dapparel 0 Posted October 25, 2011 This may be a very amateur question, but that is what I am when it comes to plotters. I have a screen printing business and want to expand my offering to vinyl, flock and other apparel transfer material, as well as have the ability to cut vinyl sticker decals for windows. I need to cut all custom designs (none wider then 11 inches), I have no need for stock or purchasable images. I have done as much research as I can and determined I want a GraphTec Silhouette Cameo or Craft ROBO. I understand how they are different in cutting size(a couple inches), speed(about 4 in/s to 24) and down force (210gf to 300gf), but don't understand why such a huge difference in price, am I missing something? The last things I want to do is spend $300 and realize I need more capability or to spend $1,100 and realize I have way to much I don't need. Any help is appreciated. A close second third is Roland's Stika 15, any opinions there are also helpful. Thanks Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
vinylmotivations 143 Posted October 26, 2011 For starters the Craft ROBO Pro is a smaller, short version of the graphtec CE5000. It's model number is actually CE5000-40. It is a 15" Pro series cutter whereas the other is just simply a hobby craft cutter. for another 400$ or so over the Robo Pro you can get the full fledged CE5000 and you would probably be MUCH better served if you are running a business. Also note, a 15" cutter will be MUCH easier to get media for to fit the width of the cutter versus the other which is only a 12"... Just my 2cents. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
dapparel 0 Posted October 26, 2011 Your 2 cents is more then appreciated and thank you. I agree that for an additional $400, going with the CE5000-40 is a no brainer, but the difference in cost is $825. That is where my confusion is, why such a price difference? Essentially, I could get four Graphtec Cameos for 1 CE5000-40. I know that Graphtec is one of the best brands, is the Cameo just super well priced or low end/low quality part of their brand. Thanks again for any and all replies. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
MZ SKEETER 4,709 Posted October 26, 2011 one major thing that I see is the max speed. Cameo 3.9 inches sec. vs Craft Robo 24 inches a sec. This is from the Graphtec spec sheets on their site. So that Cameo is very slow cutting. The longest you could cut is 10ft with Cameo, vs 164ft with CraftRobo.40... Not that you would cut 164 ft, but you may want to cut more than 10ft. Cameo can't. CraftRobo you can use different design/cutting software with, but you may only be limited to using that Silhouette Studio software with the Cameo, not sure, not enough info there. You will be surprised, that once someone knows you have a vinyl cutter, they decide they want you to make them something. Do you really want to be limited to a small cutter? A 24" cutter is a standard cutter, and will work for most needs. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
mars 45 Posted October 26, 2011 Your 2 cents is more then appreciated and thank you. I agree that for an additional $400, going with the CE5000-40 is a no brainer, but the difference in cost is $825. That is where my confusion is, why such a price difference? Essentially, I could get four Graphtec Cameos for 1 CE5000-40. I know that Graphtec is one of the best brands, is the Cameo just super well priced or low end/low quality part of their brand. Thanks again for any and all replies. They are both Graphtec AFAIK the Cameo being more of a hobby level machine - and tied to the software that comes with it - not necessarily a bad thing. There is a significant learning curve on the Craft Robo Pro compared to any of the scrapbook - hobby machines. The Cameo probably would be dead simple to use - but the slower speed might cause you to regret choosing it for use in your business - especially if you wind up doing any large quantity orders. I second the idea of considering a 24" cutter - I have a Copam CP-2500 I have had for 5 years and it has worked well for me. But -- on the other hand I am considering adding a smaller more portable cutter to carry on my truck - I sometimes goof up a piece on an install and it would be nice to be able to cut onsite instead of making a trip to my shop or cutting extras beforehand which I have done on occasion. I am looking at this cutter $399 including the bundled software (and lifetime software upgrades are free) http://knkzing.make-the-cut.com/ It is only a 15" cutter - but it will cut wider than I can cut with my Copam on a 15" roll 14.5" vs about 14" for the copam. It also has a 600mm per second max cutting speed - a 1mm per second minimum cutting speed and a downforce of 750 grams so it can cut both quicky and slowly and has more flexible in the materials it can cut. It does only work with the software from Make-The-Cut - but I have been using it and it's pretty decent and has a very nice set of vectorizing tools. Just another machine to consider - is your brain full yet?? good luck Mike Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
dapparel 0 Posted October 28, 2011 Thank you to everyone for all the help and now I have more options to think about. Trying to make this decision has become like picking a kids name. It would be easier if there was a place local to me, Phoenix AZ, but can't find any where. Anyone know of any vinyl cutter suppliers in the Phoenix area? Thank you to everyone again. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites