A Guide to using the Silhouette Cameo Cutter

[Y_Rail]

Great info about the embossing engraving. I have asked here a couple of times in the past about a similar attachment/head by Chomas for engraving with the Silhouette. Glad to see that the embossing tool by Silhouette performs like this!

 

Bgman, is this the "fine" version? Do you know if it fits a Cameo 3 machine? I know you mentioned using it on a Portrait. It appears to be a good solution for brickwork and engraving (on styrene) work. EDIT: I think that based on the color, that this is the "stippling" tool by Silhouette and not the embossing one right?

Edited January 7, 2019 by Y_Rail

[bgman]

Great info about the embossing engraving. I have asked here a couple of times in the past about a similar attachment/head by Chomas for engraving with the Silhouette. Glad to see that the embossing tool by Silhouette performs like this!

 

Bgman, is this the "fine" version? Do you know if it fits a Cameo 3 machine? I know you mentioned using it on a Portrait. It appears to be a good solution for brickwork and engraving (on styrene) work. EDIT: I think that based on the color, that this is the "stippling" tool by Silhouette and not the embossing one right?

 

 

I am not sure if it was the " fine" version I purchased or whether it will fit the Cameo 3. Maybe it would be worth contacting a supplier to ask the question ?

 

It is actually the stippling tool but seems to have no ill effects with my Portrait cutter and has produced these diamond paviors for me.

 

 

 

I know that there is a supplier of these paviors as a 3D print but if I can produce them like this it makes more sense and is also fun to try out.

 

I hope the above helps.

[Western Star]

Until now I have been using Inkscape to create a drawing, export the drawing to the Silhouette program  and then cut on a Cameo - no problems.

 

This week I tried to cut a stencil.  I used pencil and paper to produce the drawing using french curves so as to obtain the free-flowing and curving shapes of grasses in the wind.  The drawing was scanned with into photo gallery, then exported to the Silhouette program and then cut on a Cameo.  The result "appears" to be that every drawn line has been cut twice even though only one "cut" command was given to the Silhouette software - one might believe that the Cameo has made a cut to each side of the drawn line.

 

My guess is that the scan has been interpreted such that each line has a measurable width, like a solid shape.

 

What have I done wrong...  or what have I forgotten to do?

 

thank you, Graham

[Rob Pulham]

Hi Graham,

 

I would suggest that to get it to cut the lines from your image you would need to recreate the drawing in Inkscape much like when you import a drawing of a wagon or van and draw over it to create your cut file.

[MickRalph]

Graham,

 

In the "material settings" area you can set the "number of passes" for the material you are using.  If this is set to "2", then there will be 2 cuts made; if you click "Send" twice, then you will get four cuts in total.  I would check this first.

 

Mick

[jonhall]

23 hours ago, Western Star said:

Until now I have been using Inkscape to create a drawing, export the drawing to the Silhouette program  and then cut on a Cameo - no problems.

 

This week I tried to cut a stencil.  I used pencil and paper to produce the drawing using french curves so as to obtain the free-flowing and curving shapes of grasses in the wind.  The drawing was scanned with into photo gallery, then exported to the Silhouette program and then cut on a Cameo.  The result "appears" to be that every drawn line has been cut twice even though only one "cut" command was given to the Silhouette software - one might believe that the Cameo has made a cut to each side of the drawn line.

 

My guess is that the scan has been interpreted such that each line has a measurable width, like a solid shape.

 

 

If you used the Silhouette studio's trace function, then its quite possible your guess is correct - it's a little while since I used it, but I'm sure it can see thick lines as being two edges, rather than something to draw down the centre of - have a look at the settings, but before you do that really zoom in to see the lines clearly.

 

Jon

[katwigan]

Funnily enough, I have just been struggling with exactly the same problem ending up with two cuts around any of the traced lines with a narrow ragged piece being cut out of every line. When I zoomed in far enough there were definately what appeared to be two lines.

In actual fact each section comprised of only one line that was basically joined at each end of the section. Trying to delete any of it just got rid of the whole section of line.

Eventually I gave up and drew the template my wife req'd  in a CAD program,( reaching a pro rata agreement on the number of modelling hours wasted in the process) ( Not really, she is a great source of  encouragement )

Problem overcome, Normal Modelling has resumed.

Kevan

[raymw]

I am not a user of the software or machines that you use, but have some experience of drawing, cad programs, and conversions of hand drawings into vector format, for generating G-code/whatever. I know of no software that will successfully convert a hand drawn, (or even convert a scanned image of a cad drawing) into a 100% usable vector format. For simple shapes, then it's maybe worth editing the result of the conversion, but in all cases it is quicker to load your original scanned drawing as a background image into your cad program, and manually trace the lines you want. It is quite common for the automated vector conversion versions to detect the edges of colour changes, hence, no matter how thin your line, assuming it is of a coarse enough resolution to be visible to the conversion program, it will detect where the white changes to black, and then the black changes to white, say. A solid filled in shape, will be better, in that there is only one edge, if you get my meaning. e.g. a rectangle filled with a solid black will most likely produce a more usable result than a rectangle without fill (that'll have the two lines at the boundary, or be very much broken). I would suggest you spend some time trying various types of drawings, and presumably contrast settings, whatever, in your particular conversion software, and prove for yourself whether or not I speaketh the truth 

[stephennicholson]

The Foil quill caught my eye on a TV this morning (must have been serendipity, as I dont watch shopping channels!)

