slice&dice

MICROGRAMMA ?

OK, so the word 'moribund' may be too feeble of a description for what this Forum has become. Perhaps 'cadaver' would be better? Anyway, I'll keep on plugging away, between the spammer onslaughts and lack of interest generally. As we approach the fly-by-night event of Dec 24th and the subsequent Christmas Day, (with the coinciding Hanukkah festival) here's a bunch of graphics for FREE, courtesy of Font Dings! https://www.fontspace.com/category/christmas,dingbats

OK, I know this Forum has gone moribund, but I thought it might be fun to start a thread for members to voice their opinions on what would constitute the Best Deal at USCUTTER for gifting during the Holidays. So many great items exist, from stocking-stuffers to big boxes of fun! This is the one I want Santa to bring me --- at a ridiculous price point of $340. (actually the machine itself is really just $199 if you take into account that the software bundles is valued at $60 and the included stand/media basket combo is worth probably $80 by itself). https://uscutter.com/refurbished-34-mh100-vinyl-cutter-with-stand-and-software

Yeah, I do realize this thread got bumped by a spammer (inserting marketing link) -- however, the underlying discussion is indeed quite valuable, regarding how to evaluate the purchase of a new cutter. Especially into 2025, as it appears that many US Government employees are going to be told "come to the office or you're Fired!" and they will refuse to leave their home-based employment that they've gotten so used to, and seek other opportunities they can accomplish from their living spaces.

We routinely encounter this issue, it's related to offset. You must first make sure you have the blade depth set correctly. Too much blade out is not good. You should just barely see the tip, to the degree where it seems like it's not even extending beyond the holder. Offset control is in the software. What is the current setting you have?

I think that USCUTTER is working with the Chinese manufacturer to address several issues on these MH updated versions. That would explain the "Sold Out" situation, which is crazy to see, now right before Christmas when many people buy these low-end cutters as gifts or to start a work-from-home gig. There is an old rule in the technology (and automotive) business. Don't ever buy V1.0 of anything. Let the early-adopters work out the bugs first. Proof here, right?

And speaking of 'camo' ---

De rien.

USCUTTER sells the basic (CUT) version of VM for $59.95 (slightly higher than last year's price -- but isn't everything costing more these days?!!) https://uscutter.com/VinylMasterCut-Software-Value I know that using a new sofware program takes a bit of investment on the learning curve. Personally, after spending some effort to implement the switch to VM, I have still been hanging onto my preference for SBE, I just like the way it works (except for the Vector Conversions I run into the need for, now and then).

Bonjour. Have you taken apart the blade holder and verified that there's nothing stuck inside there? Just a few bits of stray vinyl caught in the blade can prevent the free-spinning of the blade. Also, check to make sure the swing arm (clamp) that retains the blade holder isn't cracked

Uh, Haumana, the opening post shows the comparisons. If I were asked to give my opinion, the BMX poster would be well-served by the $50 VinylMaster program, and it'll work fine with that Graphtec. What you're seeing here is that SignBlazer cannot be relied-upon for any actual tech support or feature updates.

Hi there, BMX. The problem you are describing involves the Vector engine that SignBlazer employs. Honestly, it's always been the weakest part of the program. In fact, the lack of precision and the addition of many more nodes than required has led me to stop using it for making conversions, and I go with the vectorizer contained within VinylMasterCut, which works quite well. Beyond that, don't know what to tell ya.

Are you intending to get the larger size cutter? (30" instead of 24"?) If not, then what you are working with now should be OK to keep running, no real need for a replacement. Having said that, it would be interesting to get reviews or comments regarding the new line of MH units. Nobody has come in with their 2-cents yet, but if there's a member with problem or confusion or request for assistance, we'll be here. ]]]]]]]]]]]]]]] Note: USCUTTER shows the MH100-34 (30)" being unavailable currently. Strange to see that, honestly, since they just introduced it.

Finally, a question that actually has some 'Sherlock Holmes' vibe to it. "camo" is not all alike in appearance. There's digital camo (patterns of pixellations), there's standard military camo (in various colors), then there's also hunter's camo (woodsy designs). What are you really trying to accomplish here? Vehicle? Windows? This is 'camo' -- but I guarantee it's not what you were thinking of! https://www.ebay.com/itm/184755314562

Obvious question - what types of file(s)?

haumana, that was sweet of you to do that. A waste of effort, but sweet.

Bonjour, Math. It might be worth your while to run that French posting through ChatGPT to give the English-speaking public here on this Forum a chance to see what your problem consists of. Posting in a foreign language is just lazy on your part, since you obviously know that it won't be understood, and obtaining a translation is simple for you to accomplish. I'm not gonna do that crucial step for you. Maybe someone else will, wait and see.

It appears that Josh purchased an expensive brick. Piece of good advice (mentioned often over the years here) is to verify the correct operation of a used cutter, by seeing it actually perform a cut from the computer and that computer with software is included. I hope Josh manages to obtain his refund.

What happens if you just press that CutTest button by itself? (You are in a menu which requires you to first press the left and right arrows to select a pattern, THEN press Enter/OK, and then the CutTest)

On Monday, Josh claimed the seller "...ran a test on the machine itself" Now, he's saying that a test cut isn't functional. While I'm not familiar with the GCC operation, I do know that every machine I've owned has a dedicated TEST button on the keypad, it's not part of any cycling menus. If you don't get any satisfaction (refund) from this seller, file a small-claims case in court. Do you have a local version of Judge Judy?

Josh, I am not convinced that you have any physical problem with the cutter. (USB port failure). What you need to do is get the communications port sorted out. Com1 is not the one to choose, when you've got a USB cable. Also, that 'adapter' is likely not gonna work. Try installing this VCP, it's saved me a lot of headaches and hopefully gets your PC to talk to the Puma. https://mydrivers.online/software/stm32-virtual-com-port-driver

Josh, you present a challenge. Accepted. First of all, you are going to want to have your laptop connected via USB to the machine, forget about those parallel ports. FlexiSign is nice, and should run the Puma. SignBlazer Cutter Setup has the Puma II which we don't know if it will work with your III.

Hey Josh, let's see what we can do. Quick questions --- when you bought the machine, did you have the seller demonstrate that it works? What program was running with the Puma? Why did you buy a unit without any compatible cutting software? SignBlazer (free to use abandonware) has the driver for Puma II which you can try. https://www.mediafire.com/file/fjk69hgu2cpnr16/signblazer_setup.exe/file

The GCC Puma is by far the superior cutter. What software is bundled with it? SignMaster is Vevor's version of VinylMaster. Same thing. If you are designing using Illustrator, then, yes, just Import the resulting .eps into SM and cut. Just a suggestion, but since you're already doing paintwork on wood, maybe try decorating a few Cornhole boards, and sell those!

You'll just need an electricity line meter (and verify if power is even being generated from the PSU - power supply unit). https://uscutter.com/uscutter-laserpoint-3-vinyl-cutter-replacement-parts *select drop-down menu choice for PSU* While I understand that's a part for the LP3, not the LP you have, these things are fairly easy to source, and if that's the problem, you're only gonna have to fork over $50 or so for replacing it.