Some Beginners Advice Please

[Simon Forrester]

A dragknife has an off centre cutting point so as the plotter changes direction the knife rotates on its bearings to point in the same direction as the plotter is moving. Its a real simple design with very for parts and is best for most vinyls.

A tangential knife is controlled the the plotter via a motor, if you change direction the motor rotates the knife to point in the new direction. Problems with this are that they are generally slower but can cut much thicker material.

Hope this answered your question ot maybe just confused you more 😀 😀

[Mike Brown]

if it helps…

a ‘dragknife’ is like the front wheels on a shopping trolley – wherever you push to the trolley, the wheels just twist and follow… 😕

a ‘tangential’ blade is like the front wheels of a car – in order to change course, the wheels must first be turned to point in that direction… 😀

and so on…

more soon

mikethesign

[Henry Barker]

Just add as I think it was me that made reference to these 2 types in another recent post….although I agree with Fozzy, I don’t think our T series Summa plotters are slow or much slower than a dragknife.

They cut in a straight line at up to 1000mm a second, compared to our old Gerber tangential cutting at 4″ a second, and a little faster if cutting with a swivel knife in pen mode :).

Most plotters today cut at around a metre a second, the corners on the letters are sharper with a T machine, but I think that’s splitting hairs as to the average person you wouldn’t see a difference. We bought our machine to cut thicker sandblast resist and for the benefits of Summa’s OPOS, optical eye for contour cutting digital prints.

You will find they amongst others do a great range of machines that are quite adequate for most vinyl jobs, the D series.

I think Phill at Right Signs among others here has one and is normally really helpful

[Robert Lambie]

yeh… we use the drag/smivel blade function for 98% of our work…
cutting using the tangental function on these new machines is still very fast..
saying that, we only use it for cutting letters under .75 of an inch and on intricate logos, but it is a definate help to us. i find if cutting small text using tangental it weeds better and cuts finer/smaller graphics without any of the small bits pinging off or getting wasted.. 🙄

[Mike Brown]

you’ll recall – we managed to cut text at 1.82mm high using a dragknife GRAPHTEC plotter! 😉 😎

waddaya mean ‘so what’! 😛

more soon

mikethesign

[Robert Lambie]

😆 😆 😆 😆
very very true mike.. still very impressed by that one..

but yours was reverse weeded. 😮 😮 😆 😆
so there.. nah nah nah nah (chat.)

[Robert Lambie]

mike, just a thought mate. you have a graphtec.. do you not have tangental mode on that one..?

obviously, cutting that small you get by fine 😉 😆
but tangental does cut sharper corners etc and does help with the weeding..
just wondering due to you using a graphtec mate.. 🙄

[Mike Brown]

…yep Rob – there is a setting which emulates a tangential blade. As the job proceeds, the head repeatedly lifts and then touches down just to one side of the next cut, it then ‘jogs’ slightly, which pulls the blade around – facing the right way for the next cut…

It helps when cutting reflective, blast mask and other thick materials.

more soon

mikethesign

[Gi Graphics]

😀
Thanks guys. That clears it up nicely. Thanks also to Henry. It was you who mentioned the terms and suggested AS Handover as a source of literature. I have ordered some books from them which will hopefully extend my knowledge a bit more.
No doubt more questions to follow.
Cheers
Paul
Gi Graphics

[SteveL M/cr]

Who What Were

Still collecting as much information on this job as possible

I’m an avid reader of this site but would like to know more as to waht books they sell and were are they based, do they have a web site or what is there phone number.

[Steve Broughton]

AS Handover Ltd.
London Village 😆
020 7359 4696

Ring them and ask for a catalogue and you might want to also order a subscription to Signcraft Magazine, about £40 for a year, its american but don’t let that worry you 😆 its the best one out there all the brit ones are rubbish, I wouldn’t wipe me bum with them, too hard and no where near as absorbent as Andrex 😆 😆 http://www.signcraft.com/

Well bugger beaten to it by a plastic welshman 😆

[Gi Graphics]

Hi
Just to mention that AS Handover have a website http://www.handover.co.uk/acatalog/ . I ordered a book on vinyl application and the service was very good. Will be ordering a subscription to Signcraft mag soon.
Cheers
Paul

[John Singh]

Handovers is a specialist’s place for all sorts of sundries

You can get all your gear here for traditional signwriters
but it is also a brilliant place for those interested in ragging, marbling, distressing and the like with all the books to help

I am fortunate in that it takes me five minutes to walk there from where I live which is great when I suddenly run out of gold leaf and the gold size is just going off. 😳 😳

John

[Robert Lambie]

thanks john you just remembered me i need to call them as my signcraft mags havent been coming to me 😕
i know i paid new subscription but no mags in a few months.. withdrawl here 😮

i agree though.. great place to find.. goldleaf? didnt know you di that mate.. there and i was gonna ask steve B if he had some goldleaf pics & tips laying around collecting dust.. lol 😉 😆