Help with blade

[PRINCESSRUTH2]

The blade works fine.But when it is cutting small circles some of the paper buckle(not a clean cut) and yet it cuts the rest okay.It is when
going round small images.Tried Brian's tips and the blade is fine. Thanks in advance

[ellygreen]

I have a similar problem where mine cuts fine on the left hand side of the mat but not quite all the way through on the right hand side.
Are you sure its the blade and not the mat? Is it a new mat?

[DJG]

As Helen has suggested it could be the mat. It might not be sticky enough in that particular place to hold the card/paper

[BrianP]

Either the blade is a little too high or it sounds as though the media may have peaks & troughs and when the blade hits a thin part it prevents the blade rotating cleanly so the blade gets pulled sideways, which buckles or lifts the corners of the card at the point. This is very common because cardstock is generally sold with a measurement of gsm, this means there is no indication or guarantee of the thickness or if that thickness is consistent, all we know about 250gsm media is that a square meter of it weighs 250 grams.

The only way to work out the thickness of the card is to either test cut a sheet in various places or to measure it using a micrometer, we use something like this: digital micronmeter which makes setting your blade really easy because you can measure each sheet and know which blade setting to use, e.g. 0.1mm = blade 1, 0.2mm = blade 2 etc.

What weight card are you using and which settings are you using?

[PRINCESSRUTH2]

Thanks for the info.My mat is over year old.The paper i am using is 160gsm satin paper.Blade3 speed2 and thickness 28.The blade is new.I shall
try a new mat and see what happens.
Princess

[BrianP]

For 160gsm, the blade should be on 2, thickness around 18-22 (depending on card), this is with a brand new blade.

[PRINCESSRUTH2]

Thanks Brian

[PRINCESSRUTH2]

Decided to clean my with a removeable glue spray.The old glue came off ,however i manged to make hole on the mat whilst scraping.So the mat is in the bin.
Well got new mat and my card (220gsm) was stuck to the mat.How i wish my old one was back.Do you have that problem
when using new mat.Any tips welcomed.Thanks

[DJG]

Yes it sometimes happens Ruth you can get a low tack cutting mats. You can also dab it with a cotton tea towel or old cotton tea shirt to get rid of some of the stickiness. When I clean mine I use an old debit or store card because there's less chance of digging a hole in it

[ellygreen]

Yes like Doreen says i dab my new mats with a cotton cloth not lint in them before use. I also use an old credit card to scrap my mats

[PRINCESSRUTH2]

Doreen, Helen and Brian all your tips worked.Used a new blade and mange to cut the settings Brain suggested.I could not believe that blade depth at 2
could cut the card.Found an old T-shirt rubbed it on the mat.Worked.Used the 160gsm card.Presto.

[ellygreen]

Doreen, Helen and Brian all your tips worked.Used a new blade and mange to cut the settings Brain suggested.I could not believe that blade depth at 2
could cut the card.Found an old T-shirt rubbed it on the mat.Worked.Used the 160gsm card.Presto.

So glad you were able to sort it out

[DJG]

Glad you got it cutting properly Ruth