Fcx2000 measuring media size???

[Joel golden]

Hey guys, just got a used fcx2000-60 for some projects that require some downforce not achievable on my summa cutters. The user manual is pretty limited as are any tutorials of in field use. I’m just wondering if it can detect media size. I’m in flexi and it it looks to all be user input? My jobs are all on 12” material but some run 11.8” of that. If not, what is the best and most accurate way to set that origin?

Thanks!
(It’s been 5 years since I’ve used a graphtec so I’m chipping away at the rust in that part of my brain!)

 

[cmoist]

Did you happen to buy the one that was just on eBay for ~$6500?

It won't detect media size. You'll set your XY origin by moving the blade to a point and pressing the origin key on the cutter. If you're only using 12" of the bed, I'd recommend covering the rest of the bed with another piece of vinyl. The vacuum hold down will work better if the entire bed is covered.

 

[Joel golden]

Yep, that’s the one I got. That seller is honestly an awesome guy (threw in quite a bit of accessories that were not listed). I did my first cuts on it today. Just set the material parallel to the edge of the mat and set the origin manually.

The vacuum is a bit louder than I thought but that’s going to be in a different room once the new shop is built. The machine is a bit slower than I thought but I was able to run a thick vinyl with substance g25 on it and cut some pretty intricate stuff… my summa s2T’s can’t get that in one pass and won’t track straight enough for multiple passes.

 

[cmoist]

Good for you. I was trying to get him to come down on price a bit more, as it would have been a second FCX for me and didn't really need it. He did seem like a very nice guy.

I built a box around my vacuum and it helped a lot but you have to watch temps. They are certainly slower than roll cutters, but are very accurate and can cut fairly thick media. I cut 30mil magnet almost exclusively.

As an aside, if you decide to go a different direction, let me know!

 

[Joel golden]

Well, the original plan

Good for you. I was trying to get him to come down on price a bit more, as it would have been a second FCX for me and didn't really need it. He did seem like a very nice guy.

I built a box around my vacuum and it helped a lot but you have to watch temps. They are certainly slower than roll cutters, but are very accurate and can cut fairly thick media. I cut 30mil magnet almost exclusively.

As an aside, if you decide to go a different direction, let me know!

the original plan was to build the shop and buy a summa or Zund. The shop build and some unexpected medical expenses dropped that budget like a rock, so this will do for a couple years. I just a lot of the substance G25 over printed vinyl so we are close to 30 mil as well. I did get an order in from a large electronics manufacturer for a custom product as well, that paid back about half of what I paid already..

I do have a blade question for you, I have 2 of the brass tip cb15 holders and he gave me about 60 blades for it, mostly 45°, all Chinese cemented tip blades. Do you have better luck with oem graphtec, clean cut blades or do the price of the cheap ones offset the longevity of the others?

 

[cmoist]

.9 blades - For regular vinyl up to 8-10 mil, I'll use China 45 .9mm blades and a plastic tip holder.
1.5 blades - For magnet, I only use 60 from clean cut with a red top brass tip holder. The graphtec blades are fine too, but the price is too high. I tried some of the chinese 60 degree blades and they just don't last. They chip or dull. The clean cuts are sub $20 if you order 5 at a time and use code "forum".