Choose The Right Blade for Your Vinyl
Which blade to choose when cutting HTV? First of all, if you own a vinyl cutter and use it to cut CAD-CUT heat transfer vinyl, you should know there are different blades for different heat transfer vinyls. If you are experiencing a poor cutting result, it might be your blade. Here are the top five things to consider:
- For example, you should use a 60° or 1.5mm blade for thicker media like CAD-CUT GlitterFlake or CAD-CUT Soft Foam.
- Any heat transfer vinyl that is thicker than 127 microns, you should switch to a 60° blade. For Graphtec, switch from the 45° 0.9mm blade to the 45° 1.5mm blade for thicker vinyl.
- Use Premium Carbide or 1.5mm blade for stretchy vinyl. The stronger metals in these blades will help reduce friction when gliding across rubbery or coarse textures.
- In addition, make sure the blade is compatible with the cutter brand. Blades are not all universal between vinyl cutter brands; Roland DG and GCC just happen to fit the same blades in their blade holder.
- One more thing, make sure you have the appropriate blade holder, or better yet, an extra one! Graphtec vinyl cutters come with the blue tip blade holder and 0.9mm blade. If you need to cut thick media with a Graphtec, use the 1.5mm blade and red tip blade holder. Using the right blade types with their own blade holder will increase the longevity of the blade and holder over time.
Bonus Tip: Change your blade regularly! If you’re having issues cutting a material, the first thing to do is change the blade. Here are more top tips.
For help in deciding which blade to use with your heat transfer vinyl, download the CAD-CUT® Material/Blade Quick Reference Chart.