CUTTING SPEED:
To achieve the best results, slower speeds may be recommended for thicker materials or designs that are more intricate. Always start slower and increase the speed until it is at the most speed but still gives you a clean cut.
THICKNESS SETTINGS:
Thicker materials will likely require higher Thickness levels. But please don’t set it to high, rather start lower and gradually move the setting up as the most common problem in clean cuts is too high thickness setting.
COOL TIPS:
Use the “normal” cutting settings for heavy card-stock BUT with the blade set on 4 or less. This will prevent the blade from getting jammed with small paper pieces
COMMON PROBLEMS AND SOLUTIONS:
Problem: The mat is too sticky. (this is common sometimes with new mats
Solution: Take a t-shirt and pat/rub it on the mat to remove some of the stickiness, works like a charm!
Problem: I still struggle with the Silhouette Cameo Mat that’s too sticky and it’s expensive what can I do?
Solution: If the steps above didn’t fix your mat and you are still unhappy, use a glue remover like Crafters
Companion’s Stick Away spray and clean it under look warm water with a sponge or dishcloth. Then
spray a light layer of removable adhesive like, Crafters Companion Stick n Spray, leave for 1 minute
to dry before placing your paper on it. Re-spray as needed.
SILHOUETTE CAMEO BLADE SETTINGS GUIDE:
ALSO IN THE MANUAL . . . HERE IS INFORMATION FOR YOU:
|
Blade Setting |
Material |
|
1 |
Thin materials such as vinyl and smooth heat transfer material |
|
2-3 |
Medium-weight materials such as paper, card-stock and flocked heat transfer material |
|
4-6 |
Thicker materials such as textured card-stock and pattern papers |
| 7-10 |
Thick materials such as canvas |
As it is very important to get the perfect cutting settings in order to assure a clean cut out of different paper. Therefor I am compiling a list of papers and the recommended blade settings for each paper. If you have one that is not listed, kindly let me know by emailing me or leaving a comment and I’ll add it to the guide. Kindly note this might vary a little depending on the humidity of your region. But by playing around you will get the perfect setting.
BLADE SETTINGS FOR SILHOUETTE MAGNET PAPER:
Blade 4, Speed 1, Pressure/Thickness 30
BLADE SETTINGS FOR FREEZER PAPER:
SPEED 3, THICKNESS 10, BLADE 1
CUTTING BAZZILL, CORE-DINATIONS OR OTHER CARD-STOCK:
Firstly the settings is not the same on all the different card-stocks.
Your cut settings should be determined by your paper thickness and the detail within your design. For very simple designs you will find that you can get a beautiful cut with your blade set on a depth of 4, speed of 3 and thickness set at 33.
However, if you cut a detailed design, you should bump up your settings to a blade depth of 5, speed down to 2 and thickness at 33. Then you will also want to click on the “double cut setting” on the right of your cut settings screen.
Silhouette Customer Service has recommended blade depth settings between 4-6 for Bazzill card stock. They also agree, that one setting, does not fit all situations.
How do you know whether the settings must be lighter or heavier? Here’s a few easy trouble shooting signs to watch for.
Problem: Paper cutting most of the design, but not quite all the way through…
Suggestion: make sure you have your “double cut” box checked (for detailed designs), or set your blade depth down one more level (for simpler designs.)
Problem: Paper cutting the design, but the corners of the design, where the blade turns, are “mucking up.”
Suggestion: slow down your speed, change your blade depth to cut a little lighter (if it’s on a 6 try a 4 or 5) Then make sure double cut is checked to ensure a complete cut through.
Problem: Struggling to cut a pearl paper/ usually used for card making.
Suggestion: These papers, like the Stardream & Curios Metallic range paper, is sometimes a little brittle. What I have found is to start low and do the test cutting, but if you still don’t get a clean cut I have fount putting my blade on 6 and doing a very low pressure (about 23) and a double cut, I get a perfect cut! Remember to carefully clean your blade before doing the next card! So just play around until you get the perfect setting. Then you can save it for next time.
When your corners start messing up with the paper pushing up, that means that the blade is pushing too hard for the details in the design, it needs to have less pressure and cut those corners more slowly twice in order for it to go smoothly around the bends.”You can also cut your textured Card stock with the textured side down. And when at all possible, I prefer the Bazzill Smoothie Card stock or Cutmates Card stock, I would always have plenty of white, vanilla & black smoothie or Cutmates on hand. It has an ultra smooth finish and cut settings is super easy.
