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Discussion Starter · #1 ·
I got a heat press, printer, ink and t shirts and I wanted to know do I need a cutter and if so, what kind do I need and where do I find them? I made a few t shirts for my kids and ended up cutting them out with a pair of scissors and that was time consuming. Need help!!!!
 

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If you are doing inkjet opaques transfers...where you have to cut around the image...then you would need a cutter that could contour cut. Not all cutters can do this ...you will need one that has an optic eye or other registration system so the cutter will know where to cut. A cheap chinese press from ebay will not work. If you are not doing this for a business, a cutter might not be the answer as most will be in the $1000 and up range . There is a laser point cutter that claims to have a manual/software registration system. I have not seen it in operation. I think that unit is sold by USCutters and is around the $400 mark..I thin
 

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Discussion Starter · #4 ·
Is it the same as a vinyl cutter? They had one for $300, but I'm not sure if it's the right thing that I need. All I know is that I need something cause I just started my Business and I have an order for Tees already and a razor and/or scissors is just NOT gonna cut it!
 

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I have a Graphtec ce5000-60 and I have had it for about 3 months. I purchased it for doing my opaque designs. I am using illustrator cs3 and I have not been able to make 1 successful cut yet. It is not the cutter though. It is illustrator cs3 and me. I can create my cut lines, but in cs2 when you created your cutline it would deselect the rest of the design, which would allow you to send just the cut line to a seperate layer. Well they decided to change that in cs3. I can't find a way to weld my image to get rid of the inside points, so I get cut lines all over.
The plotter is 1st class and I am glad I made the investment, just make sure you know what your doing or are willing to take the time to learn.
 

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Discussion Starter · #8 ·
Im sorry, its a PCUT CTN-630E by US Cutter. I saw it on eBay for $300. I dont know much about this kind of stuff, thats why I joined this Wonderful Forum. If I keep doing it the way that I am doing it (scissors), I wont get anything done cause it takes me a min. of 10 minutes to cut one page!
 

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I've been in the inkjet/laser transfer t-shirt business for six years. I still cut with scissors. The time it takes me to trim a transfer is just part of the process of making a shirt.

We have 2000 designs and new ones added all the time. We make shirts on demand in a vendor booth at events ... sometimes we are super busy, sometimes not.

Also do website and wholesale orders.

Not saying you shouldn't look into a cutter, just saying,
personally, I'd wait till it was more cost effective.
 

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Discussion Starter · #14 ·
Thank you Sooooo much.This was the Best advice I've gotten since I started and I really appreciate it! I think that is a good idea. It is very costly and I dont have the money right now to get one anyway. I do the same thing that you do. I go to my sons wrestling matches and my daughters Basketball games and thats how I get most of my Business and I cut as I print and it seems to be working for me. I only started 2 months ago, but I am doing ok for it to be Part time!
 
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