VinylRevamp 93 Posted November 18, 2015 Hi Guys/Girls, I'm not 100% happy with how the arched text came out. I used my SCAL 3 Pro for it. I also have Inkscape. Should I have used that instead. What would be a better software for this...in your opinion? Thanks Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Wildgoose 4,200 Posted November 18, 2015 There are three ways to arch text and each one yields different results. You can write it on a path which I have read SCALP has issues getting right. You can Arch it as a warp or distortion effect or you can Arc it as an effect. Arc will typically attempt to bend the text around the arc and the letters will tilt similar to writing on a curve where Arch will keep the letters more vertical and create an arched look rather than circular. (I use Adobe Illustrator so the mechanics of this in your options will be different but probably available in one or both of the programs) 1 Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
GraphxNMore 282 Posted November 18, 2015 If you're gonna use SCALP, spend the $49 and upgrade to 4 Pro. Its typing on arch is way better than 3. I use Illustrator then send scripts to SCAL4P for cutting. 1 Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
30-284 86 Posted November 18, 2015 Sign blazer is one of the best for giving text an arc I think, that's about the only thing I use it for. Give it a try. Donn 1 Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
dcbevins 340 Posted November 18, 2015 To me arching text is some type of envelope method. That shirt looks to be text on a path and the path being a circle. Maybe arching is the same as making it circular and my nomenclature is wrong. Still, it sure seems like text placed on the path of a circle, with the circle removed or set to a transparent outline rather than being an envelope transformation. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
dcbevins 340 Posted November 18, 2015 Sorry I misread. You already did the effect and weren't asking about how to reproduce it. I don't have SCAL but Inkscape can do that kind of thing readily. I use Draw mostly. Whatever gets you there and your comfortably with using would be the ticket I think. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Primal Decals 621 Posted November 18, 2015 I have Scalps3 and 4 pro and i dont think 4 got any better in arc text. So i use Ai cs6 and i get 1000x better results and send to scalps or just inport svg and cut... So far nothing beats Ai in my own opinion. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
GraphxNMore 282 Posted November 18, 2015 <blockquote class='ipsBlockquote'data-author="Primal Decals" data-cid="407940" data-time="1447821877"><p> I have Scalps3 and 4 pro and i dont think 4 got any better in arc text. So i use Ai cs6 and i get 1000x better results and send to scalps or just inport svg and cut... So far nothing beats Ai in my own opinion.</p></blockquote> The type on path function in 4 still sucks. The actual arcing feature is decent. But you're right, AI hands down. 1 Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
VinylRevamp 93 Posted November 18, 2015 Thanks for your replies. I used the word arching, but after dcbevins' post, I actually meant text on path. I did place a circle, then stretched the width a bit. After typing the text and removing the circle, I had to adjust the letters one at a time to give it a cleaner even look. I'll try it today on a different program to see the difference. Thanks again! Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
busterbay 326 Posted November 18, 2015 Coreldraw would be a good investment Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Wildgoose 4,200 Posted November 18, 2015 DC mentioned another great method (envelope) Text on a path is the preferred method for a clean look but arched text in some instances produces a good look. Usually with lower arch/arc values like in the High School lettering. See the Arched leaves the lettering vertical whereas the Arced causes the letters to swell at the top to fit the arc. Once you leave about a 35% arch/arc either quick method starts distorting the text. (Again I'm not sure if SCALP can do these but I think Inscape can) 1 Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
VinylRevamp 93 Posted November 19, 2015 Here's the difference using inkscape. Much better! Thanks again for the help. 2 Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
VinylRevamp 93 Posted November 22, 2015 Here's another one I did using inkscape 2 Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
LPWash 75 Posted December 7, 2015 I think the reason it doesn't look quite as appealing on your first post is it's not enough letters for the amount of space that you tried to span. I have scal 4 pro and it's much better now to work with the new text features. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites