I started using my new Silhouette Cameo 5 Alpha the other day. My first job was creating Danish roundels for the 1/48 Scale Hawker Hunter I am working on. These are pretty small - around 9 mm (~1/4") - with the side ones being smaller at 7 mm.

My first attempt was terrible - see the first picture. The following day I started doing a lot of testing, and the first culprit I found was the "Intelligent Path Technology". Turning that off definitely helped. Down below you see some of my new results. The new ones uses 1 or 2 passes, 5-6 for force, and blade depth of 2 to 3. All produce mostly similar results, with the nod going to 2 passes. Using Artool Ultra Mask. Also did a cut on a Tamiya masking sheet - similar results.

As you can see the circles are not really - well - round. These probably would be acceptable if I had no other options (i.e. decals), especially if I cut multiples and hand picked the best ones. But this is not really what I was expecting.

My question: Are my expectations too high? Should I be able to have cleaner and rounder circles at this size?

PS: I have ordered some new blades (Graphtec 09 - 60 degrees - though I think they are knockoffs). Order from a recommended store on eBay with many claiming they got much better results on intricate details.

To be clear - the ones below are when using "INTELLIGENT" path technology - defintely turn THAT one off.

Edited January 12Jan 12 by Henrik
Making clear that one of the cuts were using "Intelligent Path" - that produced much worse results

I think it's not unreasonable to expect better results than that, but I can't really give you any concrete advice, other than to perhaps try some Oramask if you have some. If you can afford to sacrifice the material, it might be worth setting up a series of circles to cut on a single sheet, starting with something fairly large, and then decreasing by increments in size, right down to where you are having problems. Then see if there's a particular size boundary below which you start to see issues. It won't help solve the problem, but will at least give you an indication about whether the issue is related to the size of the circle, or circles in general. If the latter, then there could potentially be an issue with the settings or hardware on the machine.

Kev

That is really poor results and yes you should expect much better results IMHO

I'm not familiar with the Cameo 5, but I have the Portrait 4 and it cuts precise circles, squares, insignia's, letters, numbers, etc consistently

I use Oracal 810 vinyl or tamiya sheets

From a settings perspective in Silhouette I do one pass and 1 or 2 depth

Seems there's something weird going on for you

I have that happen using "gold mask" from FBS. Is there any difference between Artools Ultramask and the vinyl films from Oracal? They do look and feel very similar.

That being said, I have mostly been tinkering with the machine without the cutting mat. I have not had the opportunity yet to try the same cuts with the mat. That is the mat delivered with the machine, there are others that are more sticky and less sticky.

Also, the speed settings could have an effect on how well it handles changes of direction. Like someone mentioned somewhere about 3D-printing settings, try changing one variable at a time when learning the machine so as not to confuse what changes have what effect.

I would not use more than one pass for masking sticker-material and might experiment with multiple passes cutting masks from mylar, cardboard or foam-sheet.

8 hours ago, Kevin Futter said:

I think it's not unreasonable to expect better results than that, but I can't really give you any concrete advice, other than to perhaps try some Oramask if you have some. If you can afford to sacrifice the material, it might be worth setting up a series of circles to cut on a single sheet, starting with something fairly large, and then decreasing by increments in size, right down to where you are having problems. Then see if there's a particular size boundary below which you start to see issues. It won't help solve the problem, but will at least give you an indication about whether the issue is related to the size of the circle, or circles in general. If the latter, then there could potentially be an issue with the settings or hardware on the machine.

Kev

I can certainly do what you are suggesting. I also have 810S already, and can try that as well. Since the issue seems to be more about accurate circle tracing I am not sure it will help, but no harm trying. Like I mentioned I tried Tamiya sheets and no real difference

3 hours ago, talbot said:

That is really poor results and yes you should expect much better results IMHO

...

Thanks Talbot - that is what I thought. Very helpful to know another Silhouette machine appears to do better. I may try to reach out to Silhouette, but based on what I am reading about their customer service, I am not holding my breath.

7 minutes ago, snigel79 said:

I have that happen using "gold mask" from FBS. Is there any difference between Artools Ultramask and the vinyl films from Oracal? They do look and feel very similar.

