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It appears to me that Wickedstangs is UPGRADING his machine, He already has a Pcut...He has been a member here since 2009 and has a website selling decals and clothing..He already has his supplies. He is NOT setting up an operation for the first time... He wants a better machine with a servo motor. I would go with the Graphtec.CE6000-60 if you want to buy new. . more bang for your buck. FREE stand. Auto registration. Tracks great, cuts detailed designs great. Quiet, accurate. Great warranty. Holds resale value.

Due to Sawgrass patent running out Richard from Cobra Inks let me know that he is now selling the High Temp Ink again. However you have to call him by phone to order. https://www.cobraink.com/ Mention my name as always and he will give you 10% off on whatever you buy...

Thanks everyone for all the great feedback... I would like to like all your post but, I have exceeded my likes

I was once told this by an old-timer: " find the largest [ cut size ] machine you can afford and buy the next step up. " The week after I bought my 24" cutter, I wished I had gone larger. You can always cut 24" rolls on a 30", 40" or 50" machine. You can't do the reverse. Personally, I would go with a Roland. If you ever decide to get a Roland printer down the road, it will work seamlessly with your cutter

Usually i will type it out and make the image 4" tall in the program and then cut

did these for a couple buddies over the weekend, they were fun to do.

fine detail and no problens graphtec hands down- lots of contour cutting - roland excels there. personally owned several of each and keep a graphtec at all times

Mz SKEETER good observation.. Yes I am planning on upgrading my PCUT with something new. I make my members shirts and decals. I have notice that sometimes this PCUT misses some areas and I have to cut twice. I am thinking that the Graphtec would be a good choice.

me too

I have the a Roland and never had a problem with it.

I have a 30" LP2 and it's been mothballed pretty much since I bought my Graphtec. The LP2 is a better value cutter but it is no Graphtec

Believe it or not a LOT of us were right there where you are at right now. Very frustrating at first because it seems like too much to deal with. Just relax and think some happy thoughts and it will all work out and you will be in my spot one day calming someone else. Be patient and keep at it and it will all add to your experience. Now for help: Go back to basics (which I realize are all new to you) Start by double checking blade depth, If you are unsure about this just do a fresh search and ignore anything that says 1/2 of a credit card. Mz Skeeter has posted the best way about 10,000 time so you should be able to find it here on the forum. After blade depth look everything over from top to bottom and try to see if anything is slightly loose. Things to check include the blade holder and clamp, the carriage which is the part that scoots across the top beam (check that all the rollers are in place and seem tight, check the drive shaft which has the grit/traction rollers (with the machine off rotate the shaft with your fingers to be sure one section or another isn't loose. There is only so much you can see but you would be surprised at how many times people find that the blade holder is loose or a roller is off on the back of the carriage. Next be double certain that the pinch rollers are over the gritty traction part of the shaft. Your cuts didn't look that far off so I doubt that is your problem but it needs mentioning. If all these things look OK then you will need to go through your settings within the software. I do not own a Graphtec but they are one of the top brands so you can rest assured that the problem will be corrected one way or another and it's not normal. For the actual machine set-up you should have some literature with your machine to work through it. If you don't find what you are looking for with the manual you may have to get with tech support. If you bought the machine through USCutter they will totally help you out and there is a specific thread for Graptec machines that may have some pertinent info also. I don't know if I helped you much but hopefully you can figure it out. That looks like an offset issue or possible over-cut if it wasn't one of the other physical issues.

I made 70 of these and handed them out at a festival this Saturday along with a business card.

http://www.louisville-graphics.com I have worked with these guys the metallic flake that they offer is calendared but it is a start. I have used some red metal flake for a car magnet shaped like a guitar and it looked amazing and has help up for the couple months the guys has been using it with no fading. Just a side note their customer service isn't the greatest kinda short with people but they will fix a mistake very very fast if they make one (first hand knowledge) Quick note they have an ebay store were they offer more colors in different widths and lengths you can get a better deal there sometimes rather than buying by the foot straight from their store.

Pretty simple pattern. I just recreated it from scratch. pattern.eps

It's actually a double-edged sword, The math and calculations in this setup is for a one man operation. The second you add employees, your billable hours multiplies by the number of employees you have. When your billable hours increase, your shop rate decreases. So some of the bigger companies can task it to one of the shop hands and can be comparable to any home based business, while completing other jobs at the same time. That is to say if the home based business isn't slashing their prices and de-valuing their work and the industry just to make barely over the cost of material. I always tell the customer that you get what you pay for. I get this in my shop at least twice a week " I know a guy who does this on the side, and you are more expensive than him" mind you they say this while standing in front of about $20k worth of equipment asking why mine is more expensive. My reply to this is always the same: "I'm sure you do, anyone with a computer can do this now-a-days. But is he using the right materials? If something goes wrong, will his insurance pay for damages? Will he guarantee his work for any length of time? Will he even install it?" After asking these questions and the customer looks at you with a blank stare, that's when I say " Thats why mine is more expensive." I'm not knocking the home based market, I'm just saying there are A LOT of hacks out there looking to make a quick buck and don't care about quality.

Not my best work, just quick and dirty but maybe it will help you out. Shadow.svg

Here ya go;

Had the same problem. What was causing the problem was a screw dislodged from the electro magnet and wedged itself under the flap which lifts the blade up. Remove the four screws attaching the cover plate to the electro magnet housing. Looking from the top down you will see the black arm which lifts the blade. Manually move the arm up and down and you will see how it operates under the cover. Now, from eye level, check the space between the plastic arm and the top of the magnet. I found a screw lodged there. It is an M 2.5 machine screw maybe a quarter inch long or less. One of mine dislodged twice requiring retrieval and replacment. I now have one missing out of four that I cannot locate. Do not use a regular M 2.5 machine screw as it is magnetic and the blade will not lift properly is used.

wife did this last month and I have dozens left over - ummm Lilo came on the car cough cough - that or it was bought at a mobile roadside vendor . . . something like that

Here it is.. 3 Hibiscus.eps

Here you go hibiscus.eps

as jay said overcut should solve that

Gotta help new guys where you can, I learned the hard way so its nice to lend a hand.... 15 mins of my time could mean a potential contract for him so why not..