for all orders outside the US. I have shipped to buyers who paid with paypal,to Australia,Germany,Norway,Canada,England,and Ireland. I didn't have to set up anything special with paypal. In this case,I think it is just the seller not wanting to accept paypal outside the US. Send a money order. Other plotter sellers are the same way. AS for the warranty,I wouldn't worry about it. It takes effect the minute you BUY,not whe you receive it. To Canada,you'd be lucky to get it in 30 days. If it arrives DOA,that's another story. Under US law,a buyer has the reasonable expectation when buying a new item,that it work. I am sure the same applies to Canada.

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i dont know about you, but every time ive received anything from the US shipped via UPS, i normally get it in 3-5 days.... usps is a different story....

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Don't get me started on the USPS they are an inefficiant bunch of overpaid lazy idiots. The US postal service is a JOKE. They charge exorbarant rates for what they call 'express mail' which the advertize as 'overnight to most areas'. I have tried many times and have YET to find anywhere,including 100 miles from me,that they could guarantee overnight. UPS,however,gives me a guanarnteed  delivery date,even on ground.

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a few more questions.... what vinyl should i use? i will be doing solely automotive decals.... would like a 2-3 yr lifespan atleast....  also... how often do you replace blades?

thanks again!

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most calandared vinyl will withstand outdoors 2-3 years.  i reccomend FDC or GT5 from signpile.com...  I have personally used both on vehicles with excellent results.  blade life is dependet on how much you cut.  usually at least a month, change it every 2 just to be sure.

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Good news. I heard back from Marcus and he says that we will now accept Paypal payments from Canada and UK for confirmed / verified addresses (seller protection eligible) that are shipped with Fedex.  Send payments to service@uscutter.com.

All international shipping is done through Fedex and USPS now (no more UPS, DHL, IPS). Cutters will usually be FedEx and parts should be USPS.

;D

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Best news ive gotten today! will the shipping still be $100 via fedex? im glad its not ups... they seem to charge a random $40 just to let it cross the border... then duty on top of that....

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