MikeTrice Posted February 9, 2014 Author Share Posted February 9, 2014 Try these snap settings: Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
RMweb Gold JCL Posted February 9, 2014 RMweb Gold Share Posted February 9, 2014 That's great Mike, thanks Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
davec.hh Posted February 12, 2014 Share Posted February 12, 2014 Mike, What a useful tutorial. I've just started with Inkscape and the tutorial is helping considerably. One suggestion, could the tutorial be made into a contiuous guide without the other postings? Many thanks DaveC Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
MikeTrice Posted February 12, 2014 Author Share Posted February 12, 2014 I will be honest and say that occassionally I have done a copy and paste job into a word processor and saved articles to my PC for the simple reason that I do not trust web pages always staying available. With only 3 pages so far not too onerous a job. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
10800 Posted March 24, 2014 Share Posted March 24, 2014 I've just acquired a Cameo and have been experimenting with Inkscape. I seemed to be doing OK with drawing some windows and doors over a scanned image of a 57ft coach side, and checking that the length was 228mm for 4mm scale. When I thought I was ready to cut, I saved it as a DXF file and opened it in Silhouette. It looked superficially OK and after a few tests on paper I cut it on 10 thou plasticard. I then realised that instead of being 228mm it was 263.05mm long (or something like that). I made sure the units for the Silhouette drawing were also mm, and even just drew a simple rectangle in Inkscape and transferred that as a DXF, same result. Hopefully I'm just doing something wrong that has a simple explanation but late on Sunday night I'm tired and perplexed by this! Help! Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ron Heggs Posted March 24, 2014 Share Posted March 24, 2014 I've just acquired a Cameo and have been experimenting with Inkscape. I seemed to be doing OK with drawing some windows and doors over a scanned image of a 57ft coach side, and checking that the length was 228mm for 4mm scale. When I thought I was ready to cut, I saved it as a DXF file and opened it in Silhouette. It looked superficially OK and after a few tests on paper I cut it on 10 thou plasticard. I then realised that instead of being 228mm it was 263.05mm long (or something like that). I made sure the units for the Silhouette drawing were also mm, and even just drew a simple rectangle in Inkscape and transferred that as a DXF, same result. Hopefully I'm just doing something wrong that has a simple explanation but late on Sunday night I'm tired and perplexed by this! Help! Hi, Have you set the 'Import Options' in 'File' 'Preferences' in Silhouette to 'As-Is' under 'When Importing DXF'' Ron Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
10800 Posted March 24, 2014 Share Posted March 24, 2014 Hi, Have you set the 'Import Options' in 'File' 'Preferences' in Silhouette to 'As-Is' under 'When Importing DXF'' Ron Aha! Yes that's the one, many thanks Ron - it was ticked for GSD files but not DXF. (My drawing skills were previously limited to PowerPoint etc, not CAD packages!). Also, on saving as DXF from Inkscape it offers lwpolyline and/or lobo-master - which is appropriate? Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ron Heggs Posted March 24, 2014 Share Posted March 24, 2014 Aha! Yes that's the one, many thanks Ron - it was ticked for GSD files but not DXF. (My drawing skills were previously limited to PowerPoint etc, not CAD packages!). Also, on saving as DXF from Inkscape it offers lwpolyline and/or lobo-master - which is appropriate? Hi, Rod I use AutoCAD for creating DXF files for the Silhouette, but I would guess that selecting 'lwpolyline' is the most appropriate Cheers Ron Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
MickRalph Posted March 29, 2014 Share Posted March 29, 2014 I have borrowed a Silhouette SD (similar to the Portrait) to assess the cutter with a view to buying one. I have been through Mike's tutorial in this thread and also that by Jason using the Silhouette software. I have cut the two designs (so I will have two sheds for my LSWR layout when I build it) as in the tutorials. The Silhouette programme has cut through the 10 thou and almost through the 20 thou, using the setting for "cut twice", but printing direct from Inkscape via the driver and CraftROBO Controller has effectively only scored the surface on both thicknesses, so that I will have to score again by hand before snapping the designs. This is because the cutter only cut once and I can't see an option for cutting twice. Is there a way of cutting twice direct from Inkscape, or should I convert to a DFX file and load into the Silhouette program and cut from there? Now to start the artwork for a station from the Tramways of the Correze and some vans and coaches. Mick Ralph Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
