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Where do i go from here

pablo11059

New Member
OK

my parents bought a sign company that was outfitted in late 80's early 90's. we use letter art 9.45, corel draw 7, a dos autocad program, and i finaly got a corel 12. this is the top of the line to them, this version of letter art sucks. (sorry) Is there a free open source type product that will bring me into the late 90's at least. i can deal with the corel but our cutting program blows.as well as all the artwork that is used daily is in a .GNT format that nothing else on this planet seems to work with. im open to ideas, :)
 

pablo11059

New Member
the main one is a ioline super 88

the other (it wont cut anything without wreaking it) graphtec jx 1060 (we call it the vinyl wreaker, if you need 25 feet of vinyl destroyed in a hurry use this gem)
 

CS-SignSupply

New Member
Do they have any in the budget for new software, computers, etc?

Wont be able to open the LetterArt files but there are design/cutting programs out there for $200-$400 that would work with your Ioline and Graphtec. CiberCut, WinPCsign, and others.

Your Graphtec probably needs a few replacement parts; blade holder, teflon strip, pinch roller wheels, blade.

Let me know if I can help as I stock the parts for you Graphtec as well as the CiberCut software.
 

Jillbeans

New Member
If you are spending that much money on wasting stuff it's time to upgrade.
You can cut from your Corel 12 with a new Graphtec cutter.
You are pretty close to my buddy Mike Meyer in Mazeppa.
Bet the corn is high out your way!
Love....Jill
 

d fleming

New Member
If you search the site you can find any # of complaints/problems concerning cutters and software not specifically made for cutters. You can also constantly find any # of the same concerning flexi in general. Very few problems posted with signlab and most are user error. My signlab runs consistantly and flawlessly whether it's a simple cut or contour cutting printed graphics or even perforated films. I use all the adobe and corel products as well but signlab is my workhorse. I've never had a problem with a well maintained graphtec plotter either. Just my 2 cents.
 

James Burke

Being a grandpa is more fun than working
+1 for AI and SignLab.

I use a mixture of programs: AI, SignLab, AutoCAD, and Omax Layout (abrasive water jet cutting CAD program). Each one does a few things in particular that the others don't, and they all "speak" relatively the same language so there's little or no error in file translation.

Generally speaking, it's usually safe to go with the tried and true software and plotters. You'll pay a little more up front, but it will usually save you a lot of headaches further down the road...usually...not always.

Over the past year and a half, there's been more software and equipment on eBay and Craigs List than I can ever remember. There are deals to be had out there...keep your eyes open.
 

Mosh

New Member
Been using SignLab since around 1991 or so (started with SignLab 2.0) It is a great program. I must say that Corel can do alot of the same things minus the cut by color feature. Vinyl cutting is getting to be a thing of the past so I look for cutting software to get cheaper in the next few years as more people go digital.

There will always be a need for vinyl cut graphics, but the digital printing has cut it WAY down. In fact we run our printers out of Corel and not SignLab, but anything strickly cut we run out of SignLab. We cut less and less all the time.
 
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