Cutting the line

[Vector01]

Like a lot of people, I find staying on line when cutting can be a pain in the a##! A while back I downloaded Paint.net (free graphics software).  When cutting a standard (in the black) pattern I tend to drift even when blade selection, tension, etc. is correct. I tried something different. I took the original pattern and turned it into a "pencil sketch" using Paint. I went from a hog butcher to a surgeon when cutting this way. The improvement in control was amazing. I believe, like target shooting, you pick a spot on the target and aim as opposed to shooting at the whole thing. I believe your brain allows you to focus more on the thin line than a larger black area. Might not work for everyone but it works for me. Added an example...

 

link...http://www.getpaint.net/index.html

[Fab4]

Hi Art:

That's certainly good to know

In previous posts it was mentioned that changing the color from black to red or light grey

also helped with seeing the line when you're cutting

Thanks for sharing your findings

Fab4 

[Scrolling Steve]

As Fab4 said, I find patterns with the grey background and contrasting red line much easier to ct!......Just my 2cents.

[CMHN]

I do the same thing, but I use Inkscape,  Make my cut lines black and the area to be taken away a very light gray.

[Frank Pellow]

Great advise, thanks.  I just tried what you suggest and it works well for me.

[redwine]

I have found that the thinner the line the easier it is to follow or stay on the line. If the pattern is mostly all black, try fooling your brain that by staying at the very edge of the black and visualize that it is a very thin line will help some what to cut with out drifting quite as much.

Erv

[Young_Scroller]

Thats good to know, I'll have to try that

[amazingkevin]

Years and years i followed the black line till someone said a red line or lt.gray is easier they were right!Tips and tricks!

[wombatie]

Thanks Vector that may come in handy.

 

Marg

[CharleyL]

I usually print my patterns with a 600 dpi laser printer so, unfortunately, they are always black, but at least the printer makes nice fine lines if they are fine in the original. I've learned to cut along side of the lines, on the waste side, wherever possible. I can see the black blade cutting next to the black line much better than keeping the black blade centered on the black line. It makes me wish that the blades were some other color. Of course, there are places on a pattern where neither side of the line is waste and then I have to center the cut on the line.

 

For improved lighting, two lights, one on each side of the blade, will help a lot to remove blade shadows and most of the strobe type flickering that comes from the upper blade grip. I have recently upgraded the lighting on my DeWalt 788 saw by installing an LED light on each side of the upper arm. They are on goose necks so they can easily be positioned slightly forward of the blade and aimed back and down toward the blade cutting point. I had to make a mounting bracket to attach them to the upper arm of my saw and remove the spring clamps that the lights come with, but two pieces of aluminum and two bolts later it was done. No modification of the saw was necessary, except for a slight trimming (about 1/16" off the rear bottom edge of the plastic piece that holds the speed control and power switch. A Dremel with a sanding drum did this quickly without the need to remove the plastic piece from the saw..

 

These lights are available from Lowes for $19.95 US each. 

 

http://www.lowes.com/pd_352725-47842-17783-003_0__?productId=3394398&store_code=2368&cm_mmc=SCE_PLA-_-FashionFixtures-_-DecorationsLamps-_-3394398:Style_Selections&CAWELAID=&kpid=3394398&CAWELAID=1023613436&k_clickID=6a8e8de7-eeb4-c789-6b39-000053097546

 

I'm extremely pleased how they provide so much nice white un-flickering light, and after running them all day the lamp heads never really heat up to more than just slightly warm. My hands were getting sunburned and I was frequently burning my forehead on the halogen lights that I had been using before these LED lights.

 

The power switches for the lights are in-line type, and routing the wiring back along the left side of the upper saw arm puts these switches alongside the rear casting of the saw, so I just mounted them there using double sided carpet tape and tie wraps. The power supply/plugs are plugged into a power strip that I have mounted to the left side of the rear leg of the saw stand, but the wires are long enough to reach a wall outlet if the outlet is within about 2' of the rear of the saw.

 

Charley

 

 

 

 

[Dave Monk]

Thanks for all the tips. dav

[LarryEA]

Soak it all in, some day it will all mix together and I'll .... know what to do.

[wbr]

I usually print my patterns with a 600 dpi laser printer so, unfortunately, they are always black,

 

I use a laser printer,I make my patterns in grey and it prints them in grey.

If I use a pattern made by some one else that's black I change it from black to grey in a photo program.

[CharleyL]

WBR,

 

My reference was meant to indicate the color of the lines, not the body of the image. Sorry, I wasn't very clear that time. The bodies of the images on my patterns are also done in gray. Having the laser printer print my patterns with the lines as sharp as possible is my goal, and because I'm using an old laser printer, the lines are always black.

 

Charley