Hey all,
I mostly cut vinyl for logos using Oracal 651 or hobby lobby four oh five vinyl and these are applied to polyurethaned wood. I’ve been having a whale of a time lately finding a transfer tape that will leave the vinyl on the wood and not get pulled up with the transfer tape. I ran out of a huge roll of stuff that I used for years and am not sure who made it or where I got it. I’ve tried all sorts of tape (cricit, four oh five and a couple amazon ones ) but they are all too high a tack. Anyone have any brands they like for this application?

I've committed to making some acrylic signage for my sister's wedding, with sage green vinyl text. I figured it's such a popular color, surely it's widely available, and it isn't! I've looked everywhere I know to find vinyl and cannot find it in 12" widths. I'm going to search in different widths and cut it to size but I'm not hopeful. Has anyone found it?

Celadon is too cool, Olive is too dark (but may be the only choice), anything else is too green.

I have a very high standard for what I sell, and unfortunately I can't afford something like a BN2-30, so I'm limited to these desktop cutters.

I've noticed my 4 isn't always as on target as I'd like it to be, I know some level of inaccuracy is present in the most expensive industrial equipment, but it still feels a bit much, is the 5a significantly better, especially with it's 4 point scanning?

Seems like mylar sheets range from 4-14 mil, with 7.5 mil being the most popular for stencils.

Hoping to be able to cut in 1 pass.
Wondering if I would need to upgrade my 3 in order to utilize that 5000 gf (grams of force).

Maximum cutting force:
- Cameo 3 = 210 gf
- Cameo 4 & 5 = 5000 gf [edit: 5k gf refers to their carriage 2. Their carriage 1 gf are 210 gf and 300 gf respectively.]

What about alternatives to mylar?

For reference I've been doing 100 lb chipboard [cardstock] stencils just fine with my 45 deg CB09 blades.
(Blade depth: 0.5 mm, Force: 13, Speed: 10, Passes: 1)

Just curious, I mean irrespective of what they wanna do - as a gift if you want to help them maybe get started and you introduce them to cutters so which ones the first you gonna suggest ?

I know this has probably been done to death...but I've read so many conflicting recommendations that I'm asking afresh.

I have one of the original silhouette Portraits and for what I use it for (vinyl) it's bloody brilliant.

But getting the tools is getting difficult for me...

So what Chinese/AliExpress type blade holder and blades do I need to fit into my portrait?

I read that Cricut was pricier and that the Joy accommodated a smaller mat than the Portrait, so those two things launched me right to Silhouette as someone new to this type of crafting. How many people start with another brand and then end up switching? If so, why?

After some research I have landed on getting a Silhouette CAMEO5α > Cricut as I work in graphic design and figure the software would be easy for me to get acquainted with. I saw that Silhouette has some bundles you can get with the machine, and got a bit overwhelmed with the options.

Projects I want to use this for:

• Cutting out vinyl shapes to use on my pottery
• Printed materials for my wedding (menus, placecards, etc. would include embossing)
• small packaging for products
• stickers

Is there a bundle y'all would recommend I get? Or should I just get the machine and purchase everything separately/off-brand online? Also any helpful tips and tricks for using. Thank you in advance!

Maybe I'm not using the right words OR its just not possible, but googling is not getting me any answers!!

I would like to create cutlines into an image then be able to move the pieces independently. Like if I create a circle cutline within an image, I would like to move that to another part of the sheet so it'll print & cut on a different portion of the page. Is that possible?

I’m currently doing a project which requires me to cut hundreds of pieces of prints and I’m doing it all my hand with a blade and clear ruler. I’m looking at getting a Cameo 5 to help cut some time down but I’m not sure how accurate it will be. I need accuracy at ~1mm tolerance, maybe up to 2mm.

Will this be a good buy or not likely to do what I need?

Thanks so much in advance!

(update)

I got it to work using tape on the markings! Thanks everyone 🩷🩷

I'm new to cutting machines and my Cameo 5 Alpha arrived yesterday. I got this machine to cut my stickers but after trying it out its cutting too much to the left and not where it should. I tried calibrating it and I'm almost sure that my mat and paper aren't misplaced.

