Three weeks in to the Graphtec CE5000-60

[Jillbeans]

It cuts like a dream, even small stuff
It's fast even when you slow it down
It's quiet, I don't even have to turn up the TV when it's running
It takes up a lot less space than the 4E

I do not like the tracking at all
I do not like working with bigger material (how do you guys do it?)
Had a few issues with importing/exporting and getting bumpy-looking letters

Just an update. I am halfway in love yet halfway terrified.
Love....Jill

 

[Fred Weiss]

It cuts like a dream, even small stuff
It's fast even when you slow it down
It's quiet, I don't even have to turn up the TV when it's running
It takes up a lot less space than the 4E

I do not like the tracking at all
I do not like working with bigger material (how do you guys do it?)
Had a few issues with importing/exporting and getting bumpy-looking letters

Just an update. I am halfway in love yet halfway terrified.
Love....Jill

How about posting a review HERE?

 

[bob]

...

I do not like the tracking at all
I do not like working with bigger material (how do you guys do it?)
Had a few issues with importing/exporting and getting bumpy-looking letters

Do you mean tracking or do you mean repeatability?

If you mean tracking, setting up for roll goods is a matter of making sure the roll is wound square, even tension on the roll when you drop the lever, and making sure your rollers are all set to max pressure. Setting up for sheet goods is a touch that must be learned. After a while you'll just naturally drop a sheet into the plotter and it will be square.

If you mean repeatability, check to see if the tension is set the same on the pressure rollers. If not, make them all max. If they are set to max pressure, call Graphtec, you got problems.

24" is bigger material?

Perhaps in a colony of gnomes. Pick up 2 or 4 architect's paperweights, you can get them from Dataprint.com. They are leather bean bags filled with lead shot. Use them to pin down the corners of the, hah, ho, er, ah, larger material, for weeding etc. They are without a doubt the handiest things in my shop.

Bumpy looking letters?

You might check your various quality and arc settings. Also make sure that the plotter's program priority mode is set to manual. That way you set the conditions you want at the plotter and the software cannot override them.

 

[DTFuqua]

If you using Corel draw, learn to edit the nodes and reduce the number of nodes. This can sometimes smooth "bumpy" cut lines . Also when doing a trace, you can use the slider to make lines smoother. Good luck.
Terry

 

[David Wright]

I am getting ready to buy this machine as my Summa is getting worse with missed cuts. (the fix costs as much as this Graphtec).

You don't have to cut from 24 inch rolls, my 30" Summa rarely saw anything larger than 24" and usually 15". If the rolls aren't wound tight and even they won't track well . Also don't put the pinch rollers to the very max but allow for some misalignment.

 

[jiarby]

If tracking is bad it is usually because the sheet/roll was not loaded square. I load a sheet and align the front edge with the cut-off groove. That usually works as long as the cut is square. I also stuck some labels on the front so I can easily see if the feed it off. I don't often do runs longer than 8 feet. Most sheets (print/cut) are 24x60 or 651 on a roll.

Use the roll stoppers to keep your roll from sliding around on the rollers.

 

[SOA]

looks like the pro's are out weighing the con's which is good, ive never used graphtec stuff but i hear its top-notch! keep playing with it & u'll get it all figured out!

 

[Malkin]

It cuts like a dream, even small stuff
Had a few issues with importing/exporting and getting bumpy-looking letters

This may not be it, but just a thought.
I sometimes have trouble with bumpy letters if I set text at a small size, like 12 to 36 pts (roughly), then convert to outlines, then enlarge. The solution seems to be to set the type at 100 pts or more (I usually use 300 just to be safe), then convert to outlines for cutting and size appropriately.

 

[Ken]

Which software comes with that machine?
With my FC7000 I ended up with a download from Graphtec to get the latest...
I'm finding that when I output my files I need to make sure that all text and graphics need to have a hairline around them..Just a quirk that I have noticed...to prevent "bumby" outlines on all cutting procedures.
Nice machine Jill...Love, Ken

 

[Jillbeans]

I found out the wonky letters were from typing them as-is in Corel then exporting to another program to size.
So that issue was my fault and has been corrected.
I am going to upgrade from Corel 12 to X3, it's only about $50 now.
Their cutting software is Cutting Master 2 1.60, and it's almost idiot-proof.
I do pre-load the vynull and do sort of a dry run with it, by tracking I mean it's a little tuff to get used to the always-perfect tracking of the 4E due to the sprockets.
I know I need to slow this thing down.
The 4E tracked like railroad tracks.
On longer runs I notice a not-perfect alignment, therefore I am not doing a weed border on those.
The other thing I did, which is probably a bad idea but seemed to help me, was to thread the rod at the back of the plotter thru the cardboard core like a big roll of TP because when I tried using a 50 yd roll it jumps off and jerks and falls right off the rods.
I screwed both the little black metal stoppers onto the one rod and then adjust them to the width of the vynull.
But then again that is me being used to a 4E.
ProWraps did send me a 24" Weber masker out of the kindness of his own heart, and it is a huge help to me when masking the "big" rolls.
As for midgets, yes, I am very short and full of the rheumatiz from all these years painting.
I would recommend this plotter to anyone, the problems I have had have ALL been from operator error.
I also need to get a media basket.
And Fred, I would rate this on that link but am not sure if my plotter is the same #.

 

[Todd M Castle]

Just throwing this out in case you may not know.

Keep your pinch rollers up when the machine is not in use also. Keeping them down on friction feed machines will wear a flat spot on your roller and cause the media to skew when coming out also. Not saying you do this, but a tip is a tip and may help someone.