That being said, I have mostly been tinkering with the machine without the cutting mat. I have not had the opportunity yet to try the same cuts with the mat. That is the mat delivered with the machine, there are others that are more sticky and less sticky.

Also, the speed settings could have an effect on how well it handles changes of direction. Like someone mentioned somewhere about 3D-printing settings, try changing one variable at a time when learning the machine so as not to confuse what changes have what effect.

I would not use more than one pass for masking sticker-material and might experiment with multiple passes cutting masks from mylar, cardboard or foam-sheet.

The Ultra Mask might be a little lighter. I'll try to use the 810S.

I did a total of 12 pairs of cuts with one variable changing from cut to cut. Other than the "Intelligent path" it was all very close (as long as I the sheet cut through). I did change the speed from 5 to 2 - appeared no better than the others. The two pass seems to clean up the knife entry point - maybe that is why it looked better? Acceleration is set to 1.

I realize this may be a bit much to ask, but could I possibly ask one of you to cut a donut like above (5 mm and 2.5 mm radius and post it? At a distance these look kinda OK.

In on of the other posts on the Cameo 5, the cuts looked very similar to mine - never saw if it improved. I may ask on that thread.

FYIW - I am using the standard mat (so can't imagine it is slipping). The circle themselves are using the circle tool in Silhouette Studio. I did try to convert one of the to a path (don't really know what difference it makes). Didn't makje a difference in the result.

Thanks for your inputs/suggestions - I'll post results tomorrow!!!

Later this eve i‘ll give it a test

1 hour ago, talbot said:

Later this eve i‘ll give it a test

Thanks Talbot - that would be very helpful.

Below is the new tests I did based on the feedback from Kevin and Snigel. Left is Oramask 810S, right is Artool Ultra Mask. I used the same settings for both. Artool had a slightly harder time separating, so probably could use a little more force or depth. (Force 6, Speed 3, Passes 1, Blade Depth 2, Acc 1, All other options off)

The outer donut looks good - the inner still irregular on both. Both show the knife start point (note the circles were repositioned so not exactly a match). Notice the Ovals i did - here the start and end point on the OUTER circle is off.

I am fearful it is a little bit like pixel peeping - once you get really close it looks worse that it really is. Still - with my naked eye and close inspection you can see the inner roundels (which is the correct size for post 60s RDAF aircraft in 1/48) are not perfectly round. And that is ignoring the knife entry tear, and the Oval offset...

what you have there is much much better results, definitely better

I created simple circles at 5mm and 2.5mm, centred them both and then put a small cutout square around them

printed two of them on oramask 810

similar to yours, there are slight imperfections on the cut the closer you zoom in, personally nothing that I would be overly worried about

i've also been trying to compare the absolute round, initially they looked ok, then perhaps off slightly on the lower right a bit

but at this point my eye's are probably done for the day after work and looking back and forth between them isn't helping

pics are on a iphone, about an inch off the mask

note the 3rd pic is the sections peeled off, thus not correctly centered

36 minutes ago, talbot said:

I created simple circles at 5mm and 2.5mm, centred them both and then put a small cutout square around them

printed two of them on oramask 810

Thanks for doing that, Talbot! Really appreciate it.

Your results look comparable to mine. I would say it may just be reaching the limits of what the Silhouettes can do (and these are small) with a standard setup. The large magnifications make it looks worse than it is, though I would still only characterize them as "acceptable". For my Hunter I went ahead and used the Paulus Victor 'Dirty Danes' decals I had. I will be building several other RDAF aircrafts, but several of them have bigger roundels (2x) so should be less of a problem.

I know there are better machines out there. I wonder if a Cricut will do better? Anyone care to chime in with a test? Please!

I will try the new Graphtec knifes I ordered when they get here - hoping they might improve the results.

Thanks for everyone's input.

Henrik

no problem, interested to see how you make out with the Graphtec

Looking at the pictures, I can think of six possible causes.

1. Is the firmware faulty?

2. Is the cutting blade still sharp or worn out?

3. Are the current cutting settings correct? Cardboard, paper, vinyl, etc.?

4. Is the correct blade being used? Auto Blade B or another blade? Is the cutting blade compatible with my machine?

5. Is the design too small?

6. Does the cutting mat still have sufficient adhesive strength?

It all sounds strange, but these are possible causes for poor cuts.

