oversized contour cut

[randalle 50]

Been fiddling with this for about 12 hours and seems like it's doing nothing but getting worse.

I have a Win 7 desktop, LP 24", USB connection, SC Pro. A few months ago, I had my contour cuts dialed in and working perfectly. Yesterday, I got an order for some and set down to work....

Cutter was acting weird, cutting a 1/4" off the mark on all cuts. So I calibrated, re-calibrated, tested, checked, nothing. I drew a new test file, and DID get it to work. It was just a star for simplicity sake. So then I re-drew my customer piece and went from being the correct size (but at a bad offset)... to now being offset AND the size is all wrong. It's like the cut is at 150% of the size it should be. I have created at least 15 different test files... no luck.

Even tried an uninstall-reinstall of SC.

Someone, please give me some sanity!

[randalle 50]

I did a bunch of regular vinyl cuts earlier, they were perfect. Only time I have a problem is in contour cuts. And everything about the contour is off the mark.

One thing I noticed, when you set your first 3 point cal mark, typically... when the cutter advances to the second mark... it automatically takes it to a reasonably close area in relation to mark 2. On mine right now, it is only advancing like 2 inches instead of 4-5". Same oddity occurs when it advances to mark 3.

[randalle 50]

I am getting this when I try to CC something. I do the three point calibration, then start the job and the cutter head does a little dance.... left, right, down, back. No cut though, as soon as it does its dance, the image in SC gets this red X through it. ugggggggggggh.

[randalle 50]

Here are my cutter settings

[CRD 9]

Blade ofset of 0.00000 cant be correct for the start if you use a knife.

when using a pen to test it is OK.

I am more interested in the screenshot of the contour cut settings.

Use a rectangle around your contour and use the three corners as regmarks.

Set contour cut mark size in SC at 0 mm.

There is a full how to contour cut correctly written for it in the instructional section by Nukleon.

Paco

[randalle 50]

Blade ofset of 0.00000 cant be correct for the start if you use a knife.

when using a pen to test it is OK.

I am more interested in the screenshot of the contour cut settings.

Use a rectangle around your contour and use the three corners as regmarks.

Set contour cut mark size in SC at 0 mm.

There is a full how to contour cut correctly written for it in the instructional section by Nukleon.

Paco

That was just a SS to get the general settings. I will get a SS of a CC and post it tonight.

I do use a rectangle, I will scan and post some of my results / tests tonight as well. They are very strange.

I read the nuke how to, in fact.... I read it a few times, + searching this site, + I googled the issue to death.

So frustrated.

Thanks for your help!

[randalle 50]

Paco, thanks for your input. You were correct. Even though it took me a few days to settle down enough to process what you told me. Once I calmed down, it all fell in line. After my uninstall / re-install my '3 point cal' setting was off by default and that pretty much doomed any chance of me getting it to work right.

I finally did another uninstall / re-install and went screen by screen and setting by setting (slowly). Once I got the 3 point cal + blade offset squared away... it is up and running.

Thanks again.

[randalle 50]

OK, I hope this is it. Once again I'm claiming victory. (but doing it quietly and from another room)

I realized tonight that the bounding box I use in my print.ai NEEDS to be in my cut.ai also. GRRRRRRRRR. Soooo much time and paper wasted. For some reason, while trying to figure out what happened, I started omitting that step and it went down hill from there.

[CRD 9]

Good to hear it works.

Patience and good reading and like you said step by step and not skipping any as you think you know it all step and your there.

Vinyl calls for patience from start to finish, regardless the job.

Ejoy contour cut as a new world opens up.

Paco