The cutter is an indispensable attribute for offices, printing houses and needlewomen. The cutter allows you to cut paper to the required format, cut brochures, badges. The main advantages of the device in fast and smooth cutting. There are a wide variety of knives and scissors on the market, but why should a paper cutter be preferred? This is discussed in detail below.

Cutting type

- Reciprocating cutters are considered universal and most powerful, the maximum batch of cutting reaches 50 sheets, most often 20-30 sheets. Are applied to cutting of average circulations of paper in the copy centers and offices. Cope with cutting a wide range of materials, such as: paper, foil, cardboard, tracing paper, leather. According to the principle of operation, the reciprocating cutter resembles scissors. Fixed on one end sharp knife, on the other side is the handle. To avoid injury, manufacturers have added a protective cover to the design, for greater efficiency, many models have been equipped with a counter knife. Despite the sharpness of the knife, the cutting accuracy of reciprocating cutters is less than that of disk cutters. The larger the cut batch, the lower the accuracy, this can be corrected by reducing the cutting run, but labor costs will increase accordingly. For cutting large batches of business cards or small-format printing products, this type of cutting is inappropriate.
A significant drawback of the reciprocating cutter is the difficulty of sharpening the knife. The saber knife has an elliptical shape, so simple sharpening will not work. To sharpen knives of this shape, expensive equipment is required, and this is the reason for the high price of new knives.
Despite all the shortcomings, the type of reciprocating cutting is very popular and widespread due to the compactness and low cost of the device.

- Roller (disk) cutters . Used in offices, photo studios, advertising agencies. Allow to cut evenly (without offset) a batch of up to 20 sheets, suitable option for cutting short runs of printed matter and trimming. The principle of operation is to move the cutting element along the guide. The cutting element is located in a protective casing that moves along the rod. A counter knife is installed on the work table ( metal plate), when cutting, the cutting line is located between the cutting element and the counter knife. This method allows you to cut small amounts of paper without significant deviations in accuracy. The disadvantage is the deflection of the rod (the longer it is, the faster the deflection will appear) and the formation of gaps between the disc and the counter knife. The advantage of disc cutters is the ability to work with large paper sizes, up to A0 format. Disc design allows you to combine several devices in one device useful features: cutting, running, curly edge. The cutting element (disk) wears out quickly, so manufacturers produce a wide range of accessories, both for smooth and for curly cutting at a relatively low cost. Replace cutting tool won't be difficult. It is because of the ease of maintenance and low cost that roller cutters are popular in small print shops and offices.

- Guillotine cutters designed for printing houses and offices with big turnover. The device takes up a lot of space and has an impressive weight. heavy knife and robust construction allow to cut circulation in 200 sheets. The principle of operation of the guillotine cutter is not quite similar to the well-known guillotine. Apart from straight cut, manufacturers have modified modern models and introduced the possibility of an oblique cut. The advanced design adds efficiency to the device and allows you to handle large volumes of papers. Important advantages include high cutting accuracy, which saber cutters cannot boast of. Modern models equipped with cutting line illumination, optical rulers and vernier. With all seriousness, manufacturers approached the issue of safety, as far as we know from history, the guillotine is a rather traumatic (to put it mildly) device. For this reason, most of the presented models are equipped with light-sensitive sensors that immediately stop the knife when hit. foreign objects to the cutting line. Small desktop models are equipped with a protective cover.
The advantage of the design is ease of maintenance and reasonable costs for replacing parts (knives). Guillotine cutters allow the knife to be removed and re-sharpened in workshops. Large and heavy knives are less prone to wear, deformation, and chipping. After several "artisanal" knife sharpenings, it is recommended to purchase a new one.
In addition to the knife, it is necessary to monitor the condition of the marzan - a bar located on the working surface along the cut line. Usually, the marzan is made of plastic or wood, serves to soften the blow of the guillotine, prevents damage and rapid blunting of the blade. Marzan is the same consumable like the knife, it is commercially available and easily replaced.
Another plus of the guillotine cutter is its noiselessness, none of the previous types can boast of such a feature. AT industrial scale when slicing takes place all day, the noise is not to be discounted.
However, it is not advisable to buy guillotine cutters for small businesses and offices; it is not profitable to use such a cutter on stacks of 20 sheets.

Maximum format and work surface

In cutters, manufacturers indicate the maximum cutting format, the device will cut any format of a smaller dimension. All existing formats are specified in ISO 216.


A0 and A1 - posters, drawings.
A3 and A2 - newspapers, drawings, posters.
A4 is the most common paper size on which everything is printed, from documents to flyers and magazines.
A5 - postcards, leaflets, booklets.


In addition to the supported format, you need to pay attention to the layout of the desktop, the more center lines on the surface, the easier it is to orient and align the stack of paper. The presence of markings in degrees is a convenient addition to vertical and horizontal landmarks. It is also worth considering the material of manufacture of the working surface, there are models made of plastic or metal. Small mobile models are equipped with a plastic surface, the construction of modern plastics is light and durable. However, metal is considered a more wear-resistant option, it makes the cutter much heavier, which is why it is more often used on stationary devices.