RMweb Gold JCL Posted March 29, 2014 RMweb Gold Share Posted March 29, 2014 Hi Mick, I don't know about the driver, that's Mike's area, but if there is no cut twice option, you can select everything, edit -> copy then edit-> paste in place (I think it's ctrl+alt+v). You will now have two drawings, one on top of the other, so the cutter will cut twice. You might not want to save this as it could be painful separating them later if you don't use layers. Or, as you say, you can use Studio. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
MikeTrice Posted March 29, 2014 Author Share Posted March 29, 2014 Mick, as Jason says, I cannot control the number of cuts from Inkscape and I use Jason's suggested method of copying the drawing as many times as I want cuts, so for a 2 cut then just duplicate once, for 3 cut duplicated twice etc. Do not use Ctrl-A then Ctrl-V or the duplicated entries will not align with the originals and will have to be moved. Instead having selected them (Ctrl A is OK for this) then use Ctrl D to duplicate them in place. Another option is just to print to the Silhouette and once it has finished, print it again. You can do this as many times as you like providing you do not eject the cutting mat and styrene from the machine until you have finished doing all the cuts and do not intend to do any more. The next version of Inkscape when it eventually appears promises to include better cutter control. Always good to hear of someone else taking the plunge and I am sure I speak for everyone else that we would love to see any photos of anything you make. Don't be frightened to ask any more questions should you have any. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
pete_mcfarlane Posted March 29, 2014 Share Posted March 29, 2014 I've gone down the 'print a second time' approach when I cut from Inkscape. It normally takes a few goes to cut through the plastic. Make sure that the plastic is firmly attached to the cutting matt or it may slip, and subsequent cuts will be out of alignment. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
MickRalph Posted March 30, 2014 Share Posted March 30, 2014 (edited) Thanks for the responses. I had not thought of duplicating the design for a second cut - shows the benefits of the forum! I did try cutting for a second time, but for some reason the two cuts were not aligned. The plastic was firmly attached, so I think that it may have been because it ran the alignment check between the cuts - I didn't unclick the box in Controller. I clearly need to run some more tests; and follow the other tutorials - I have made a few panelled coaches in the past by the David Jenkinson/Geoff Kent methods, but the ability of the Silhouette to prepare the panelling so precisely is amazing. I am off to the Correze for a month shortly, taking the cutter with me and I hope to come back with some stock and buildings made. The TC had some lovely stock and infrastructure. I will post some photos in due course. Thanks again for the encouragement of the tutorials. Mick Edited March 30, 2014 by MickRalph Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
simon br blue Posted March 30, 2014 Share Posted March 30, 2014 Just a thought, could this process be used to cut clear plastic for windows for printed models? Simon. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
MikeTrice Posted March 30, 2014 Author Share Posted March 30, 2014 Yes you can. See here: http://www.rmweb.co.uk/community/index.php?/topic/79025-a-guide-to-using-the-silhouette-cameo-cutter/page-19 The only thing to bear in mind is there is likely to be a burr around the cut edge. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
RMweb Gold JCL Posted March 30, 2014 RMweb Gold Share Posted March 30, 2014 Hi Mike One thing about the burr, I've found that on ordinary styrene, it's reduced a lot if I do a first pass with the Amy Chomas scriber. I haven't tried it on clear plastic. My workflow, which includes cutting in studio, and this may be controversial, is to do the following: 1. Scriber set to sketch pen, thickness 33 (if I feel the need), 2. Blade 10, thickness 5 3. Blade 10, thickness 33, only once on .010" repeat on thicker styrene The speed is set to 1 at all times. I use these settings for .010, .015 and .020. I know there is the debate that the blade extends 1mm when fully exposed, which is a lot further than the .010" card is thick, but I've never had problems with mat scoring when using styrene. I've also saved these settings in studio because I've been known to forget to reset the instrument type to blade after using the scriber and I hate wasting the card. Tin helmet set to cranium mode. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