CUTTING VINYL & METAL SHEETS:
| Vinyl Type | Speed | Thickness | Blade Setting |
| Indoor Vinyl – Oracal 631Outdoor Vinyl – Oracal 651Specialty Vinyl – Oracal 751Specialty Vinyl – Oracal 951Patterned Vinyl Heat Transfer – Easyweed Fluorescent Vinyl Ultra Glitter (adhesive)Polyester Metal see complete list below |
8 |
9 |
2 |
| Chalkboard Vinyl Dry Erase VinylInkjet Printable Vinyl – Adhesive |
8 |
9 |
3 |
| Heat Transfer – Stripflock Inkjet Printable with Laminate |
5 |
33 |
3 |
| Patterned Vinyl with Laminate |
8 |
15 |
3 |
| Heat Transfer – Glitter |
5 |
10 |
5 |
| Reflective |
8 |
12 |
3 |
| Glow-in-the-dark (double cut) |
5 |
33 |
9 |
| Etched Glass |
8 |
15 |
2 |
| PVC Metal see complete list below |
8 |
12 |
2 |
|
Polyester Metal |
PVC Metal |
||
| ChromeChrome BrushedGold ChromeGold Chrome Brushed Mist | Carbon Fiber Black,Carbon Fiber Silver,Silver Engine Turn Sm.Gold Engine Turn Sm.Silver Engine Turn Lg.Gold Engine Turn Lg.Silver LeafGold LeafDiamond Plate ClassicDiamond Plate Mini | ||
TIP:
To figure out the blade and thickness settings, I recommend that you use the “test cut” feature which cuts a small square with a triangle on your paper.
This will let you know if the settings are correct or if they need adjusting. Always start with the blade setting lower and use double cut before going up to a higher number.
By not doing so, you run the risk of breaking off the tip of the blade.
So for example let’s say you start out with your blade depth set at 3 and it doesn’t cut all the way through, first try it with double cut and if that doesn’t work, then try setting it at 4. If 4 doesn’t work, try double cut again and if that doesn’t work, then try 5, etc.
HOW TO CUT FABRIC:
I used a 12″x24″ canvas {you could very easily use wood instead}
Cut your fabric to 11.5″x 23.5″ and a piece of Clean Cut Silhouette Interfacing to 12″x 24″. Place the rough side of the interfacing to the wrong side of the fabric and iron {with fabric right side up} for 2 seconds.
Peel the fabric away from the paper backing.
Tip: Make sure all the adhesive transfers to the fabric. You’ll be able to tell because the wrong side of the fabric will be shiny and smooth.
Trim off excess interfacing adhesive.
Press the wrong side of the fabric onto the cutting mat. Make sure there are not bubbles and that the fabric lays flat.
Design what you’d like to cut.
Note: If you’re using the larger 12″x 24″ mat, you’ll need to change the length of your cutting area.
Load into your cutting mat. Instead of using the preset settings in Silhouette Studio for cutting fabric, I changed my settings slightly to: Speed: 3 Thickness: 30 and Blade: 4
This cut my light weight cotton fabric cleanly with no strings left. {if you’d like to see a screen shot of my settings, scroll down}
TIP: I very highly recommend doing a test cut before you cut your design to make sure the settings work well with your fabric.
CUTTING THIN PAPER CHIPBOARD: (SAME SETTING FOR THIN PLASTIC & STENCIL MATERIAL)
If you want to cut cereal box chipboard or a thinner paper based chipboard, the Cameo will be able to cut it. As long as the chipboard composition is not too brittle.
We use a white mat board that has a smooth texture and cut like butter.
Cut Setting:
Cut speed – 1, Blade Depth 4-7, Thickness/Pressure 23-30, Double-cut
PS – always start slower and lighter then increase your setting as you get the perfect cut with the test cut function.
CUTTING ICING SHEETS:
To be successful with using these icing sheets there are a few things you need to know.
First, do not remove the icing sheet from the clear backing page. You will apply the icing sheet to your mat with the icing sheet attached to the backing page. If you cut your icing sheet in half, or any size you need, be careful to not separate it from the backing page.
You can use the carrier sheet that came with your Silhouette, or you can use a plastic cutting mat. Whatever you use, make sure it is not too thick to go under the wheels of the Silhouette. Use scotch tape to attach the icing sheet to the carrier sheet.
Now that your icing sheet is firmly attached to the carrier sheet and loaded into the Silhouette, you are ready to cut your design. Before you begin cutting, make sure the icing sheet is clearing the rollers on the Silhouette.
The great thing about the Silhouette is not having to use cartridges for your designs. You use your own computer, and your own designs. Open the Silhouette Studio program and open the design you would like to cut.
This example is a full page, with a border, side designs and a message. I am able to cut all the design elements to decorate a cake with one icing sheet.
Your setting depends on what you will be cutting. I have found that if I set my media to CARD STOCK and my thickness to 20-25, I can get perfect cuts with the colored icing sheets. I have found that the colored icing sheets are just a bit thicker and firmer then the white icing sheets. They require more pressure. If you are cutting a white icing sheet, you may need to set the pressure (thickness) to 10 – 15. You need to make practice cuts with your Silhouette to get your setting just right.
When everything looks good then click on CUT PAGE and the Silhouette will cut your project.
MORE HELP
If you’ve tried all of these tips and settings and nothing works for you you may want to try this which is from the Studio Calico message forum.
Launch the silhouette studio soft ware
Go to file and click preferences
Under preferences you will see a tab that says advanced, click it
On the bottom right hand side you will see a column that says packet size
Click on the 500 bytes button do that it is selected, Press okay
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