When my cutter skips the first time, I change the blade. I don't wait for the second skip. My blades last a long time because I sharpen before they get dull. In other words, sharpen a sharp blade. I use the Grace sharpener that you don't have to take the blade out of the cutter so it's easy to run through it. I give it a run through every so often when I'm cutting. If the blade gets a nick it is a goner. I buy a new complete cutter every so often. It is plastic and the parts do wear out causing the blade to not stay on a true straight line when cutting.