[Zemyna]

Hi!

I am looking to buy vinyl cutter but not sure which one to choose.. I am located in Europe so there is not much of a choice.

What I have:
GCC Puma III
GCC Jaguar V
GCC Puma IV
Secabo T60 II

Prices differs 200 - 500€, and still I am not sure if all of them have an optical eye and do I need it? Most of our prints will be writings (sentences).

At which specifications should I pay attention?

Thank you for your answers!

 

[emet214]

Do not go for price. Machines break-down.
Buy only a machine that has repairs, assistance and service in your area. Local if possible.
Also, the width of economic sized vinyl by the roll is 24 inches in USA.
Depending on your use, the size is probably the most economical way of stocking a variety of colors without a high expense.

 

[Zemyna]

Do not go for price. Machines break-down.
Buy only a machine that has repairs, assistance and service in your area. Local if possible.
Also, the width of economic sized vinyl by the roll is 24 inches in USA.
Depending on your use, the size is probably the most economical way of stocking a variety of colors without a high expense.

All of them have local assitance and service.

Can you explain more about optical eye and how many pinch rollers should machine have if I want print small objects? I am thinking about 63cm wide cutter. All of them are the same width. Still need to clarify about thermo... didn't find the topic yet

 

[into the T]

i thought htv was mainly 15" or 20" and sign vinyl was 24" or 36", etc.
so you 63cm cutter should be fine

optical eye is really only necessary if you plan on doing print and cuts,
but you can plan your designs with easy to trim edges where scissors/knife is sufficient

i'm not familiar with secabo cutters, i know their heat presses are decent and are sold in north america under a different brand
(that cutter looks just like a titan3, look for reviews)

check this thread

 

[Zemyna]

I am a little bit confused most of my designs are writing (trying to attach, not sure if visible), so I believe optical eye is necessary? It would be nice not to use knife...

 

[into the T]

are you using htv for that or printing onto a surface then onto the tee?

my guess is htv, since you are buying a higher-end cutter like the ones you listed

 

[pippin decals]

I have a titan 2 28" cutter and it has an optical eye, But i have never used it since day one.My cutter is dead accurate for everything i have ever cut. Not sure what all brands you can get in your country, But if you dont watch what you buy, You will get what you pay for and regret it .Dont under cut yourself on a good to decent cutter.

 

[Dekzion]

Zemyna, With the Cameo range of cutters it's just a case of opening the Studio (included) and type and position your text adding frames etc at will, then hit cut.
For small detail you can stick things to the cutting mat carrier,
Cameos cut 12" wide but as long a length as you require, if your text is more than 12" wide just turn the page landscape so it's then as wide as you need and twelve inches deep, if you need deeper just cut the next section and add to the substrate .

 

[Zemyna]

are you using htv for that or printing onto a surface then onto the tee?

my guess is htv, since you are buying a higher-end cutter like the ones you listed

As I am quite new in these things I am not sure what htv is

All I can get in my country is Secabo, GCC cutters and some chinese stuff.
I am picking from those three and I think that Pumma is the best option so far.

Still I don't even imagine how to look for and what to look for vinyls.. How to know which one is good...

 

[Zemyna]

Zemyna, With the Cameo range of cutters it's just a case of opening the Studio (included) and type and position your text adding frames etc at will, then hit cut.
For small detail you can stick things to the cutting mat carrier,
Cameos cut 12" wide but as long a length as you require, if your text is more than 12" wide just turn the page landscape so it's then as wide as you need and twelve inches deep, if you need deeper just cut the next section and add to the substrate .

I don't think we have Cameo here in Lithuania. As far as looked for. Unless buy it from other country, but I am afraid of not having service locally.

 

[Amw]

As I am quite new in these things I am not sure what htv is

All I can get in my country is Secabo, GCC cutters and some chinese stuff.
I am picking from those three and I think that Pumma is the best option so far.

Still I don't even imagine how to look for and what to look for vinyls.. How to know which one is good...

HTV is Heat transfer vinyl (also know as.. heat transfer film)
This would be what you use to decorate apparel.

 

[Amw]

I don't think we have Cameo here in Lithuania. As far as looked for. Unless buy it from other country, but I am afraid of not having service locally.

You will want to have a 24 inch (610mm) plotter to use most available rolls.
(or larger)
Good luck!

 

[Zemyna]

HTV is Heat transfer vinyl (also know as.. heat transfer film)
This would be what you use to decorate apparel.

Oh, ok. Yes, we will be using heat transfer vinyl. Any suggestions how to choose good one?

 

[Zemyna]

You will want to have a 24 inch (610mm) plotter to use most available rolls.
(or larger)
Good luck!

Are two pinch rollers enough for 610mm plotter?

 

[Amw]

I am a little bit confused most of my designs are writing (trying to attach, not sure if visible), so I believe optical eye is necessary? It would be nice not to use knife...

You only need the optical eye for..
PRINT and cut graphics, printed using an inkjet printer and then contour cutting around the design.
If you are not doing this you dont need it.

The optical eye will read crop/registration marks that you printed around your design...it then (using those marks as reference) will contour cut the design that you printed.

The shirt design you posted does NOT need a plotter with an optical eye to produce it.

 

[Amw]

Are two pinch rollers enough for 610mm plotter?

Yes 2 is fine, and going to be common on that size.

As for a HTV brand, we are in the US... So I would defer to someone who is more versed in the brands available in your part of the world.

For standard adhesive vinyl (also know as sign vinyl) I would recommend Oracal/Orafoil which I would think is available in your area.

 

[PatWibble]

I don't think we have Cameo here in Lithuania. As far as looked for. Unless buy it from other country, but I am afraid of not having service locally.

The Cameo is a Graphtec product. The Graphtec website shows dealers in Poland, Belarus and Latvia, but not Lithuania.
Europe : Sales Offices

With regards to vinyl cost, the cost of small sheets isn't usually too much more than the cost of individual metres of 50 cm vinyl. The price savings come when you buy 5 or 25 metre rolls of 50cm/20inch vinyl. What does get expensive, when using sheets is the amount of wastage. Most cutters need the vinyl to be 7-10 cm longer than the image. With rolls that is no problem because you start cutting from the front edge of the vinyl. With sheets you will end up with a lot of small offcuts that are too small to use.

 

[Zemyna]

You only need the optical eye for..
PRINT and cut graphics, printed using an inkjet printer and then contour cutting around the design.
If you are not doing this you dont need it.

The optical eye will read crop/registration marks that you printed around your design...it then (using those marks as reference) will contour cut the design that you printed.

The shirt design you posted does NOT need a plotter with an optical eye to produce it.

Thank you!!! Now I did understand I really appreciate your help As before I was confused about cutting and printed vinyl. Thank you again!

 

[Zemyna]

One more question is about cutting force - is 500g is enough?

 

[Amw]

One more question is about cutting force - is 500g is enough?

Yes it will be fine.
In most cases you will use less then 200g