XY Cutter

[iPrintStuff]

Recently we’ve been getting a lot busier with large poster/vinyl jobs and currently everything gets cut manually. Which Hasn’t been a problem until recently as we mostly done signage/vehicle livery's/small scale runs.

so we’re looking into getting an XY cutter to automate it. We’ve had a few companies recommend fotoba and other similar cutters but looking for some real user experience.

that, or any suggestions on a flatbed cutter that won’t break the bank. I get that going right to a flat bed would save costs in the long run but how would a flat bed compare to, say, a fotoba with cutting a full roll of posters? Eventually would we need both or would the flat bed replace the XY?

really just looking for ways to automate as much as possible so I can continue being lazy so any help would be appreciated!

 

[Bly]

A fotoba is quicker and cheaper than a flatbed if you're only trimming roll stock.

 

[iPrintStuff]

A fotoba is quicker and cheaper than a flatbed if you're only trimming roll stock.

It’s mostly roll stock recently but getting more and more jobs on substrates too. Which we’ve been keeping up with fairly easily. It’s more of a fail to plan = plan to fail type scenario. Flatbed would be future proof now but currently we only really need the XY.

 

[SignMeUpGraphics]

A fotoba is quicker and cheaper than a flatbed if you're only trimming roll stock.

You don't happen do have one do you? We're looking into the Digitrim at the moment.

 

[Bly]

You don't happen do have one do you? We're looking into the Digitrim at the moment.

Not yet but if we start doing a heap more roll media with the new printer it will keep the Zund free for higher margin work.

 

[jasonx]

I have a 20TT, Digitrim 64, XLD170 and a new one on the way. Shoot any questions you want answered. I've run Fotoba's for 11 years now.

We used to also have a Rollcut.

 

[jasonx]

Recently we’ve been getting a lot busier with large poster/vinyl jobs and currently everything gets cut manually. Which Hasn’t been a problem until recently as we mostly done signage/vehicle livery's/small scale runs.

so we’re looking into getting an XY cutter to automate it. We’ve had a few companies recommend fotoba and other similar cutters but looking for some real user experience.

that, or any suggestions on a flatbed cutter that won’t break the bank. I get that going right to a flat bed would save costs in the long run but how would a flat bed compare to, say, a fotoba with cutting a full roll of posters? Eventually would we need both or would the flat bed replace the XY?

really just looking for ways to automate as much as possible so I can continue being lazy so any help would be appreciated!

If you are cutting roll based stock the Fotoba wins hands down every which way you look at it if you're doing it at volume. If I was to give an operator 300 A0 posters to cut on the zund versus the fotoba the fotoba Operator will finish a lot faster. We also have the stacker so basically the operator stands there and watches the machine. On a table like the zund the zund needs to stop cutting to advance the belt and feed the material forward. Now if you're just doing a lot of small one offs constant size changes the zund would win hands down. It depends on the volume of your cutting.

Another example are pull up banners. We print them 50 up on a roll and we can cut then down in around 10-12 minutes on the fotoba.

You also don't have the consumable of your belt on your zund etc which can add to the cost of cutting.

We change our belt around every 6 months and its around $4000 from memory. Cutting posters on the zund wears the belt more because you end up cutting in the same line more often.

 

[aparat]

HI
in my opinion cuts on a fotoba (or any other cutter with circular knifes) are much cleaner as the ones on a flat bet cutter where you have regular knifes installed (we allso have a FB cutter)
When buying a xy, i would allways take one with the X-squaring correction (i think is only available in fotobas - its patented) - so the digitrim or XLD.
We have a rollcut without sqaring, and its a great machine, but you have to put the roll 100% straigt in so it keeps runing straigt. but after half a roll, you will have to manually correct it. Our digitrim is allso great, but does not have vertical knifes, so you have 2 step cutting. we are now selling our digitrim and rollcut to get a XLD.

From other companies there are allso some (but i think all without squaring correction - some have some sort of Y-correction, but this is not the same..
- Neolt has one: https://www.neoltfactory.com/en/products/xy-matic-trim-plus
- Kala: https://www.kala.fr/en/produits/kalaxy_1650__65_-49.php
- Flexa: https://www.flexa.it/en/cutters-and-roll-slitters/miura-2

and there is one new china-copy thing but interresting: https://www.sign-in-china.com/produ...quaring_automatic_cutter_180cm_72_inches.html

 

[SignMeUpGraphics]

I have a 20TT, Digitrim 64, XLD170 and a new one on the way. Shoot any questions you want answered. I've run Fotoba's for 11 years now.

