Wildgoose

I cut stencils from time to time out of used carrier sheet and have found that applying a couple layers of transfer paper to the back side to act as a cutting mat works pretty good.

If I am cutting stencils I include a box around the design at the outer limits so I get the right amount of clearance around the edges. Works every time without having to remember anything fancy. Especially nice when you do another one a year later.

As an aside, when you find that your pillow is getting flat you can unsew a side and go to a craft store and buy 1" foam and change it out and re-sew the side back up and have a new pillow for way cheaper than replacing the whole thing. Done it twice with mine. I also recommend a 6" X 20" pillow for sleeve work. A mouse pad also works for getting around buttons and seams. Lots of options.

Welcome back.

Have you tried creating a simple square of a given size and printing it to see if it comes out the correct size? I'd start with that and maybe it will help you nail down what's going on. Some files can have hidden objects that are outside the visible spectrum which can cause printing problems. I have the VM Pro version and just tested my size with a 50mm square. It nailed it perfectly. If you do something simple and it works then you know there is something else going on causing the problem.

I would recommend this press as a budget start up machine: 15" x 15" Digital Swing Arm Heat Press (uscutter.com) I wouldn't go any smaller than 15"x 15" and I would recommend staying away from the combination options. I ditto darkshadow about a swinger vs a clam. I've had both and clams will burn you in the end (or back of hand) ha ha. You might consider a heat press pillow as well. Any time you have a set of buttons or some thick seams on garments they tend to hold the press up off the surface and can cause failure. I ran a similar press to this when I started out and got several years of service with it. I upgraded and gifted it to a friend who still uses it on hobby work. There are more expensive options to be sure and they are probably worth the money but it depends on your budget and likely use. A 16x20 machine is nice but also a bit big on smaller items so it can complicate things. I ended up upgrading to the Fusion which has interchangeable platens and its fantastic (but way high end). I upgraded when I decided that the side gig was a full on business and went for it. Good luck and I can guarantee you will have loads of fun with a heat press. Use the Siser Easyweed and Easyweed Stretch HTV. It's the best in the industry IMHO. I use the stretch for any color they carry and the regular non stretch for other colors they don't offer in the stretch. Great product. Just remember to mirror you file because you cut on the glue side. I mirror mine when I save them so I don't forget. It's easy to see that it's backwards and if I am cutting the logo in regular sign vinyl I flip it back over in the cutting software. You will under stand this stuff once you do some of it.

I run on mac and once had the beta version of Sure cuts a lot pro (SCALP) I was unhappy with it but it IS a viable mac friendly option which are far and few between. They used to offer support at their own website. They probably still do although I am unsure to what extent. Sometimes just getting hooked up the first time can be the biggest challenge. IF you are still struggling you might give a try at a different program. SignCut Pro is what I use and they offer a free trial that you could give a shot. The best part about those guys is they actually have live tech help so if you struggle getting hooked up you can put in a support request and a tech will call you and help you. I have even had them remote into my computer to fix a couple connection issues I was having. Once you are running you will probably figure out the path to get the other pogram hooked up too and be off and running. You may find SignCut to be a better option. They used to offer a 1 year subscription with new cutter purchases which is how I got started with them. Something happened and that stopped being available from USC which is too bad IMO.

I used to sublimate but just couldn't make it pay well so it peetered out. 350deg is on the very bottom end of temp if I remember corretly. I did more garments and dog tags than anything but had to do some test prints at different temps and dwell time to get the colors happy. I struggled with navy blue looking good and dark. I think the more expensive gel printers may develop a bit more vibrant colors but I didn't want to invest that deep and wanted laerge format. I think mine was an Epson WF 7310 with refillable cartridges. It was an affordable way to enter the market. If I had a brink and mortar store I think it would have been worth continuing. I let my printer set too long and it plugged up and I never got it unclogged so I gave up. Glad you got it up and running.

There is/was a small vietnamese resturant about a mile from my day-job office that had a lunch buffet. The poor owners had to close down due to the covid restrictions and never made it back. They attempted to do pick-up/take-out but it wasn't enough to sustain them. Among other things they had IMO the worlds best spicy ckicken and their long bean stir fry recipe was to die for. I feel bad for them and my cravings for their great food go unsatisfied.

