words that wont cut straight

[Robert Lambie]

once you align your vinyl in the machine mate. track say 4 metres thru it… but before you do. mark the vinyl with a pen right next to the wheels/pinches then press the button and run thru 3-4 metres. once you get there mark the vinyl again with a pen, you can then measure how much the machine runs out over that length.
i wouldn’t say its software, its either manual loading error or machine error. i could be wrong, but best eliminate human error first.
years ago when i first started out, i would never track more than 10 ft at a time on my 24inch cutter. this prevented bad tracking/running off… i also thought, well, ill never apply a bit bigger than that in one piece either… worked for me then, maybe an ide if its a human manual loading problem.

[onestopsigns]

thanks for that mate ,pretty sur eits not me but ya never no .

[Robert Lambie]

has it always been like this or only recently?

[onestopsigns]

the last month or so but before that i was just cutting small stickers so wouldnt hav eknown

[Lynn Normington]

Hi onestop
what plotter have you got is it new was it new when you bought it how old is it ?

Lynn

[Robert Lambie]

it could be self alignment then mate, the slightest angle on your vinyl, a mill or so over 4 metres can be allot. specially when its snapping back and forward at the rate cutters go. if you dont have a stand for your cutter this can also cause alignment bother over long lengths.
how old is your machine?
there are various reasons why cuts can be as bad as this but like i said, eliminate all the obvious ones before blaming the machine, if not under warranty you will end up with a maintenance bill.
is your rubber pinch wheels spotless clean? if not roll them round cleaning with meths or something. also check your grit rollers arent soiled with little bits of white from the vinyl carrying paper.

[onestopsigns]

hi its a creation pcut 610/630
its about 7 months old bought from flyn signs via ebayit was bought as a new machine instead of getting one of these little 12 inch stikas machines

will give it a good clean tommorrow see if that helps got me first big order to do and its dragged off the page so ruined 4 meters today and and an hours work

was going to upgrade to 1220 machine as soonas i can afford one

but its a bugger it wont stay straight

i dont have the stand but would it makethat much difference i have a rooller type thingat back for the vinyl roll and i use rolls of 5 meters up to 20 meters

[Robert Lambie]

i dont know of the machine mate, but if only that age ide call and ask what the score is with it… thats if there is something up.
stands are NOT essential but do help when it comes to tracking. we used to have our 24 inch machine on desktop, but caused tracking bother. having said that, im not saying you have to buy a stand, just make one…
all that is needed is that the vinyl can freely fall at back and front allowing it to track better.
another thing to check is the tracking spec/distamce on the machine.

[Lynn Normington]

Hi onestop (what is your name)
unless you need to cut to 1220 stay with a decent 610/750 plotter
haven’t figured out why your are not running true I think it must be a prob with your grip(pinch) rolls or sorry to say it’s you are you not lining it up properly,
why did you want to cut 4mtrs. in one go ? can you weed and mask 4 mtrs in one go ?

just thoughts to think about

Lynn

[onestopsigns]

my name is ian ,lynn.

ill see if i cant knock up a standif no ill buy one soon

as for me it could be me but pretty sure i line em em damn close to straight but may be not

why a 48 inch cutter cause we want to do car side graphics more than any thing else and just seems easier to get the bigger one as some of the folk have asked for wider than 600 cm saves joining as ive never tried joining but i bet its a bugger to do

4 meter cut just seemed ideal as it would get his hole words in 1 go
as for splitting up the words this is wat i did yesterday eventually
but the weird bit there supposed to be 18inch letters high and thay came out well i was doing the word kessock and the k was perfect then e was ok and s came out angled a bit then s was 1/4 inch bigger then rest cut perfect just a 1/4 inch bigger

how much do u charge for an 18 inch high letter?

[Jayne Marsh]

Are you running your cutter at top speed? Try slowing it down to see if this helps, I run mine at about 50% speed and have no problems, otherwise it sounds like your cutter is sick and needs looking at.
I used to run a Gerber cutter that needed recalibrating every 6 months or so and would cut short if it wasnt looked after properly

[onestopsigns]

hi ti runs at speed 50 ill try slowing it down

it manages to cut most stuff

think ill get another machine as the warranty with this one seems a bit well only if the seller can be bothered type

could do wit a spare any way
thanks for all ur help

[Neil Riley]

Ian, I had a similar problem where the cutter head was going all wonky on the Y axis (up and down). I figured it was the drive belt.
I took of the end cover and worked out that the cog that drives the belt had come loose from the motor spindle.
I glued them together and that fixed it!

[onestopsigns]

well ive scrapped that machine now and am looking for another this evening yet again the bloke i got it from hasnt foned me back as he said h e would due to he had a customer in when i foned this morning
limited budget narrows the feild though

[Peter Shaw]

What’s going on here?

You’re in the signmaking business and your most important tool to carry out this business is your vinyl cutter. So you buy a super cheapy cutter with no support and throw it out after 7 months together with a bunch of vinyl.

Most established signmakers will tell you the the most popular makes of cutter “will go on forever”. I used my first cutter for about 10 years before I sold it for a decent price to upgrade to a faster one. I bet the cost per year is a lot less than your cheapy cutter.

Surely if your business relies on your cutter you want to invest in a quality product. They’re not that expensive compared to lost business and reputation when you can’t deliver.

Peter

[Shane Drew]

well said Peter.

:thumbsup:

[Simon Clayton]

Very true Peter..
I have a meter wide one with Tangential cutting head, thats 25 years old, and still going strong, all i’ve had to do is change the drive belt once…slow but very reliable.
My other cutter is about 6 years old and just as good..

Simon[/code]