Plotter Cutter Purchasing Basics

Written By Eisla Sebastian

A plotter cutter is similar to a regular wide-format printer, except that it uses a cutting blade instead of a writing stylus or printer head. Instead of adding ink to paper, it cuts shapes out of raw materials, often vinyl. Plotter cutters are used to create packaging prototypes, signs, and to cut out letters. Cutting plotters can be set up as a single function devices, or as multifunction tools that can both print and cut. If you are interested in buying a plotter cutter for your business, there are a few things you need to know.

Basic features of a plotter cutter
If you are looking for a basic plotter cutter then there are three main features that you will want to examine.

• First, look at the size of the machine. Since size is going to impact the cost of the machine, you don't want to buy a cutting plotter that is oversized for the projects that your company does. On the other hand, you also don't want to buy a plotter cutter that is too small to handle the projects you have on deck.
• Next you will want to look at the cutting force of the machine. Most machines will have a range of cutting forces that you can select from such as a cutting force range of 30 to 500 gf (gram force), so ask the dealer what cutting force is required for your application.
• The final feature to look at is the cutting resolution. The cutting resolution will determine the fineness of the lines and grooves that you will be able to make. Cutting resolution is usually measured in millimeters per step.

Example of a plotting cutter with printing
One example of a combination plotter/cutter is the Roland Colorcam PC-600 Plotter & Cutter. This machine can print on wax or resin and it has a printing resolution of 1200 dpi. The printing feature can be used to create photo-realistic prints or it can be used for contouring. The cutting parameters for this machine include a cutting force of between 30 and 200 gf and a cutting resolution of 0.025mm/step.

Whether you want to create decals, signs, heat transfers, displays, labels, packaging prototypes, short-run color graphics, or other materials, there's a plotter cutter out there that can match your needs. Start by finding an experienced dealer in your area – free.