For example:

once set my Brother plotter to half cut because I had just cut vinyl. Days later, I needed to cut out an advent calendar for my wife and forgot that the "half cut" setting was selected. Naturally, the cuts were then faulty. I hated the plotter because it wouldn't cut properly anymore. After a cup of tea and coffee, I started troubleshooting and found the problem in the settings. A checkmark was present, which I then removed. And lo and behold: the plotter worked properly again!

I would have expected better (using Portrait 3 with Artool Ultra Mask), but most of the solutions have been mentioned already. As a last resort you could try superimposing two masks with the imperfections in a different place, so the net result is a circle. Other than that, post-spray touch-up with a brush is not ideal, but could be acceptable.

On 1/10/2026 at 11:34 AM, Timbacat said:

Looking at the pictures, I can think of six possible causes.

1. Is the firmware faulty?

2. Is the cutting blade still sharp or worn out?

3. Are the current cutting settings correct? Cardboard, paper, vinyl, etc.?

4. Is the correct blade being used? Auto Blade B or another blade? Is the cutting blade compatible with my machine?

5. Is the design too small?

6. Does the cutting mat still have sufficient adhesive strength?

Thanks Timbacat for your input - here is answers to some of your questions

2. Brand new auto blade (cutter is brand new)

3. Believe setttings are correct - started with recommended settings from here, and made adjustments (over a dozen cuts using one variable at a time). Only major improver was talking the "Intelligent Path Technology" off.

4. Blade that came with my new machine.

5. THAT IS THE QUESTION - I assume you mean the cut, not the design (it is a vector circle using Silhouette Studios "circle")

6. Yes - standard mat. Actually too adhesive, if you ask me. Definitely not moving.

See below

5 hours ago, MikeC said:

I would have expected better (using Portrait 3 with Artool Ultra Mask), but most of the solutions have been mentioned already. As a last resort you could try superimposing two masks with the imperfections in a different place, so the net result is a circle. Other than that, post-spray touch-up with a brush is not ideal, but could be acceptable.

Thanks - might work. Though the circles themselves - ignoring the knife entry - are not perfect round.

Given that Talbot had similar results using his Portrait 4, I am not sure it is a firmware issue, but rather we are looking at a very small circle with imperfections magnified. Per earlier posts I look try some different knifes as well.

I really would love to see the results from others (Cricuts?, other brands? more silhouettes). It is a simple double circle with RADIUS of 5mm and 2.5mm, so diameter of 1 cm.

Thanks to all of you!!!

Regardless of the machines we use (Brother, Cricut, Silhouette), they are simply hobby plotters, not professional machines.

Of course, the plotter's drive mechanism (gear, spindle, belt) also plays a significant role. These factors affect the plotter's price range and accuracy.

The smaller the object, the greater the inaccuracies during plotting. These plotters were actually designed for hobby crafting (greeting cards, etc.).

A test print with a Cricut Joy showed that even the circle wasn't perfectly closed (offset). The circle diameters were 5mm and 2.5mm. With larger circles, such as those used in 1/72, 1/48, and 1/32 scale, everything was fine.

Therefore, I believe that these very small circles are inherently not 100% round due to the design of the hobby plotter. That's why I asked in point 5 whether the object, design, or graphic was large enough and not too small.

Should I need such very small circles, I would buy them from the respective mask manufacturers (for example: Omask X8001, X8002, X8003 and many more). The circles start at 1mm.

Edited January 12Jan 12 by Timbacat

8 hours ago, Timbacat said:

Regardless of the machines we use (Brother, Cricut, Silhouette), they are simply hobby plotters, not professional machines.

...

Thanks Timbacat - I think you answered my original question. My expectations were too high...

I would point out the RADIUS, not diameter, of the circles were 5mm and 2.5mm - and those are the correct 1/48 scale size of the Danish roundels on the Hawker Hunter since the late 60s (and also on every other RDAF fighter aircraft since - F-100, F-104, Draken and F-16). Fortunately I do have options to get these in decals, and I also really like your idea of buying pre-cut round stencils.

