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What size are these letters Kev? 3mm is just about the threshold I reckon for successful stencils with Silhouette. I agree with Gene, I’d do them as two separate masks. Sounds like you’ve increased your blade depth rather than reducing it, I’d go with Wuger’s settings but with a Force of 6. Max

Hello For this type of material (Oramask 810), use Depth 1, Force 10, Speed 5. As a reminder, each depth of the graduation corresponds to 0.1 mm. The Oramask 810 has a thickness of 0.08 mm.

Well, blade depth certainly wasn't the issue, as when I pulled the vinyl off the cutting mat, I discovered that in some areas it had cut right through both the vinyl and the backing sheet! Kev

Woody pointed me to the following article, where point #1 seemed to be the best fit for what I'm experiencing: https://silhouetteamerica.freshdesk.com/support/solutions/articles/35000206362-vinyl-lifting-off-backing-during-cut-job So the first thing I did was check the blade, and lo and behold, there was a big ole chunk of vinyl stuck to the assembly: This was from the immediately preceding cut job, however, and not the cause of the original problem. The next thing I did was slow the speed down to the lowest setting as suggested in the article, and use the 'test' function to see if the triangle-in-a-square was behaving properly - and it was not. So I slowed ratcheted the blade depth up a notch and tried again, but initially couldn't get the test cut to locate properly (hence the cut lines in the mat in the photo below). After sorting that out and doing a successful test cut, I decided to try printing the design, and if anything, the result was worse: At this point I'm going to abandon this approach, as even if it's solvable, I don't feel like wasting the time and vinyl on it. Instead, since the outside border needs to be white, I'm going to use the successful outside cuts I've already done to paint in the white, and then use the inside designs to print decals to go over the white painted sections. As long as the decals print at the correct size relative to the masks (and I locate them properly on the model!), it should do the job. Thanks everyone for your input! Kev

The blade is dragging the Oramask off its backing while it's cutting, as suggested. Woody has some great pointers. When the outside edges are cut, the Oramask is well tacked down around the cut, but when the inside edges are cut, there is not much stick to anchor the Oramask against the drag of the blade, so the cut shape is pushed, especially around sharp corners. You can avoid some of that by selecting Line Segment Overcut in the dialog box where speed, force, etc is set -- it's under "More", as is Track Enhancing (which may also help). However, on very small text, Overcut could cut too far into the mask, actually cutting pieces off. If the problem persists, the best bet, I think, is to cut the inside and outside as separate masks and then layer them. For very small text, decals are the way to go. Gene K

Thanks for your input, fellas. A bit of adhesive build-up on the blade certainly makes some sense, as it only has to happen once for the problem to be self-compounding. All my other cuts on that same sheet so far have been fine in that respect, and it's only the latest cut involving the thin border that seemed to trigger the issue. I'll take a look at the blade in the morning and check it for detritus. Stand by! Kev

Same problem here and I've come to the conclusion that it's the nature of the beast. The adhesive appears to stick to the blade and pulls the film up. Once this starts it leaves some adhesive residue on the blade exasperating the issue. Every time I try to cut a mask, it's another problem that has to be resolved, what worked yesterday isn't necessarily going to work today. My only suggestion would be to inspect the blade for even the tiniest hint of adhesive residue to worse, bits of the mask, or try a new blade. The other suggestion would be to reduce the depth of the cut. Do you see evidence that the blade has cut into the backing paper? if so, how much? If it appears distinct, try reducing the depth. It should be faint. But none of this addresses the issue of the inconsistency of the adhesive, which has been an ongoing frustration and discussed many times. My last batch of 810's adhesive was very aggressive and left residue on the model. Then I tried 810S and its adhesive was so weak it would hardly stick to the model. There's just so many variables that seemingly change for no logical reason, it's enough to drive a man to drink. Plan B (decals) is a less frustrating alternative. Good luck.