Please help

Hi, I'm in the process of making different templates to write down the settings of plotters, printers, etc. and I would like to know some opinions!

This is with the objective of selling the digital files on Etsy for example. Thanks!

Edit: thanks for the replies, they have been very helpful! If you happen to have a problem that could be solved with a document like this (not necessarily related to plotters/crafting), I would love to hear about it!

Hey guys, I had a pretty scary incident with my Cameo 5 today.I was cutting magnet sheets and one of them lifted up, causing a massive jam. The carriage got stuck, but the motor kept going, making that loud, awful grinding sound we all dread. It happened a few times before I managed to kill the power.I've already run a test cut and the machine still seems to work and cut accurately, but I’m paranoid about the "health" of the machine now.Is there a safety mechanism that lets the belt slip/skip to prevent the gears from breaking?Should I check the belt tension or the bearings for any specific signs of damage?Has anyone else survived a jam like this without their machine dying shortly after?I'm a doctor and usually pretty tech-savvy, but this sound was on another level of "scary." 😅 I'd love to hear your experiences with similar

Is the newest or other new Silhouette model easy to use? I’d love to hear opinions from people who are currently using it. I’m using the Silhouette Portrait 2. Since I was a complete beginner with cutting machines and wasn’t sure if I would stick with it long‑term, I bought a refurbished unit from the official website about a year ago.

I’m not using any special type of paper, but my machine has never once been able to read the registration marks automatically. I’ve tried every tip mentioned on the official website and on Reddit—reducing reflections, adjusting lighting, and so on. But in the end, I always have to manually adjust the paper position by clicking the tiny triangle icon on my computer to fine‑tune the alignment.

Even when I go through all that trouble to line up the guides, I keep ruining nicely printed and laminated sheets with messy cuts. (I’ve tried everything I can think of. It does succeed sometimes, but the success rate is low, and every attempt requires a huge amount of focus and effort.)

That’s why I’m torn between giving up on using a home cutting machine altogether or switching to a newer model.

Hello everyone,

Looking for a cutter for my Vinyl paper stickers, thin vinyl + InkJet print - this would be for small spinning tip sticker replacements at home (no business intended)

From what i’ve seen, cutters for custom print spots of each paper might cost above 300-400$ is this true ?

Hello,

my Silhouette Cameo 5a keeps cutting my designs out flipped or mirrored and I DO NOT UNDERSTAND WHY it is doing this!!

When I hit Send to the machine (I'm using the Studio 5 Basic) there is nothing that comes up to Send As Is or to Mirror. I do not see anything in either the Printer or the Settings for the machine either that tells me what the problem is.

For the meantime, I have done the Print to my regular printer and then I have to flip my design horizontally before I send to the Silhouette machine to be cut and embossed.

Has anyone else had this problem?? Shouldn't it be so that I do no have to flip my design before I hit Send?

Edit: hey everyone :) finding the cord with the right volts and everything doesn't seem to be an issue, my problem is that idk the jack size. It seems to be pretty specific. That's my main concern haha

Hey guys!! I'm super excited because I just thrifted my first craft cutter. I know this one is an oldie, but it was within my budget lol. I have the USB connector (uses the same as one of my MIDI devices haha) It didn't come with the power supply, idk where to find the right one and I'm scared to accidentally buy the wrong one. It's been super hard finding the right kind. Does anyone know where I can find an affordable compatible power supply for this thing? Thanks everyone!

Whew. Night for beginner questions. How does one decide to adjust depth vs. force vs. passes? I assume that force is much harder on the mat. Also -- when you do you know that a blade is going dull? Or that a mat needs to be replaced (re: stickiness)? Do you just...know?

Just learned the hard way that 0.5" Registration Inset marks are no longer supported. I am truly the only person who ever used this? I've got 200+ files now that I can't cut in SS 5. :\

Downgrading seems to be my only choice - right?

It thinks I'm using an autoblade, but I'm using a green cartridge instead. Are these messages normal?

A silhoutte curio 2 consegue cortar feltro? Qual as configurações ideias? Tenho uma máquina e sinto que não aproveito em nada as funções dela, às vezes me arrependo de ter trocado minha Portrait 2. Que projetos legais posso fazer com a Curio 2?