pete_mcfarlane Posted March 31, 2014 Share Posted March 31, 2014 One more piece of advice for doing multiple cuts from Inkscape - be sure that the cutting sheet and the plasticard on it are 100% correctly aligned when they go in to the cutter. I had some fun earlier when I wasn't paying full attention when loading the plasticard, and put in some plastic that was slightly wonky. Some of the subsequent cuts aren't in the same place, and you end up with a double image. 1 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
RMweb Gold JCL Posted March 31, 2014 RMweb Gold Share Posted March 31, 2014 Hi Pete, and I always, without exception use some tape to tape the plasticard down after one time when I'd left the cutter cutting my last piece of plasticard at the time for half an hour only to find it had rotated slightly. I've found that 3M Transpore medical tape is the best for me as it almost always comes off in one piece and doesn't remove the mat's glue. On Inkscape, I've been thinking about things it doesn't have that would be useful: A way to save the layout of the worktop so I don't need to reopen the layers, line style and alignment panels every time. Being able to put a colour code next to each layer that I can reflect in the drawing. This is useful when I've finished the initial drawing and I'm creating the individual layers Better cutting obviously (to come hopefully) A way to stop lines becoming wider when I stretch their length. This may be a setting that's already there, but I'm darned if I can find it. Guidelines snap to the middle of a line, not to one edge. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
MikeTrice Posted March 31, 2014 Author Share Posted March 31, 2014 On Inkscape, I've been thinking about things it doesn't have that would be useful: A way to stop lines becoming wider when I stretch their length. This may be a setting that's already there, but I'm darned if I can find it. Make sure the following option is turned off: Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
RMweb Gold JCL Posted March 31, 2014 RMweb Gold Share Posted March 31, 2014 There's so much to learn. Cheers Mike, it's been bugging me for a while. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
MikeTrice Posted March 31, 2014 Author Share Posted March 31, 2014 I am still learning. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
richbrummitt Posted April 1, 2014 Share Posted April 1, 2014 Guidelines snap to the middle of a line, not to one edge. It doesn't make sense because of the way you are using lines. You could create your construction geometry with filled rectangles and having the line set to none (black cross in the line style). Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
richbrummitt Posted April 1, 2014 Share Posted April 1, 2014 Make sure the following option is turned off: scale.jpg Incidentally the button immediately to the right sets whether the curved corners of a shape scale. It would be best to leave this 'off' for re-sizing coach windows, for example. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
RMweb Gold JCL Posted April 1, 2014 RMweb Gold Share Posted April 1, 2014 It doesn't make sense because of the way you are using lines. You could create your construction geometry with filled rectangles and having the line set to none (black cross in the line style). Hi Rich I suppose it depends on how you work. The way I work is to use the same thickness line across the whole drawing as the actual cut I'm making with the Cameo doesn't change thickness. My previous sticking point of lines changing thickness when I resized them caused me problems. The guide lines snapping to the edge and not the middle of the lines meant that when I then selected all and changed the lines to the same thickness, what previously lined up no longer did. It's not much of a difference, but was annoying. Obviously with that setting turned off it hopefully won't be a problem any more. I don't often use fills because when I'm drawing out the layers I like to use the wireframe idea to make sure that everything still lines up as expected at the end. If I don't want to see a particular layer I just turn it off in the layer palette. J Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
MikeTrice Posted April 1, 2014 Author Share Posted April 1, 2014 Jason, not certain if this solves one of your other problems or not. Two lines have been added and centred: Select one of them then choose Object-> Objects to Guides And you end up with a guide line centred on another object: You can also set the snap settings so an object's midpoint snaps to the guide. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
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