Originally Posted by Onebyone
(Post 7799310)
My sew group found out that the surface the mat is on plays a big part in cutting. We had a mat on on table and the rotary cutting was horrible. Skips and had to use a lot of pressure. Same mat and cutter on another table top and it was like cutting butter. ?
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I used to mow through blades very quickly until someone on an online forum asked if I was tipping the cutter blade inward against the ruler. That was it!
hugs, Charlotte |
My blades used to wear out a lot and I had been using a large off brand mat from JoAnn Fabrics. It was not until I bought a new mat (Big Mat) as a quilt show special from Sewingemporium.com that I realized a good quality mat does make a difference. Once I got it, the blades did not have to be changed as often as before.
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I have found this to be true even though I use the same brand blade with the cutter. I switched cutting surfaces. I either use my kitchen table or my new cutting surface. No give whatsoever. Any give will also throw you off (make you wobble slightly). Makes a difference.
Originally Posted by Stitchnripper
(Post 7799312)
I can use any blades in any of my cutters, Olfa, Fiskars, and I think I have an off brand. I finally figured out why some places I cut are better than others. It has nothing to do with the blade (although a sharp one helps) or the mat or the combination of mat and blade. Speaking only for me, it has to do with the kind of table. I have one that sort of "gives" in the middle when I exert any pressure on the cutter. It always happens in the same place, so I move cutting places and it is better. Go figure. The surface the mat is on really does count!!
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I generally don't realize how dull my blade is getting until I change it and wonder why did I wait so long as I'm just zipping through cutting with little effort. I guess I need to make a mark on a calendar as blade changing time.
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