ARGH! My brand new S&C mat is ruined!

[MaryAnne]

I am so very annoyed.

I treated myself to a S&C and bought an additional Standard Mat with it.
I cut some film to make a stencil, all good. I cut some images, again, all good.

I decided to try cutting foam and labels paper to make stickers. I stuck the label sheet to the mat, but because the images did not recognise as well as I hoped, I decide to remove the label paper and try reprinting before cutting. The backing of the label paper stuck so firmly to the mat, it ripped away only the top layer but not the backing!

I tried using the scraper tool to pry up a corner but that did not help. It seemed to remove the sticky layer as well.

I contacted the Chat service (this was yesterday so they answered pretty quick) and was told a few things. First that the low tack mat was recommended - I checked the Quick Reference guide and first tried the Low-tack mat but the paper seemed to shift when scanning. I saw that the Standard Mat was also ticked. She said soak it in warm water, I did, but it would not shift. One of the C&C ladies said warm water with a bit of dish soap in one of their videos so did that. Not a lot more luck. I ended up rubbing with my fingertips to remove the paper and after AGES it finally all came off, but so did the sticky layer!

I now have a completely useless mat with not on bit of sticky on it.

So aggravated. I mean I did TRY to follow the manufacturer's advice (Brother's not GUK's to be fair) but still....

I have read you can restick the mat but FFS. I didn't even use it once before it was ruined.
{sigh}

Just having a bit of a rant. Any advice? I did contact Customer Service but no idea how long it might take for some feedback there. And usually there is good help HERE and more immediate so...

[AndiDee]

I think we've all been there MaryAnne, so we feel your pain. There is a load of advice online - I put "cutting mat restick" in my search engine (Firefox) and got a whole bunch of hits and some time ago I bought a can of Plottix Freshmat - I think I got it from Graphtec but it was a while ago and I can't find it on their site now but there are other products out there that do the same thing. Some people on here use glue sticks which seem to work well. You could try giving the mat a good wash with some washing up liquid and a gentle scrub with a non stick scourer to clean it but be sure it is perfectly dry before you attempt a restick. Hope it works for you, and by the way thank you for keeping this site going for all these years and I do hope it continues.

Andi

[yiayia]

Hi MaryAnne - I have an old Robo which I still use fairly regularly. You probably remember that they also have a "sticky mat". I wash mine and when dry respray, very lightly, with 3M Spray Mount. I wonder if this would work for your problem?

[DJG]

I am so very annoyed.

I treated myself to a S&C and bought an additional Standard Mat with it.
I cut some film to make a stencil, all good. I cut some images, again, all good.

I decided to try cutting foam and labels paper to make stickers. I stuck the label sheet to the mat, but because the images did not recognise as well as I hoped, I decide to remove the label paper and try reprinting before cutting. The backing of the label paper stuck so firmly to the mat, it ripped away only the top layer but not the backing!

I tried using the scraper tool to pry up a corner but that did not help. It seemed to remove the sticky layer as well.

I contacted the Chat service (this was yesterday so they answered pretty quick) and was told a few things. First that the low tack mat was recommended - I checked the Quick Reference guide and first tried the Low-tack mat but the paper seemed to shift when scanning. I saw that the Standard Mat was also ticked. She said soak it in warm water, I did, but it would not shift. One of the C&C ladies said warm water with a bit of dish soap in one of their videos so did that. Not a lot more luck. I ended up rubbing with my fingertips to remove the paper and after AGES it finally all came off, but so did the sticky layer!

I now have a completely useless mat with not on bit of sticky on it.

So aggravated. I mean I did TRY to follow the manufacturer's advice (Brother's not GUK's to be fair) but still....

I have read you can restick the mat but FFS. I didn't even use it once before it was ruined.
{sigh}

Just having a bit of a rant. Any advice? I did contact Customer Service but no idea how long it might take for some feedback there. And usually there is good help HERE and more immediate so...

I use Pinflair stencil glue to retack my mat (Brother agrees to that being done). Just put a little drop of glue (about the size of a 10 pence piece) on the mat/wet a small sponge and spread the glue over the mat making sure you stay inside the lines where the rollers run and allow it to dry it will take about 30 mins to dry and will be very sticky. If you think it's too sticky for what you want to cut dab the mat with something cotton such as a tea towel to remove some of the stickyness. As Andi says wait until the mat is completely dry before retacking ........if you need to wash it again.

[DJG]

Hi MaryAnne - I have an old Robo which I still use fairly regularly. You probably remember that they also have a "sticky mat". I wash mine and when dry respray, very lightly, with 3M Spray Mount. I wonder if this would work for your problem?

As MaryAnnes is a new machine it would probably be best to use a Brother approved glue which is Pinflair stencil glue at least until the guarantee has expired

[pkcase]

Wipe the matt clean with baby wipes. Let dry 24 hours.
Use ZIG 2 way glue -- wide nib and put that on the matt. Photo attached or google it.
Let dry 24 hours.
This way works best for me and I have been using this method since 2013.
I hope you let us know how you get on with it.
Petrina

[MaryAnne]

I did see the Stencil Glue in a video from the C&C lady Mel, I think, but it is just so annoying that I did what they said and used the mat as instructed in the Quick Guide and now I've ruined it. I have seen a LOT of advice on fixing mats but I am still hopeful that I might get a replacement, because this really shouldn't happen. I have always found Graphtec to be good for customer service, going back to when I did have a Craft Robo so fingers crossed.

[Susie.A]

Oh MaryAnne what an utter pain especially when you've done everything correctly. I'm sure you'll get it sorted but as you say if you've followed their instructions and it has failed then a replacement would be good customer service under the circumstances. Good luck!