 

[iSign]

Jill.. I would suggest that you skip the TP loading method, and instead, once the start of the roll is loaded square, manually pull enough material off the roll & let it drape down and back up on the back side of the plotter, (or accordian fold it on the desk behind plotter) this way the marginal pinch roller tension isn't fighting against the inertia of a 50yd stationary roll.. which is sometimes a poor enough match to throw off your tracking, and often gives enough of a jerk to pop the roll off, as you've noticed. The plotter is new, so right now you may enjoy playing with these little roll loading details... but in time, you will want efficiency, and nobody threads any rod through the roll... and moving whatever little roll stops you got... that will also be a moot point when you have enough vinyl for your cut already drawn off the roll.

 

[speedneeds]

Jill.. I would suggest that you skip the TP loading method, and instead, once the start of the roll is loaded square, manually pull enough material off the roll & let it drape down and back up on the back side of the plotter, (or accordian fold it on the desk behind plotter) this way the marginal pinch roller tension isn't fighting against the inertia of a 50yd stationary roll.

This is how I do it. When I first got mine I also had trouble with it popping the vinyl and causing tracking issues. Started draping the vinyl and have had much better success at straight tracking.

 

[ndemond]

This is how I do it. When I first got mine I also had trouble with it popping the vinyl and causing tracking issues. Started draping the vinyl and have had much better success at straight tracking.

This is also what I do. I also remove weed boarder on long runs and I have a sequence plot option that I use, so the plotter does not traverse? back and forth so much.

Nancy

 

[amy s.]

Just got a graphtec ce5000...I bet it will be good once I figure out how to use it. I've used Corel 3,5,7 and now x3. I can cut right from Corel...but only 8.5 x 11 size. I've tried cutting from Robo Master but find it confusing. How can I size right from Corel or would anyone suggest a sizing/cutting program that's idiot proof. I used Gerber Graphics Advantage for years and it was great! Thanks for any help. Oh, I've placed two calls to graphtec ... no reply.

 

[Jim Doggett]

Suhhhhhhweeeeet!

 

[OldPaint]

nothing can out=track a SPROCKET FEED!!!!!! but 15" is a waste of time and money. my freind in sarasota hada PNC-1050, 15" SPROCKET FEED ROLAND............and had the same problem as your having with tracking whn he got a FRICTION FEED plotter.
this is a learning process. 24" rolls ARE HEAVY........do not allow plotter to PULL VINYL FROM ROLL, as this will mess up TRACKING. as other have said, peel off the roll what you think you need.....THEN ADD 5 FT MORE!!!! hehehehehhe
my roland CX-300 WILL STOP......if it has to pull vinyl from that 24x150 roll.
mine has a TEST FEED mode. and the window will tell me the length. good to use this on long runs.
mine also hasa PAUSE, which i can do anytime, move a pinch roller, so it dont run off and hit the PAUSE AGAIN....and it will finish the job.
mine is capable of cutting 30" material............i have 1 ROLL OF 30X150.........and i will never BUY ANOTHER!!!!
i needed it for a job doing 27-28" tall letters, for a 3X30 ft sign. but it take 2 people to put it on the plotter!!!!!!!!
but was better than tryin to piece those letters together.
you will get the hang of it..........and then you will wonder why you waited so long to get a 24" cutter.
p.s. i still have some 15" sprocket hp vinyl...NEW IN THE BOX!!!!!!!!!!!!!

 

[nopalito24]

Most tracking issues have to do w/ the way you align the material.When you align a roll is different than a sheet. If your going to do a job bigger than 3ft I recommend you use the FEED feature(this feature confirms proper tracking before you send your job):
make sure your roll is nice and tight, place it on the stock rollers and align it as best you can to the grit roller areas your going to use so that the material does not get fed and an angle entering the rear of the machine, once it enters the rear to align grab the roll or rollers w/ one hand and then grab the leading edge of the material w/ the other, pull on the leading edge until is nice and tight,- bring your rollers down, select Roll1, then unwind the roll to about the amount of material your going to use, load the Pen that came w/ your plotter, press the Pause buttong to get into the menu, NEXT until you see Feed, ENTER to select it, select the amount of material you'll need, press down on the pen w/ you finger to make a dot on you viny, press the ENTER button to begin the process, once the material comes back press down on the pen again and you want it to land on the same dot-if it does then you've aligned the material correctly and your job will track straight, if it does not track straight maybe you have to much down force/blade length or a combination, your speed may be to fast, or your viny may be of not good quality-they usually have slippery backings, etc..
If when it comes back and it does not land in the same dot, then tighty up the material again and realign. You should not have to do this more than twice.

The advantage of the Feed feature is 1- you get to step back and watch if your material is going to track straight, 2- I'm pretty sure you've notice the track marks that are left on the edges of you vinyl when it passes through the rollers, well these are imprinted on the edges of your vinyl during the feed process so that the plotter follows these during the actuall cutting.

hope this helps, my CE3000 tracks great

 

[Mainframe]

Jill, the most important reply on this post is from isisgn, you MUST pull out enough material from the back of a friction fed plotter & let it drape down or you will cause yourself a lot of grief! I am not sure if you know to do this or not, but you should start, feel free to call me if you are not sure what it means.
Bill

 

[Sign Works]

So I see one of the advantages to the FC series cutters is the media alignment system, eleven years on my FC4100-75 and never an issue with tracking. I blast through full 24" & 30" rolls of vinyl daily and have never had any need to prefeed vinyl, to me that would just be a troublesome time consuming pain in the butt.