Criterias of choice

First of all, when choosing a cutter, it is necessary to build on where and how it will be used.
For a small or medium office, you should choose models of reciprocating or disc cutting methods, they will allow you to cut up to 20 sheets of paper, photo paper, film, thin cardboard with a maximum A4 format. The cost of such models varies within

paper cutter- a device for fast and even cutting of paper. It is very useful in the design of scrap pages and postcards. The cutter allows you to cut a sheet of paper so evenly that no scissors can cut it.

According to the method of impact on the knife, cutters are divided into mechanical (manual) and electric. In its turn, hand cutters there are roller, saber and guillotine types.

Roller cutter(it is also a disk cutter or trimmer) is a rectangular base (desktop), along which the cutting mechanism moves along the guide. It, in turn, consists of a sharpened metal disk enclosed in a protective casing. When cut, the paper is caught between the roller cutter blade and the counter knife (laminated solid metal, fixed on the end of the platform on the side where the cutter moves). Such a cutter is ideal for working with a small amount of paper - up to 10 sheets, it happens different sizes, the most common - 22.5 x 12.5 cm; 31 x 31 cm; 20 x 46 cm. It takes up little space and has the valuable quality of being able to cut an edge less than a millimeter wide, which allows you to work with maximum precision. AT roller cutters knives are not subject to secondary sharpening, although they are called self-sharpening. They just need to be changed after a certain amount of time.

reciprocating cutter called because of the knife, which looks like a saber. The reciprocating cutter is the most powerful and is used to work with a large amount of paper, but their accuracy remains within 0.1 mm. For reciprocating cutters, the principle of operation is somewhat different. A sharply sharpened cutter knife is fixed on one edge (it is closed with a protective cover to avoid injury), on the other it has a handle. Lowering it, cut the paper. A knife in a reciprocating cutter can be sharpened, although this procedure is not as simple as it seems at first glance. In addition, using a reciprocating cutter is much more difficult than using a roller cutter. To obtain perfect result, will have to try.

Guillotine cutter used for processing large print runs and is perfect for large print shops. Such a cutter is manual, semi-automatic and automatic. Its working mechanism (a sharply sharpened heavy cutter knife) is located on a massive table and is driven by a lever or an electric drive. The blade moves not only from top to bottom, but also obliquely along the cut line and is able to “process” impressive stacks of sheets up to 8 cm. At the same time, the accuracy reaches fractions of a millimeter. When the cutter blade becomes dull, it is removed and sharpened, and after several sharpenings it is changed.

dummy knife used for cutting paper, sharpening pencils, and also necessary for cutting out small details and complex shapes. It is a thin interchangeable blade similar to a feather with protective cap. When working with such a knife, you must have a mock-up mat (cardboard, hardboard or plywood) so as not to damage the table you are working on.

Roller dummy knife allows you to quickly and without special efforts cut paper, as well as make a variety of curly cuts with special nozzles.

circular knife used for cutting circles with a diameter of 10 mm to 150 mm. Ideal for making postcards and round parts for the scrap page. The knife is an axis with a needle and a movable leg on which a blade is installed, by means of which a circle is cut out. Also on the movable leg there is a scale designed to select the diameter of the cut circle. It is necessary to work with a circular knife on a breadboard mat. Make sure all screws on the compass are tight before cutting.

Easily cuts out any figure on a special stencil, it is not replaceable when creating decorative elements for pages and postcards. Some models of shaped cutters can be used without a stencil. When working with such a cutter, it is necessary to have a mock-up mat so as not to damage the table on which you are working and be sure to check the condition of the blade, if necessary, adjust it according to the density of the selected material.

Hope the review is helpful. We wish you all good mood!

Greetings, brain artisans! I offer you a guide to creating do it yourself a useful little thing that will help you cut sheets of sandpaper clearly and evenly.

Owners of grinders are faced with the problem of cutting sheets for them: scissors become dull, ordinary knife does not give an even cut, etc. You can, of course, buy ready-made sets of sheets for grinders, but this is more expensive than cutting them yourself from large sheets sandpaper. So let's start solving this problem!

Step 1: Materials and Tools

Plywood (or MDF, chipboard) 2 cm thick
hacksaw blade 25cm long
screws with a large cap (press washer)
laser cutter(optional)
saw
grinder
drill
screwdriver

Step 2: Layout

We measure the dimensions of the sheets for the grinder and the dimensions of a large sheet of sandpaper, based on them we create a layout homemade Let's take a look at the photo.

If you have a laser cutter, transfer the layout to the computer and create a file with data for this cutter. Maybe my files will be useful to you.

Step 3: Draw lines

We install the plywood sheet in the laser cutter and burn the reference lines. And in the absence of such brain machine, just draw a plywood sheet according to the given dimensions with a pencil or pen.

Step 4: Sawing

Any accessible way we cut out homemade from a sheet of plywood, and then we process the sawn off edges, and the entire contour with a grinder. And yet, with a thin drill, we drill holes for the screws.

Step 5: Attaching the canvas

Fasten the canvas with two screws handicraft while leaving room for the sanding sheet to pass underneath.

Step 6: Testing

Brainwork ready, let's start testing, and then to full use.

