Sign vinyl is a key component of advertising display systems. The immediate visual impact of an advertising message and your marketing efforts however begins on the production floor with your signage equipment. As well as choosing the right sign vinyl for your application, setting up your vinyl cutter plotter correctly is the first step in developing a quality sign.

There two main sizes of machines, firstly a cutter that is traditionally 650mm wide and takes vinyl rolls up to 610mm that can fit on a bench top or a stand. For larger rolls a cutter on a stand is more appropriate for rolls up to 1220mm wide. However, the setup process for both is similar.

There are two areas, the surrounding environment you cut in and the cutting blade setup that need attention to ensure success:

Environment:

Make sure that your cutting machine is clear of any obstructions either behind or in front. It is critical that the material runs through the machine backwards and forwards in a straight line. Don’t have anything behind the unit that will restrict free movement of the vinyl.

At the same time, don’t have anything on the floor that will cause the material to catch or lift. By having the surrounding environment clear, you are able to run up to 50m in length without having to touch anything.

If the setup is not correct, the material may not run through the machine in a proper alignment and risk not activating one of the eye sensors. At the same time you also run the risk of jamming the machine as it is off track. A relevant example is if you are cutting words to go down the length of a van of say 4 to metres in length. It needs to be precise to achieve the desired affect and if the tracking is off, you may have to redo the sign cutting and so waste a good deal of vinyl material

Cutting Blade:

Make certain that your cutting blade is set up correctly with the right depth and pressure suitable to the material you are using. The cutter is like a surgical blade and it is in continual contact with the material unless it needs to lift up and go to a space.

Most cutters have a multi depth cutting attachment. This gives you the ability to position a cover that goes over the blade so that does not cut deeper than you require. If your blade depth is too long, you run the risk of snagging on the vinyl with a result that the vinyl seems to have some puckering. However, if you set the length of the blade correctly, you can cut very accurately.

It is always best to choose a cutting bit with the cutting edge or length that most closely matches the thickness of the material to be cut. It is also important to make sure that the cutting edge is at least as long as the thickness of the material to be cut. To do this, you first test the blade length manually using a hard surface and the material to be cut. Each time you cut, you can adjust the multi depth blade holder and cover accordingly. For example if your material is 0.5mm in depth, you may have to have a blade depth of 0.6 – 0.7mm.

The manual test however, does not provide a consistent pressure on the material and you will the need to put the blade holder back into the machine and set the right pressure to complete the job. For example on some reflective films such as a honeycomb reflective film that has a very thin liner and a very thick topcoat the blade pressure is critical. In this situation you have to have enough pressure for the machine to cut through the material but not enough to cut through the bottom layer.

In summary, the key to cutting success is to ensure that your environment is not cluttered. Use a flat surface with nothing in front or behind to prevent a smooth free flow of the material you are using. Secondly, ensure that you use the right blade and multi depth cutting attachment and set you cutter to the correct pressure to cut your material to the precise depth for your application.

By doing this you will ensure the quality of the finished advertising sign.