 

Some subsequent googling turned up these sites

 

https://www.silhouetteschoolblog.com/2019/02/foil-quill-unboxing-set-up-and-best.html

https://www.foilquill.com/

 

Essentially its a 3rd party tool that can be used in a Silhouette or other cutter to draw fine lines in a variety of metallic colours.  Initial thoughts are lining and fine lettering - although 30 colours are available, they all look metallic.

 

An ingenious tool waiting for a clever modeller to exploit I think.

 

 

 

[tramcard]

After more than a year without using the Sihouette machine I thought it was about time I got it going and knocked off some more free-lance trams.

I now have the large mat so can cut A3 sheets. This is the first time I have used A3 for a print and cut session and the first batch did not work. Cutter did not follow the print as it should. I reckoned it was probably software, but no idea what.

However, my efforts were all with the screen on portrait for the paper, basically the same way it goes into the plotter. Well after I had switched it off over night the next session I used landscape on the screen. Lo and behold, no problems and it has cut around the printed image great. I have invested in an A3 printer as well. Old one gave up the ghost and the Canon was not much more expensive than an A4 printer.

So I now have a selection of printed tram bodies to assemble and find chassis for. I have only been using 120g photo card so they will need backing with stiffer stuff.

Basically I draw up the plans on CAD, DeltaCAD in my case. Save the outline as a dxf file making sure all the layers are easy to identify. I then load it into Serif DrawPlus 8. This accepts dxf files and keeps the layers. There new fancy serif  software did not accept dxf files when I last looked. I have tried Inkscape but it is not so good with the layers.

Colouring is all done by layers, basically outline and fill can be different colours. I can use two methods to get it into Sihouette Studio, the plotter softeare and controller. As an svg file it recognises the colours (but not always the text) and the line to cut around from the single file. As well as not accepting all the text it tends to inflate the file so I have to scale it down before printing and cutting. Anyhow once sorted I then print it it, including their guide marks. Transfer the print to the plotter/cutter and then cut it out.

The alternative method is to save the image as a jpeg. This loads into the Sihouette software but cutting lines are not defined. In Serif 8 I seperate as one layer to have lines that can be cut. I then save this layer only as a dxf file. With the Silhouette software merging files is easy and lining up the line and the drawing is not difficult. Also they have the same dimensions as the originals. Printing and cutting is then straight forward. I think this method works without paying for the upgrade to use svg files.

I would bypass the silhouette software if it loaded dxf files and retained layers as otherwise it is a drawing programme much the same as Serif 8. I have tried sorting different elements of a drawing using colour but is pretty awkward. Trouble I cannot see how to hide the bits I do not want to work with. I can hide those layers I do not want to work on in serif.

 

I have tried Inkscape but really could not get to grips with it.

 

Anyhow re-learning problems of making card models.

David
 

[Richard Jones]

Hi,

 

Any thoughts as to which is the "best" machine to buy for model purposes and what the current "best buy" is?

 

I might just order one before the 28th March..... just in case.....

 

cheers

 

Richard

[Richard Jones]

On 23/03/2019 at 09:53, Richard Jones said:

Hi,

 

Any thoughts as to which is the "best" machine to buy for model purposes and what the current "best buy" is?

 

I might just order one before the 28th March..... just in case.....

 

cheers

 

Richard

 

Hi,

 

Just been looking on the internet and find the Curio at £210 and the Cameo 3 at £318 - any thoughts as to whether the Cameo is "worth" the extra £118? - does it have more features or is more amenable to our sort of uses?

 

cheers

 

Richard

[Siberian Snooper]

I would opt for the curio these days,  the Cameo tends not to cut too well in the centre.

 

 

[ISW]

On 09/04/2019 at 14:15, Richard Jones said:

 

Hi,

 

Just been looking on the internet and find the Curio at £210 and the Cameo 3 at £318 - any thoughts as to whether the Cameo is "worth" the extra £118? - does it have more features or is more amenable to our sort of uses?

 

cheers

 

Richard

Richard,

 

You could also look at the Cricut machines (~£240), available at Hobbycraft (& other places?).

 

[Richard Jones]

On 10/04/2019 at 19:25, ISW said:

 

You could also look at the Cricut machines (~£240), available at Hobbycraft (& other places?).

 

 

Hmm....

 

Looking at the promotional video, the Circut machines look a bit more sophisticated, than the silhouette, (facility to rotate the cutter/embossing tools), and possibly slightly more robust?

 

Any different software requirements with the Circut?

