Question die cutting stickers

[B13 Signs]

I have a question, after printing and contour cutting what do you use to die cut the stickers so they are all the same shape and individual sticker without hand cutting 200 circles or custom shape?

Is that a different machine or just the same cutter on heaver pressure?

 

[Gino]

Paper cutter is the cheapest and probably the fastest way. Be sure to pre-space it, so you can do maybe 10 up..... 10 over..... 5 or 6 sheets at a time. Take maybe 10 minutes to do them all.

 

[B13 Signs]

Not really looking for the cheapest way. more the faster way than cutting stickers for bands and promos. where the customer needs 5000 or some stupid number and I don't have to use the paper cutter and spend half the day slicing.

and the paper cutter limits me to squares and rectangles, How are other companies doing it?

 

[ExecuPrintGS]

you can perf cut with some plotters, we perf cut on our graphtec. I believe summa has a perf cut feature also

 

[depps74]

My graphtec has an option to punch cut, you have to set the blade so its cutting on the trough and not the cut strip and then set the type of punch you want. Not the best method because it requires a lot more work to punch them all out once its done. Rather than slit cut it. I can usually make about $50 an hour by printing, die cutting and then slit cutting into squares off the backer paper. The other method takes way to long and not as satisfying.

 

[signman315]

Perf cut all the way! It's known as flex cut on Summa. Not sure about other plotters but the Summa does this quickly. We will kiss cut the decal, then flex cut the outer shape (all automated via the RIP software, Cut Server, and Barcode server). We print our "Business Card" type information on the excess that would be weeded away by the customer. Saves time cutting them apart manually, saves time by not weeding them, and puts a little advertising out there on every decal...

 

[B13 Signs]

Perf cut all the way! It's known as flex cut on Summa. Not sure about other plotters but the Summa does this quickly. We will kiss cut the decal, then flex cut the outer shape (all automated via the RIP software, Cut Server, and Barcode server). We print our "Business Card" type information on the excess that would be weeded away by the customer. Saves time cutting them apart manually, saves time by not weeding them, and puts a little advertising out there on every decal...

Do you know if that "flex Cut" is an option on FlexiSign or just the Summa? I am running FlexiSign Pro 10 and the vinyl express Q100. Which I think is a Graphtec Brand? Do you think that would work?

 

[signman315]

I think it should be an option for you but not sure...it's a feature of the design software and RIP and Summa just cuts it, should work with any plotter as long as the softwares offer it....I'm an Adobe/ONYX guy so don't know much about Flexi...it's set up the same way you would set up the spot color "CutContour" to generate a cutline in your RIP. But since the spot color is set up in the design software and title "CutContour" for kiss cutting and "CutContour_flex" for the perf cutting all the RIP software needs to be able to do is recognize those spot colors as cut lines....then in your Cut Server (again this is part of the ONYX RIP software) you specify that "CutContour_flex" is a flex cut and then just send the job and good to go. There are some settings for length of through cut vs length of flex cut and some pressure settings, but once you dial those in it works great! So it's really up to the RIP and design software to make it work, I would imagine a Graphtec could do it...

 

[Pixels Are Bad Mmmkay?]

We use the half cut feature on our Mimaki CJV series printer/cutter, which is the same thing as a perf cut that others are referring to. It's not perfect and takes a lot of trial and error (at least it did in my case) to get the settings just right, but once you get it down it works pretty well.

 

[signman315]

We use the half cut feature on our Mimaki CJV series printer/cutter, which is the same thing as a perf cut that others are referring to. It's not perfect and takes a lot of trial and error (at least it did in my case) to get the settings just right, but once you get it down it works pretty well.

I used to half cut on the Mimaki it worked pretty well. But man if you see a Summa do the same thing you'll poop a brick, Mimaki is molasses compared to Summa on a perf cut. I was stunned when I saw the Summa do it, really fast, also really noisy haha!

 

[myront]

Two cuts.
1. First regular cut
2. Then use a second 1/4" outer offset contour to half cut/perf cut

Double the time though. And you have to weed out that edge that's left.

I find it easier to "pluck" them out as it hangs off the printer. As long as the plotter is cutting across the sheet and not back and forth.I try to set the pinch rollers in such a way to miss any that might fall out. Then agoin we only do short runs. 100-200 at the most.

Outsourcing saves a ton of money and time.

 

[ikarasu]

Two cuts.
1. First regular cut
2. Then use a second 1/4" outer offset contour to half cut/perf cut

Double the time though. And you have to weed out that edge that's left.

I find it easier to "pluck" them out as it hangs off the printer. As long as the plotter is cutting across the sheet and not back and forth.I try to set the pinch rollers in such a way to miss any that might fall out. Then agoin we only do short runs. 100-200 at the most.

Outsourcing saves a ton of money and time.

I setup a kiss cut that cuts exact... Then cuts a square around the media, but below the registration mark. I tell it to pause Inbetween kiss and perf cut... Once kiss is done, I'll weed it while it's still attached to the graphtec. Then I'll unpause for the perf. It - that way the paper gets a nicer cut, and you're not weeding little borders for hours. It's still not perfect, but it works.

 

[B13 Signs]

thank you everyone! I will look into this and see if I can set it up and make it work with my current setup.
It look like something I could do. I'll post results...

 

[Browndog10]

We use the cut through option on our mutoh cutter.