Great font choice. Something like that speaks on a subliminal level along with the words.

I finally got around to using some of the RA variant. Here are my results: #1. I grabbed the roll without looking and used it to cut some very small elements for my son-in-law. The vinyl has an interesting grid/crosshatch built into it that may or may not disappear with time. I think it has some relation to the adhesive that has the same pattern and allows air to get out from under when installing. For small work I would not recommend the RA. We got it done but it was a sketchy thing trying to keep small elements in place while weeding. #2. I used some of this as a cover layer on some Dibond signboard. It worked great and I could definitely see a difference from what you would ordinarily see if you messed up with the squeegee and created a bubble. So I would say for regular sized jobs and large coverage areas this is a good product with benefits from the air release adhesive. It's still a thin cast product requiring transfer tape (I tried without like wrap vinyl) and will stretch if unsupported, so don't skip this step if using it for solid cover.

Way to end the year being a jerk slice. He did exactly what we ask people to do. Come back with results so other people can learn from their experience. Just because Ubuntu is an out of mainstream option is no reason to berate him, it's pretty cool to see it be functional for technically savvy users. ditto - your experience is great help for the rare Ubuntu user that comes along. If you stick around or stop by from time to time you may be able to help others. I appreciate Ubuntu users (tried it myself for a while but am not computer literate enough to work through the issues.) I run on a mach system which in the cutter community is an oddity as well. most do use windows based programs. ArtCut is a nice (free) option and impressive that it is multi-platform compatible.

I have a Summa in 30". Or are you talking specifically 34"?

Welcome from across the country in Idaho. I agree with revious comments. Proper set-up (or rather the LACK of it) causes 99% of new user issues. Hand setting the blade depth like Skeeter explained is the first and most important, then dial in your pressure from a low number by small steps like 5g each step until it is cutting through the vinyl and just lightly making a mark on the carrier sheet. I usually suggest a speed setting at around 1/4 to 1/3 the may speed your machine is supposed to be capable of. If that max is 1000 mm/sec then 250 to 300 mm/sec I think most people run around the 170 to 200 mark. I even run that slow on my $3500 machine. going faster doesn't make the cut more accurate. In similar fasion going at the slowes speed may not yield the best results either. Just a nice consistent speed that will pull the blade around corners well.

I concur. But by that same token it is also a bit of a old wives tale about the 60deg being so much better. There are also trade-offs with them also being easier to break a tip. I use a Summa and the standard factory blade is only 36deg. I can tell you from experience that I can cut basically every bit as small with the 36 as I can with a 60. Now, when it comes to thickness the 36 is limited and as you work into thicker materials the amount of blade shoved into the cut does in fact come into play and will mess around more in extreme corners. But for basic 2 and 3 mil vinyl you are probably good to go with whatever you want. I'd try both and see if you find any difference. I DO wholeheartedly support the vote for Clean Cut blades, they will outlast the cheaper blades. A quality blade TAKEN CARE OF meaning staying out of your cutting strip will give you at least 6 months of regular cutting. I have been running on the same blade for 14 months.(summa blade but similar quality as the CC) So long that I misplaced my stash of new ones and I started to get worried and ended up ordering some new ones Ha ha. The others will turn up but we moved last year and I haven't found them yet. I like you am a AI designer and no there isn't really anything that can be done in other design programs that is missing in AI. They used to have one over on Illustrator by being able to do true block shadows but with the new updates Illustrator made to let that happen it's as good as it gets. I used to have to build those manually and it was a bit more time consuming. I DO agree with people that Illustrator is a bear to master, sort of like learning a reverse polish calculator I guess. But once you figure it out I really have no desire to spend time on other programs. I am a Mac guy and I use Sign Cut Pro 1 which is outdated and hard to even find these days. I own a dongle that I paid a few hundred for about 10 years ago so no subscription fees. It's a bare bones cutter interface but has most of the cutting bells and whistles that the highest versions of the others have. It works on both platforms (Mac and windows) which comes in handy sometimes but you have to own a dongle to quickly change between computers. They have Pro 2 out now and if my dongle ever dies I'll probably consider going to that upgraded version.