Kev, i am new to this, i recieved the portrait 2 days ago and still exloring, but may be you have to reduse the ''force'' or the ''speed''?? John

I managed to figure this one out for myself: basically, the settings in the "Send" panel had defaulted to 'cut edges' without me realising it, and making sure that it was set to 'cut' instead, fixed that particular problem: However, the cut still had some issues, with lots of lifting and displacement of the cut shapes: I'm not sure if this is completely salvageable to be honest, but also don't know what caused it, or how to prevent it happening again. I suspect I might be better served printing these particular examples as decals, rather than masks. Kev

Some of you will be aware of my 3D-printed BOMARC build happening on LSP. I'm at the point where I need to create some paint masks for its various markings, but have hit a bit of a wall with regard to creating the required US Air Force text. Creating the text itself was easy enough: just download the required Amarillo font and get the sizing close enough. The problem started when I tried to create the thin border that needs to go around most of the text. I used Silhouette Studio's 'offset' function to create the narrow border to produce what you see in the image below: The problem is that only the offset border gets cut! The internal lines are ignored completely. Then I read somewhere that if I use the "release compound path" function, I can separate out the internal elements (bottom example in the image above). This worked, but I had the same issue with the internal lines not cutting (i.e., the open elements in A and R). So, I'm at an impasse now. Ideally I'd like the upper version to cut with all lines in situ, but have no idea how to get Silhouette Studio to recognise all lines as cut lines. Can anyone offer any suggestions? Kev

Thanks a lot Max, i have it already on my hands!! Time to exercise myself a little hehe! John

Glad you found us John, you won’t regret buying a cutting machine, it opens up so many possibilities. Max

Not judging by the picture: I'm assuming the optional electromagnetic mat's "suck" would be limited to light material - I can't see it holding, for example, cardboard cutting. Will be interesting if we can cut masks on it. I routinely cut tissue, so will be getting that mat. Probably expensive ... . Gene K

Hmmm, Electrostatic Technology, don't need a 'sticky' mat. Interesting. That would mean that the material you're cutting has to go under the rollers. I tend to cut appropriately sized pieces and put them on the mat. I guess that would be more useful to folks who cut larger items.

Gene you are lucky ones over there!!! Some years ago i would order it directly from the US, nowdays that is ''forbitten'' due to the high shipping rates and customs!! Anyway, thanks a lot for your help!!! John

I understand, so Good luck! The new Portrait 4 will "only" cost a reasonable $200 here in the US. Unfortunately, it sounds like Silhouettes cost more in Europe ... for whatever reason. Gene K

The new batch of Silhouette hardware (Cameo, Curio, Portrait) is scheduled for "Fall 2023". Read about it here. After trials and tribulations with my Cameo 4, I purchased a Portrait 3 ... which suits me perfectly for masks. However, the added capabilities of the Cameo 5 will cost me a reasonable $350. Gene K

Thanks a lot for your answer Gene!! Yes i mean Portrait 3 not cameo, the machine i found is lightly used and almost 1/3 of the price of the new one, here in greece (almost 300 euro with the shipping costs, shipped to my town) so i think i will take my chances!!! John

John, I assume you mean Portrait 3 and not Cameo 3 - correct? (You said "cameo portrait 3") The Portrait 3 is great for vinyl masks, but not sure what you mean by "enough power". The machine easily cuts vinyl, and if wanted, the carrier also. Since the Portrait is relatively inexpensive, I would buy a new machine (which comes with a warranty and no risk of unknown problems) rather than take a chance on a used one. You'll be liking and using the machine for a long time! 👍 Gene K

Good morning gents, John from Greece, (a.k.a zaxos345 as an LSP member) I found a real deal on a used cameo portrait 3 machine, here in Greece and i want your opinion...is it enough power for custom masks on vinyl??? You see its dimentions are perfect for my available room in my cave!!! Thanks, John

Thanks a lot Kev!!!

What scales? Gene K

Welcome aboard, John! Good to see you here. Kev

Good morning, John from Greece (a.k.a zaxos345 as an LSP member) I dont have a cutting machine yet but i am thinking of buying one seriously! Very nice to find you here, a very good starting point to get an idea of how to create some masks!! John

View File 1/32 Scale US stars and bars Made this file for stars and bars mask for a P-51. Scaled for the different sizes. Printed them on Tamiya sheet paper on a silhouette portrait 3, blade depth 1, force 6, speed 1, pass 1. There was very minimal lifting on a couple star points but using a rubber cuticle pusher, was able to return the points to their correct position. Submitter Dan_103 Submitted 09/10/2023 Category U.S. - WW2