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Looking for a good cutter/plotter
Hello all,
I have been dealing with vehicle lighting and paint protection films for some time now (very different to sign writing vinyl) and i have decided that its time i started cutting my own patterns.
Im still learning about the various types of equipment, for example im still unsure what a ‘plotter’ is? From what i can gather it is a printer or cutter with the ability to have a pen? fitted to draw outlines etc?
I don’t think ill have any use for that so i am leaning towards a printer/cutter. The reason i would like to go for both in one machine is because im also interested in signage,vehicle graphics etc and im always looking to expand and learn further.
From what i can tell, the roland and graphtec machines are seeming to be of the best. The material i work with is from 8mil up to 20mil thick.
And the width would be up to a possible 48" or 52".
Could anyone suggest a specific model from each range that may be up to the job? Id like to spend around £2k but could stretch further if need be.
Many thanks.
Neil. 🙂
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28 Replies
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plotter normally describes a pen plot
cutter for cutting vinyl etc.
printer normally a full colour device.
i think you mean a plotter – cutter
eggraphtec fc7000 -130 is a plotter cutter
put a pen in and it will draw a single line where the knife would go.
put in a knife and it will cut.
most if not all cutters will do this you have to tell it which is fitted in the menu.chris
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Ahh thank you Chris. I understand that now…
Is there no such thing as a full printer/cutter then? I can’t just get my head around the printer bit, i presumed for outdoor signage/a-boards/banners etc that a printer may be used rather than cutting vinyl graphics?
Apologies for the simple terms, im just trying to learn and im also looking at vehicle wrapping, but i don’t want to overwhelm myself.
The cutting of my current products is what is most important for the minute so i shall keep my head on that for now and stick the rest on the back burner.
I do like the look of the graphtec..but looks aren’t everything eh? 😉 :lol1: Any more advise for a suitable/quality machine appreciated.
Thanks, Neil.
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yes full colour printer cutter plotter = roland versacam vp300 etc. a bit more than your £2000 😀
chris
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Hi Riley
a cutter is purely that, graphtec, roland, mimaki, mutoh, signpal to name a few are all good machines, and anyone of them will cuto most standard types of film, including stonegaurd.Printers can be just printers, and you can still cut out the printed shapes on a separate cutter that has a system for regognising registration marks. Roland and Mimaki make print and cut machines, although they are more for making decals and labels that do not need laminating,
For wrapping you do not need the material to be cut, so a stand alone printer would do the job but you will need a laminator,If starting from scratch with signage and to carry on with your ppf work I would reccomend you get a dedicated cutter first, as the print and cut machines are way to expensive to use just as a cutter. then you can go for a print and cut, or printer, depending on which you prefer or need
Peter
Edited to add:-
Riley have you looked at Johnson’s new system for protection film as you are in that field anyway, just wondered if its any use to you, I know the pattern software is expensive for these systems and often only given as part of a franchise deal. -
Thanks Chris/Peter, appreciate the advise. 🙂
Im just reading up on the graphtec fc7000 -130 as mentioned by Chris above, and from what i can tell it has quite a good spec?
Up to 600g cutting force and has the width and speed that i would need. I do currently have a few different stickers made up by a local company (small website names and forum name stickers, custom number plate stcikers for website names etc) so being able to make these myself would be very handy with a view to trying my hand at some vehicle signage.
I am liking the graphtec the more i look at it, but i can’t seem to find a site for an idea of price, so if anyone could suggest somewhere just so i know where i stand with it so far that would be great. 🙂
Neil.
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Cheers Chris…That comes in at £3,754.13 inc vat, which is a little more than i wanted to spend but i do like the spec compared to the roland gx300/500 for example.
Hmmm.
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Guys, i have noticed the mikami’s popping up when im searching around the net…How do these compare to the graphtec fc7000 -130?
Im struggling to come across a good site that lists both a good spec sheet and price for the mikami as yet…
Thanks for the help so far.
Neil. -
Neil,
Any reputable make of cutter will do a good job for you.
Of more concern to me is the software required to drive it. We use Mimaki cutters mainly because of the FineCut software that comes bundled.
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Thanks John,
As a ‘newbie’ to cutter/plotters im possibly getting a little caught up with the spec of them all. After seeing the cutting force and speed of the graphtec im struggling to find anything that is a tad below that spec for a tad of the price. :lol1:
Anything a touch cheaper seems to have only half the cutting force and not as speedy, but as im still learning then i maybe don’t have the right view on the spec’s…
Software wise, i have see the signlab and like the look of that, but if im honest im totally lost when it comes to software. I guessed that something such as signlab would be up to the job for vehicle signage but i keep seeing other programs??? mentioned too.
Can someone explain in simple terms what is needed? Software AND a program? Or just software?
The software for my current product will be provided by my supplier, but id like to know the above for vehicle signage and future expansion etc.
Neil. 😀
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Obviously you need enough pressure to cut what you want to cut Neil, but don’t worry too much about top speed. Our cutters never run at full speed and often, when cutting something long and wide, at a quite small fraction of their capacity.
