3m Paint Protection Film. Contour vs Non Contour.

[trik12001 0]

Hi, this is my first post here and was doing a lot of research, but i could not find an answer.

I was wondering if someone could help me out.

I'm looking to purchase a Vinyl Plotter to cut out 3M Paint Protection Film/Vehicle wraps. I was

just about to order the COPAM when I read they did not do, "Contour Cuts"

Will this effect any cutting i do? (Cutting 3M P.P.F. is 99% of this machines job. )

Thanks.

[MZ SKEETER 4,709]

Do you want to do any of this? If so, you need contour cutting..

Contour Cutting

What is contour cutting?

Have you ever seen a large, full color logo on the side of vehicle? You know that it is too intricate to be multi layer applied vinyl. It's basically a decal that has been printed with outdoor inks on white vinyl with a digital printer. Once printed onto the vinyl, the digitally printed shapes need to be cut out of the vinyl with a cutter. But the cutter needs someone way of knowing how to cut around the printed portion of the vinyl.

Here is where the registration eye, or laser, comes into play with our contour cutters. The eye or laser registers at the edges of the printed portion of the vinyl allowing the software to know where to start and stop cutting. To contour cut with our USCutter Laserpoint, you will need to print to your digital printer with the software bundled with the USCutter Laserpoint, and then cut the preprinted vinyl using the same software. Our Graphtec series have more advanced contour cutting features allowing for greater tolerances and to cut and print with almost any design software. Contour cutting allows you to expand your product line as your capabilities are increased to create decals, full color t shirts, and vehicle wraps, just to name a few.

[trik12001 0]

I will not be doing any printed vehicle decals, just cutting out pre-existing templates (such as a front bumper template for a 2011 escape) from 3m's catalogue. Would i still need that contour aspect?

[MZ SKEETER 4,709]

If your just cutting vinyl designs/images, then no... if your not going to get into cutting printed images.