We used to also have a Rollcut.

What's the ballpark on a Digitrim 64 these days?
Getting sick of manually slicing stuff down on our Neolt X trimmer.

 

[jasonx]

What's the ballpark on a Digitrim 64 these days?
Getting sick of manually slicing stuff down on our Neolt X trimmer.

I'd be guessing. We've had ours for I'd say 10 years now. I think from memory it was in the 20's but I'm guessing prices have gone up since then especially with the dollar where it is now.

You can email Peter Maginn <peterm@budde.net.au> for an up to date price.

 

[iPrintStuff]

That’s all great info. I was just worried a fotoba etc would be rendered useless if we got the flat bed. Speed wasn’t massively an issue, more just automating tasks. But it’s good to know we’d still need them both if/when we eventually get them!

We’d likely get a stacker too as we frequently get huge jobs that need to be kept in order!

 

[jasonx]

That’s all great info. I was just worried a fotoba etc would be rendered useless if we got the flat bed. Speed wasn’t massively an issue, more just automating tasks. But it’s good to know we’d still need them both if/when we eventually get them!

We’d likely get a stacker too as we frequently get huge jobs that need to be kept in order!

My advice would be get the flatbed table cutter first. Once the volume and speed becomes an issue get the XY cutter.

That's what we did. We had the other two fotobas and when we needed to cut down the length at volume we added the XY fotoba. Now we have both options and can handle larger jobs.

All we need is another printer because I can't keep up at the moment.

 

[iPrintStuff]

Lol the printer is fine. The Colorado is running a full roll of posters In around an hour. Chopping them down in a manual cutter isn’t so fun though!

really appreciate the suggestions and will keep you all updated. Probably won’t be getting it for a couple months or so anyway. Get rid of the budget before the end of the UK financial year lol

 

[SignMeUpGraphics]

I'd be guessing. We've had ours for I'd say 10 years now. I think from memory it was in the 20's but I'm guessing prices have gone up since then especially with the dollar where it is now.

You can email Peter Maginn <peterm@budde.net.au> for an up to date price.

Thanks. Spoken to Peter in the past. Might be time to call him again to get a refresher. Last enquiry was several years back.

 

[Christian @ 2CT Media]

Where do you guys find the start point for needing something like this?

We are looking at getting a better flatbed, but maybe we need to consider other options along with it.

 

[GaSouthpaw]

You don't happen do have one do you? We're looking into the Digitrim at the moment.

Our shop has a Fotoba. It's a huge labor saver.

 

[aparat]

Where do you guys find the start point for needing something like this?

We are looking at getting a better flatbed, but maybe we need to consider other options along with it.

Start with a used digitrim, you can get one for cca 3-5k, if you have luck under 2k. If you do more then 10 posters a day, after one week you will wonder how you could live without this..

 

[iPrintStuff]

Where do you guys find the start point for needing something like this?

We are looking at getting a better flatbed, but maybe we need to consider other options along with it.

pretty much our situation aside from we don’t have a flat bed. We have a guillotine for the ACM and aluminium so that’s not a massive deal for us yet. Cutting roll stock is probably the most manual task we have so I think we’ll definitely get a fotoba before looking at a flat bed cutter.

Our guillotine for paper etc is only 520 wide so anything bigger than that is trimmed manually. Just had a run of 2125 posters that were 500x500. Very lucky that they weren’t slightly bigger or finishing wouldn’t have been quite as fun.

that being said, to get all the posters the same size, we set the Colorado to cut after each copy (2 up) witch took a LOT longer than just printing to a roll. (Probably about 6 hours a roll instead of an hour) So we’d have saved a couple work days on printing and it would have still been finished about 2 hours quicker. I.e about two days saved.

 

[bigben]

and there is one new china-copy thing but interresting: https://www.sign-in-china.com/produ...quaring_automatic_cutter_180cm_72_inches.html

That chinese one seems interesting. At almost 1/3 the price of a fotoba XLD. I will have to make more research about this one.

 

[SignMeUpGraphics]

Start with a used digitrim, you can get one for cca 3-5k, if you have luck under 2k. If you do more then 10 posters a day, after one week you will wonder how you could live without this..

Unfortunately due to the miniscule market here in Australia, used is a near impossibility