MrsYee

Shopping for Cricut Replacement - $1000 budget

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I currently use a Cricut Explore Air 2. I would like to step up to a bit larger cutter that can accommodate wider vinyl.    My budget is $1000.  I do not need a stand.  I will need some mats to get started but other than that, I'd like the bulk of my expense to go towards the best cutter I can get for my money.  I have a couple custom design jobs.  One of them has a layered logo, of which I've uploaded an example.  It's imperative that I be able to create this logo moving forward.  I'd appreciate some recommendations for cutters in this price range. 

Thanks and have a blessed day!

Rita Yee

 

winston design example.PNG

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Check out the UScutter buying guide.   Suggest staying away from the MH cutter series.  The SC2 is a much better cutter. Buyers seem to be pretty pleased with it.   There is not anything special about your design that any vinyl cutter couldn't cut, when set up correctly.  

https://uscutter.com/buying-guides

 

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Unless you have some sort of stand already, and you want to do longer designs, you'll want a stand. Sitting on a desktop is fine if your designs are only about 12" long. But as you get longer you'll want a stand to hold the vinyl and allow you to feed it smoothly. As for which cutter, the 28" Titan is probably the best from USCutter that is in your budget.

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Thanks for your responses!  I do have a stand, at least one that will work for a good while.  The floor has to act as the catcher, but that's ok with me :D   

I'll compare the SC2 and the Titan...

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The titan is the lowest priced plotterwith a true usb chipset and not emulated usb. 

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Buy the best one within your budget. When it comes to cutters, you pretty will get what you pay for ... typically the better the machine, the better the results.

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MrsYee, in answer to your question about cutter choice ----  the Laserpoint3 or Titan which both cost about the same (~ $730) are probably the correct options.

Also, just curious, but why is that circle in the design so uneven? It seems strange, to have it 'distressed' like that.

Additionally, the kerning between the big W and the "I" appears to be off, too much space.

Stuff like that makes me crazy -- OCD and all.

 

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Hi slice&dice...  The only design I did in that example was the dog.  The rest were given to me.  I see your point though and will suggest a fix going forward.  I am not a professional designer, nor have I had one ounce of education regarding design, so the concept of "kerning" is lost on me :) 

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Well, besides suggesting that google is your friend, the 'concept of kerning' is simple to explain --  adjusting the spacing between letters, so that they appear proportionally correct in relation to each other. In the example of the word WINSTON above, the 'I' should kinda 'nest' or be nudged closer under the overhang of the 'W' and not be all the way out there that far.

Design software has controls available for setting the kerning. Alternatively, you can literally just make letters/text into objects, and move them manually. (Which the WINSTON example above probably requires).

HELP menu is a useful thing in any software, it provides ways to get things done.

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