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Post by christianj on Aug 4, 2013 22:58:08 GMT -5
I've been working on my tiles and it's been going good, but I can't seem to get a really straight line. Any advice would be nice. I do use a marker and a t-square ruler.
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Post by monkeywithtacos on Aug 5, 2013 1:05:24 GMT -5
I'll second this question as I have the same issue....no matter how careful I am I always have a cut or two that goes astray. (Sometimes more, lol)
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thedmg
Room Planner
Posts: 327
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Post by thedmg on Aug 5, 2013 5:01:20 GMT -5
Cut along the ruler with the craft knife. Also make sure the craft knife is not going blunt.
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goodoak
Cardboard Collector
Posts: 5
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Post by goodoak on Aug 5, 2013 6:25:27 GMT -5
I'd also add don't try and cut all the way through on the first go, score a line first and take your time.
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AJ
Room Planner
Posts: 315
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Post by AJ on Aug 5, 2013 7:40:40 GMT -5
Yeah, light, controlled cut, then apply a reasonable measure of force... craft blades are not known for their forgiveness of mistakes involving fingers and wooden table surfaces.
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Post by monkeywithtacos on Aug 5, 2013 7:57:02 GMT -5
Sharp blade...check. Straight edge to follow......check. Go slow....check. Clean cut.... sometimes not so check. =(
But I'll keep trying...lol
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Post by christianj on Aug 5, 2013 8:22:35 GMT -5
Thanks for the help guys. I guys my blade was a bit dull now that I think about it. The Scoring a line also helped a lot.
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justsix
Cardboard Collector
I will not be pushed, filed, stamped, indexed, briefed, de-briefed or numbered! My life is my own!
Posts: 41
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Post by justsix on Aug 5, 2013 9:10:16 GMT -5
I'll second the scoring advice. You want to take your time and score a line with almost anything you're cutting -- styrene, foamcore, cardstock, cardboard, etc. Taking two or three passes, increasing the pressure each time, will save you a lot of headaches...
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cogfus
Cardboard Collector
Posts: 4
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Post by cogfus on Aug 5, 2013 12:29:52 GMT -5
Triple down on scoring.
Another thing that helps is to focus on just processing the box down to ready-to-use chunks. I try to keep most of my tiles with a max of 9" playable area along one of the dimensions, so I just square one edge then measure a 10" section (extra inch for edging & errors) then slice it off. Repeat until the box is reduced to a pile of ready-to-use chunks.
I have a six foot long, three inch wide metal ruler I picked up for under $20 from Lowes that I use to score a couple of light, straight lines. Then I remove the ruler and slice deep (the razor blade can gouge the ruler, so avoid using the ruler+razor with any force). I cut up large boxes on the edge of a sidewalk, and lay the line to cut just over the edge.
I can chop up an entire refrigerator box into 10" wide strips of varying lengths in a little under two hours.
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Malachi
Cardboard Collector
Make it fun! Make it memorable!!
Posts: 7
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Post by Malachi on Aug 5, 2013 15:16:14 GMT -5
Cut along the ruler with the craft knife. Also make sure the craft knife is not going blunt. I spent my first day cutting my tiles with an older knife blade. Not fun. I now have 10 new blades ready for precise incisions.
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Post by gnomezrule on Aug 5, 2013 18:03:20 GMT -5
I did not see it mentioned. A metal ruler or a ruler with the metal along one edge is really helpful. Using a wood or plastic ruler the knife can cut into the ruler causing snags and dangerous jumps.
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thedmg
Room Planner
Posts: 327
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Post by thedmg on Aug 5, 2013 19:58:09 GMT -5
I did not see it mentioned. A metal ruler or a ruler with the metal along one edge is really helpful. Using a wood or plastic ruler the knife can cut into the ruler causing snags and dangerous jumps. Life has some risks, I like to live on the wood edge...
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luciano
Paint Manipulator
Posts: 202
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Post by luciano on Aug 5, 2013 20:27:23 GMT -5
Hello friends! I use a metal ruler (60cm) to give more firmly to the alignment cutting and wear a smaller stylus to be more accurate cutting.
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Post by m3talslime on Aug 6, 2013 20:08:44 GMT -5
Both of my small metal rulers also have a grip on the bottom side. Helps to keep things steady.
I admit to neglecting the "scoring technique." Paying attention to that will help a lot. Also, another thing I sometimes find mucking things up for me is not the lack of a straight-cut line, but the "\" or "/" in the angle of my cut (me tilting the blade unknowingly).
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Post by gnomezrule on Aug 7, 2013 19:55:00 GMT -5
I did not see it mentioned. A metal ruler or a ruler with the metal along one edge is really helpful. Using a wood or plastic ruler the knife can cut into the ruler causing snags and dangerous jumps. Life has some risks, I like to live on the wood edge... Random hopping Exacto knives from the makers of the vibrating shaving kit.
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thedmg
Room Planner
Posts: 327
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Post by thedmg on Aug 8, 2013 2:53:07 GMT -5
Life has some risks, I like to live on the wood edge... Random hopping Exacto knives from the makers of the vibrating shaving kit. Now that you could sell on late night TV with a Squishy!
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Post by nctheory on Aug 8, 2013 5:42:05 GMT -5
I've got an exacto knife. Doesn't work on everything, but if you need precision then remember shallow cuts.
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Post by pablopathfinder on Aug 8, 2013 17:07:25 GMT -5
I've actually gotten decent results with scissors. You just have to cut well outside your drawn boundaries, then come back and trim up the ragged edges so that they make your clean edge cuts.
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4thwish
Cardboard Collector
Posts: 19
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Post by 4thwish on Aug 9, 2013 16:11:05 GMT -5
I like mine a little rough around the edges, it looks homemade.
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gallant
Cardboard Collector
Posts: 49
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Post by gallant on Aug 13, 2013 12:02:42 GMT -5
I use wall paper cutter and ruler for cutting straight tiles and long strips of "wall". The wall papper cutter has a razor blade and the wall paper ruler has a track for the cutter. The razor blade extends enough to cut normal cardboard, though I usually have to run the cutter back and forth a few times. Since it's a razor blade you have to be careful, but it is a fast way to for instance get several straight strips of "wall" cardboard. In Sweden you can get a set of wall paper ruler and cutter for about $10, and the ruler is quite long (1.5m, 10 feet) which might come in handy for other things.
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