In practice you will cut something, then weed it whilst the next job is cutting. Therefore, unless you can weed and tape faster than the cutter will cut, there is not much point in a super fast cutter. It will only finish it’s work, then sit waiting for you.
I think I’m right in saying that dedicated sign packages like Signlab and Flexi will have the cutting facility built into them. The other way is to use something more general, like Corel or Illustrator, and for these you will need a cutting plug-in, but these generally come bundled with a cutter.
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I run a Jag II from Grafityp and I only run it at about 1/3 of its max speed. i dont have dedicated software, but use Corel with a sign making plug-in. The Plotter came with some "Joy cut" software that went in the bin. There was also a printer driver that allows me to cut direct from Corel. I regard this as a very good entry machine.
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Cool, thanks. ill have a look at that jag too Graeme 🙂
In fact while talking software…Wouldn’t the bit that comes with the actual cutter be up to the job? Ive read that the graphtec does come with software for example…
I have no idea 😳 what Corel or Illustrator are (Adobe?).
Are they just like photoshop? Which i do have.
Neil.
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Neil,
Illustrator is my weapon of choice. It is an Adobe product but is a vector drawing package, rather than bitmap, which is what Photoshop is for. Whichever way you choose to go you are in for a steep learning curve but I would suggest that if you are familiar with Photoshop then Illustrator is the way to go as there are many similarities between the two.
Cutters don’t normally come with standalone cutting programmes, I think I am right in saying that they usually come in the form of a plug-in for Corel and Illustrator. This takes me back to what I was saying earlier about software in that what comes with a Graphtec just does not suit our circumstances. However, there are many satisfied Graphtec users out there and I am confident that if you are the sole user, and are running on a PC, then it will more than fulfill your needs.
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quote :I have been dealing with vehicle lighting and paint protection films for some time now (very different to sign writing vinyl) and i have decided that its time i started cutting my own patterns.
am i right in saying that there are some special program for this, that they charge the earth for, along with window tint profiles,
i did read it that they favor the bigger rolands for some reason or just cos its bigger market in the states.chris
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Thanks John,
Ok, i think im getting the hang of whats what, so a few simple questions…
1/ Would i be correct in saying that illustrator/signlab are the same sort of thing?
2/ And would i be correct in saying that they are graphics programs, not software? for actually designing stickers etc?
Whereas the bit that comes with the cutter is the software to run it, which normally has a plugin to communicate bits of program/software to each other?
I hope thats right 😳 Im just trying to get my head around what are graphics design bits and what run the cutters.
Chris, thats correct 🙂
I deal with the most respected product on the market, and i can get a good deal on the program/software (whatever it is! 😳 ) to cut the patterns.
Thanks again for all the help, i enjoy learning and you guys are helping muchly.
Neil.
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Illustrator is a general design program, and has more or less been the industry standard for graphic design amongst professionals
Signlab and flexi are probably the 2 most used design programs that are specifically aimed at the sign maker, and both have features to make sign design and production easier.
Flexi and Signlab can both print and cut directly without a separate interface, unlike Corel and Illustrator. (OK not entirely the case but dont want to confuse you to much just yet)
Both Signlab and flexi provide demo versions for you to evaluate, so if you are not familiar with any design programs it is worth looking at them as well other design software.
Have a look at http://www.cadlink.com for more info
I dont have flexi’s web addy but I’m sure a google will find it (flexisign)Peter
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Much appreciated Peter…Thank you.
So lets say im sorted as far as the program? for cutting my current products (will just be what you call contour cutting i think?)
Then for designing AND cutting stickers/decals at 6" x 1" and then also considering vehicle signage…Would signlab be adequate/more than adequate? I have watched the demo video and to me it looks superb…But is it up to the job for both design and cutting?
Neil. 🙂
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Yes.
Peter
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Superb. 😀
Neil.
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I see there are different versions of signlab…Looks a bit more costly than i thought too but anyway…
Will any of the signlab vinyl, vinyl pro, print/cut versions perform full and half cuts, and will they all cut stickers with single/seperated lettering?
Also, is it a one time purchase, with free upgrades, or is there a yearly fee and/or upgrade fee?
May be silly questions!
Neil.
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I stand to be corrected but I think siglab vinyl now comes with what used to be addition modules, any updates are free to download, but to upgrade like to the print version, you will need to pay a fee. But you can give Brian a call at impacts (listed in suppliers page) and he will advise you the various options.
I think there was a second user signlab for sale in the buy sell swap forum recently?
Peter -
Good stuff, could you point me towards the suppliers page and classifieds forum Peter? I haven’t found noticed them while browsing around (probably with my eyes shut!)
Neil.
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Cheers.
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Is a graphtec fc5100-130 with stand worth £1500 quid secondhand with no software?
Its a good price for me to test the water with while still in my main line of work…
Neil.
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i did try that email
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Damn, i never got anything through Chris…
Thanks for trying.
Neil.
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