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Crafting (paper) Cutter


chris
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I've recently acquired a crafting cutter to assist me with my modelling.

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It works in a similar fashion to the plotters that were all the range in the 1980s, except this cuts lines rather than draws them.

it can do very intricate and accurate cutting and scoring.

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I created a name sign to mount of the roof of a warehouse build. Which I then stuck to the backsence.

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But it's real value is in cutting and scoring bits for building 3D card models. Using cereal box and OHP acetate as my mediums I've created a kiosk for a cinema.IMG_7252.thumb.JPG.6ca6ae8203a8a0f22bdd0c739f6388e7.JPG

The accuracy is amazing. I used trigonometry to calculate that the strips that went above and below needed  to be 1mm longer it's scores nudged by 0.2mm so it wrapped round snuggly. IMG_7253.thumb.JPG.248e96f750e5e4ac254884df0e5e2875.JPG

The next step is to start working with styrene, but I will need to do some test cuts to get a feel what it can cut and score.

 

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Hi Chris, I am very interested in your  crafting paper cutter, what brand is and was it expensive to buy, could it print parts for winches like what you have just down, pretty awesome, could open up for other parts for the ship  I am building, .

Some I saw was $2000  ++.

Tony from down under.

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Hi Tony. It is a Silhouette Portrait and cost about £150.

The software is a bit clunky to use, but it has all the features you will find in graphics software and I got used to it very quickly.

It's great when you need to cut out a shape a few times, like window frames or lintels. Draw the shape and Copy and Paste it as many times as you need it and then let the cutter get on with the job.

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At the moment I'm making a lot of windows with my paper cutter. My technique is to laminate three laters of card to create the depth of the window frame and then glue it onto the background window pane. The cutter is so accurate it is easy to glue the pieces together using a cheap PVA which takes a while to go off and therefore give me the time to get them properly aligned before I leave them under something heavy so they glue flat.

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The kiosk for the cinema is now in the finished building.

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Its all rather chunky because it's On30 (1:48ish) and themed on a children's book.

Edited by chris
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16 hours ago, chris said:

At the moment I'm making a lot of windows with my paper cutter. My technique is to laminate three laters of card to create the depth of the window frame and then glue it onto the background window pane. The cutter is so accurate it is easy to glue the pieces together using a cheap PVA which takes a white to go off and therefore give me the time  to get them properly aligned before I leave them under something heavy so they glue flat.

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The kiosk for the cinema is now in the finished building.

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Its all rather chunky because it's On30 (1:48ish) and themed on a children's book.

I think it all looks charming in it's colourful eccentricity.  Totally brilliant!

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6 hours ago, roddy said:

I think it all looks charming in it's colourful eccentricity.  Totally brilliant!

Have to wholeheartedly agree with Roddy.

They look superb Chris and the results certainly justify the outlay on the machine.

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  • 8 months later...

When I bought the plotter-cutter a year ago I planned to do a lot of print and cut. But what I've found is that I've basically given up on cutting out stuff I've printed and I'm cutting from coloured card or painting the card I've cut.

I think this is because I'm finding that the stuff I print is fading, even when it kept in the dark loft. I may need to get a friend to do some printing for me to see how that holds up.

The stacking up of 3 layers of card to create relief is particularly effective and it feels more like you are modelling when you have to build up layers rather than simply stick some thing down that the computer has made.

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  • 5 months later...

As the weather switched from too hot for being outside to too wet for being outside I cracked on with an indoor task. My biggest project yet with the plotter cutter. 

The backsence to The Snicketway is currently stored in view. I decided that it was worth an upgrade. I searched the streets of Harlem for a prototype and found some suitable brownstones, painted in bright colours.656460590_Screenshot2020-06-19at11_55_44.thumb.png.1f822fb881004283b6375986d336c792.png

They were quite complicated. but I worked out that i could fit three of them in the space to replace two simple houses.

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Three of very similar design really plays into the strengths of the plotter cutter. The time spent on the design pays back three fold. I'd recently got some new sheets of card so had plenty of colours to choose from.

There were 3 or 4 nice challenges in the design. The roof line is fancy, and required several layers of card. The bay windows require a bit of trig to workout the angles. And I had 6cm depth and 9 width to play with the steps  and their right angle turn.

The plotter cutter is great for knocking out a paper prototype. A quick check that the layers are fitting together to create the right effect. It gets very confusing creating all the layers spread out on a sheet of A4 rather than on top of each other as they will end up. I built a prototype stairway first to check it worked.

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I spent a week on and off on the design. On Sunday I was determined to crack on and get it done. By 10pm. I had all the parts constructed, but all in separate sections.

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This is 12 different sections placed together  for a photo.

Monday was another mammoth build session. I joined the three main sections with a backing sheet and attached the rooflines.

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So far so good. 

It became apparent the the bay windows were too big for the building. They fitted, but didn't look right. I stuck them on anyway.

This was a mistake. I couldn't live with them, they looked wrong. I pulled them off. But having used Roket Card Glue, this ripped up the wall card.

I redesigned the bay window smaller. Built one. It was much better. New sections of wall were cut to cover over the trashed bit and two more bays were cut, built and attached.

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These fitted with the balance of the building.

The steps were added while trying to keep everything perpendicular, always tricky in 3D.

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And the result is rather impressive.

Still need to be added to the scene, bu this is where they will sit once I've removed the current housing.

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Edited by chris
typos
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One thing that adds to the time of designing with the plotter cutter is rearranging the cuts so they use the card efficiently. With black, white and cereal box card I don't worry too much, because I have plenty of it. But the coloured card is a rarer resource. I actually reduced the hight of these building by 1 cm to reduce waste.

However careful I am, there is still off cuts. Heres the pile form this last build.

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Another rainy day in lockdown. Another building upgrade for the Snicket Way.*

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I'm getting rather good at these now. Window frames are down to 1mm wide, which is fine enough for OO buildings.

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*actually took a couple of days to build, but in lockdown, who's counting.

Edited by chris
changed photo.
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