I bought the cutter in the hope I could use this for the Danish aircrafts I had planned. There will of course be other uses of it, but still a little disappointing.

@Henrik

I understand your disappointment! But believe me, you can plot other masks, and over time you'll learn a lot more about mask creation, making your masks even more precise.

There's no shame in buying such small circles from suppliers.

Perhaps this will help you: https://kitmasx.com/search?q=circles&options%5Bprefix%5D=last

Edited January 13Jan 13 by Timbacat

10 hours ago, Timbacat said:

@Henrik

Perhaps this will help you: https://kitmasx.com/search?q=circles&options%5Bprefix%5D=last

Actually that is VERY helpful. I searched for something like this yesterday and had no luck (the Omask don't ship to US anymore due to tariffs). Wish they went to 10mm (5mm radius), but I can cut those myself - less noticeable than the inner circles.

And yes - it is still useful for other things. Right now I am crating the desk masks for a Tamiya Fletcher 1/350 - I tried to manually mask the paths on the deck (~2mm wide), but couldn't. The new cut masks work perfectly. Will post them soon.

Also I am receiving the new 60 degree knifes today - will report back what the results are.

Received the Graphtec CB09 blades - but they don't fit the Cameo 5. Ordered adapter which will be here Friday, though it appears I also have to use a Dremel tool to make it fit in that. Sigh...

Those circles are pretty poor, and your expectations are certainly not too high. I choose not to use any of the “helpful” gizmos in the software, I draw all of my shapes from scratch and cut using a single pass, force 6 or 7, and blade depth 5, this all using Oramask 810 only. My Silhouette is now 12 years old so newer models shouldn’t be experiencing these difficulties.

4 hours ago, Mozart said:

Those circles are pretty poor, and your expectations are certainly not too high. I choose not to use any of the “helpful” gizmos in the software, I draw all of my shapes from scratch and cut using a single pass, force 6 or 7, and blade depth 5, this all using Oramask 810 only. My Silhouette is now 12 years old so newer models shouldn’t be experiencing these difficulties.

Thanks - i was hoping they would be better. However, the circles are very small and imperfections do get magnified when taking close ups.

Would it be possible for you to try and cut a 10 mm outer diameter and 5 mm inner diameter circle and check the results (5 and 2.5 mm radius)? It seems others who thought my results were bad got similar results on their machines. It would be very helpful. Thanks!

Away from home at the moment Henrik but will do it as soon as I’m back.

Max

1 hour ago, Mozart said:

Away from home at the moment Henrik but will do it as soon as I’m back.

Max

Greatly appreciate it! There is no hurry of course - but it will be helpful!!!

Here you go Henrik:

Settings as mentioned above using Oramask 810.

26 minutes ago, Mozart said:

Here you go Henrik:

...

Well - that looks better! You are using more force and a much deeper blade (assuming they are comparable) than the other recommendations, and also what I tested. You can see traces of the blade entry, but not nearly as visible as mine. I will definitely have to try again. BTW - just to confirm - that is 10 and 5 mm in Diameter, correct?

I re-did some cuts but had to lower the blade depth again back to 3. I also lowered the speed to 1. I might be getting better results, but the circles still seem less round that yours, and I still get an entry tear bigger than yours. I have determined the Oramask 810S produces better results than the Artool Ultra Mask.

Would you expect 810 to produce better results than 810S? Seems they would be similar in that aspect?

BTW i did receive the Adapter set and was able to try out the ebay Graphtec 09 blades. Does NOT work well. Have to make the blade stick out much more than the Silhouette blade in order to cut, and the cuts are NOT clean. Been doing a lot of research, and getting very mixed messages. Appears the blade holder protrudes more than the standard Autoblade holder, causing issues - but then it is all very confusing, and am pretty much giving up on it.

Mozart - can't thank you enough! For now I think I will put it aside, and accept the apparent limitations...

You’re welcome Henrik, but before accepting any limitations, because there aren’t any excepting letter sizes that can be cut, please try some 810 rather than the 810S. And yes, as I have cut on that example, 10 and 5mm circles, which also means you can see how small the letters are.

Max