[InternationalJay]

Has anyone used the stika-fx program? It apparently cuts around and in between your transfer designs so you can press without the boxy outline, it looks kinda pricey though... just wondering if its something to even consider. ANY responses are appreciated (im 0 for 1 at this point ). thanks

 

[hammered]

Im not familiar with the Stika line of vinyl cutters, but if the machine is capable of contour cutting then by all means. You just need to make sure your registation marks are placed before trying to do the cuts. Anything that betters the look of the transfer is tops by me. If you do pick this up, keep us updated with any progress.

 

[InternationalJay]

thanks for the feedback, i'll keep u posted (no pun)

 

[tazpro]

guys. I use the Roland Stika to cut around an opaqe transefer but my problem is after I weed out the design I need to know how to peel it off the backing and put it on the shirt. Its 3 separate parts so its hard to peel by hand and reassemble on the shirt. Is there something I am missing?

 

[JoshEllsworth]

I believe contour cutting around preprinted transfer can be done on the Stika, I've actually seen a demo on this from the guys at Roland but didn't retain much I know it has to do with setting up your registartion points manually on the machine, with a bullseye like magnifying device. You match the registartion points with those in the software then send the job to cut. I'll dig deeper in to this and post some specific instructions.

 

[JoshEllsworth]

You will need a heat resistant masking material to pick your design up all as one piece. This material is see clear and sticky on one side. Lay the masking material over your design and then using a squeegee, rub firmly over the whole design. Then peel the mask off of your backing sheet, and it will pick up your design and keep it pre spaced. Lay it on your shirt and press away.

 

[d&cmonsters]

Another low cost alternative to the Stika is Graphtec's Craft-Robo. I use it for vinyl and heat transfers and it works very well. It has optical registration which I don't think Stika has and comes with a plug-in for Adobe Illustrator that lets you set-up registration marks and identify the cut lines. While I'm sure it is no match for more expensive cutters, its price is around $500, it is lightweight and plug-in play (great for events).

- Doug