 

Has anyone been able to do a direct comparison between the two, particularly as there isn't a great disparity in price?

 

Cheers

 

Richard

[raymw]

Hi Richard,

There is stuff on youtube, of course. search for 'Cricut' (not 'Circut' - but that'll still find some) and a few comparisons, such as https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ch23OY8z5Fo

[Richard Jones]

12 minutes ago, raymw said:

 search for 'Cricut' (not 'Circut' - but that'll still find some)

 

Whoops, Freudian slip!

 

Thanks

[ISW]

6 hours ago, Richard Jones said:

 

Hmm....

 

Looking at the promotional video, the Circut machines look a bit more sophisticated, than the silhouette, (facility to rotate the cutter/embossing tools), and possibly slightly more robust?

 

Any different software requirements with the Circut?

 

Cheers

 

Richard

Richard,

 

The Cricut software is 100% web based at https://design.cricut.com/#/sign-in. You might even be able to set up an account and try it out. Personally, I draw everything on my computer in Xara Designer Pro X10, and then save the file in SVG for uploading to Cricut Design Space (CDS). There is a need for some 'tweaking' in CDS before committing to cutting, but the method suits me as I'm very familiar with my existing Xara software.

 

The Cricut needs a bluetooth connection to connect to your computer.

 

As to comparisons with the Silhouette machines, the Cricut has a slightly higher cutting force - it 'can' cut through the thinner styrene sheets. It also has 2 cutting 'heads', so you can use cutting and embossing at the same time if you wish.

 

So far I've been very happy with the machine.

 

[paul9415]

Hi Rob, great w ork again! Question-how do you create the bolt head detail on strapping , etc

TIA  Paul 

[jonhall]

I'm demoing my portrait at DEMU Showcase in not-quite Burton on Trent this weekend if anyone wants a look.

 

Jon

[TimP]

Thinking about buying a first cutter - has anyone got any experience with the CRICUT maker which seems to have a much higher - 10x - the outing force of the cameo 3 or CRICUT explore air? So might do styrene better?

[ISW]

Tim,

 

I'm using a Cricut Explore Air and, although I've not made full use of it yet, it's done everything I've wanted very well. The cutting force is enough to cut 0.25mm styrene and I think it would cut 0.5mm at a push (with multiple passes).

 

I found the following review / comparison and the Maker does indeed seem to be an impressive machine, but there's a price to pay.

https://personaldiecutting.com/cricut-maker-vs-cricut-explore-air-2/

 

Just be aware that both machines use Bluetooth for communication and the 'drawing' software is totally web-based, so you need a good internet connection. You can try out the Cricut software without a machine by downloading it from:

http://uk.cricut.com/home/learn/software/design-space

 

Personally, I do all my 'drawing' on my computer in Xara DesignerPro because that's what I'm familiar with. I then export the drawing as an SVG file and load that into DesignSpace for final editing and actual cutting.

 

[Buhar]

25 minutes ago, ISW said:

Tim,

 

I'm using a Cricut Explore Air and, although I've not made full use of it yet, it's done everything I've wanted very well. The cutting force is enough to cut 0.25mm styrene and I think it would cut 0.5mm at a push (with multiple passes).

 

 

The Cameo Portrait cuts through 10thou styrene (which is 0.25mm) and will score 20thou enough to snap cleanly.  I think Tim is looking for confirmation of significantly more grunt.

[TimP]

Thanks Buhar and ISW,

 

yes I had read the software "limitations" on the CriCut machines, I do have a good internet connections (60Mb/s albeit on a radio link that goes across 3Km of sea firth! before it gets to a fibre) and I do have sitting on my shelf a recent copy of turbocad which I keep meaning to learn!! But I am guessing having read things here that even that may not be as powerful as using the Silhouette software in controlling the cutting at least. The Maker looks like it may be better for my SWMBOs extensive crafting/quilting activity with it's rotary tool cutter but the thing that interests me is the cutting force spec - 

 

They claim it has 4Kg of cutting force vs 350g(ish) for the explore air 2 / cameo 3, 

 

e.g. https://www.theidearoom.net/cricut-maker-review/

 

 I can't find anyone anywhere who has tried it with styrene except one reference on reddit who says it is good but no thickness is mentioned.

 

I fwas hoping someone on RMWeb would have tried!

 

Thanks again

 

Tim

 

 

[ISW]

2 hours ago, TimP said:

Thanks Buhar and ISW,

 

 I can't find anyone anywhere who has tried it with styrene except one reference on reddit who says it is good but no thickness is mentioned.

 

 

 

If you have a Hobbycraft shop nearby you can go and actually see the disc cutter in the shop. Details online at:

https://www.hobbycraft.co.uk/cricut-rotary-blade-kit/640204-1000

 

Based on being 12mm diameter, and the disc being exposed, and allowing for the axle pin, it looks like it would cut through 4mm or maybe 5mm thickness before the axle would 'snag' on the material being cut. So I'd image in would cut foam type materials of this thickness. Not sure how it would cope with styrene though.