We simply install a sheet of sandpaper under the canvas according to the desired size and with a little effort pull it up, which results in a smooth and precise cut With ideal sizes sheet.

Good luck with your creativity!

This craft can be useful for anyone who works with paper or cardboard. It doesn't require a lot of money. But with careful work, it will provide a “clean” cut of any paper format.

Before we start discussing the topic, I note that today we will talk exclusively about a straight cut of one sheet of paper. And now to business.

Each of us at least once in our lives faced with the need to cut paper (cardboard). What tools do we use for this? Of course, scissors. If you need a more or less even cut, then a knife and a ruler are used. For absolute purity of work, it is better to use a branded cutter. Let's see what are the advantages and disadvantages of each of them.

We cut with scissors

it simplest way cutting paper. It is convenient for small volumes of work and relatively small cut lines. It is extremely difficult to make high-quality and longer cuts with them.

Conclusion: despite the cheapness of the tool and its ease of use, scissors can only be used to obtain small cut lines.

With a knife and a ruler

Definitely, this paper cutting method is more suitable for long cuts than scissors. You just need to have certain skills and dexterity.

To do this, you can use any well-sharpened knife that will not jam and tear the paper. But it's better to use stationery knife, or a knife for construction works with retractable blades. It must be free of play so that the tool cannot move away from the guide ruler.

As for the line. Choose, no doubt, you need steel. When working with wooden or plastic rulers, there is a risk that the knife will “burrow” into them, and this will not have a very good effect on the final quality of the cut.

So, we can again talk about the low cost and ease of use of the tools. However, when working with them, it is difficult to fix a long ruler, and at the same time, the risk of being injured increases.

factory cutter

Its use in all cases is more convenient and efficient. Moreover, the stores present a huge number of the most different types and types of such cutters: roller, reciprocating, guillotine, etc., designed for cutting paper from A4 to A1, as well as excellent in price and quality.

And, as a rule, people who are seriously addicted or professionally involved in working with paper and cardboard try to acquire just such devices. However, there is a big minus here - the price of the tool. If small cutters, designed for small paper size and weight, can be afforded by many hand-makers, then more serious cutting tools large sizes paper, for example, 70x100 cm, is no longer available to everyone. Moreover, it is possible to recoup such an acquisition only by cutting paper, as they say, on a “production” scale.

homemade cutter

Design

I myself am engaged in the production of photo albums. Most often I use bookbinding and designer cardboard, designer paper and tracing paper measuring 70x100 cm in my work.

Choosing a design homemade cutter, before I decided on the requirements that, in my opinion, he had to meet. It:

• cutting paper of various density with a size of 70x100 cm;
• simple design and inexpensive components;
• acceptable cut quality.

I found quite a lot on the Internet interesting option cutter from two metal rulers. The author of the idea is Evgeny Kuznetsov. However, testing of this cutter has shown that it is not quite suitable for cutting thick paper or tracing paper. I had to keep looking. The adaptation of another author, unfortunately, I do not remember his name, prompted me to make a more complex design.

The foundation

Found old board for drawing, which was ventilated on fresh air last few years. I put it in order, sawing off the frayed edges and made it the basis for the future cutter.

Knife guide

A steel 100-centimeter ruler, however, shortened by 20 cm, fell just right for the guide ruler for the knife. To give it rigidity, a duralumin rule for construction work was also bought. It also had to be shortened to the size I needed.

Now it was necessary to securely fix the ruler on the duralumin rule. Here the duralumin rivets, once presented to me by a colleague, produced back in the Soviet Union, came in handy.

For better fixation of the ruler of the bolts, I made guides. At the same time, holes for them were drilled a little smaller in diameter than the bolts themselves. This helped to screw them tighter into the board. Additionally, I fixed the bolts with nuts with special bushings that prevent spontaneous unscrewing.

From above, I pulled the ruler with wing nuts, which are well twisted by hand. I put springs on the bolts under the ruler. If you unscrew the lambs, the ruler on the springs will rise, and your hands will be free to work with paper.

I note that with the selected length of the cut line, even a 2 cm thick rule can bend after clamping the wing screws, and so that the sheet of paper does not slip, it is better to hold the ruler in its central part with your hand.

By the way, to make it more convenient to position the sheet of paper perpendicular to the ruler, I additionally fixed aluminum corner. An aluminum square with stops for a sheet of paper was also placed on its part, fixed from the side of the working part of the ruler. If you fix this stop with a clamp on the corner, then positioning a sheet of paper before fixing the ruler can be much faster.

Substrate

As a substrate for cutting paper, I chose glass from the furniture wall. Although it is better, of course, to order glass of the right size with finished edges in the workshop.

On the cutter board, on the side of the working part of the ruler, I glued fiberboard sheets to equalize the height difference with the glass substrate.

In the case when I need to cut a thick binding board, I use sheets of corrugated board as a substrate. The length of the guide bolts allows this to be done.

The only drawback of this cutter, which I can’t help but mention, is the slight backlash of the rule on the guide bolts. It must be taken into account when tightening the wing screws to fix the sheet of paper. Backlash appeared due to a discrepancy between the diameter of the bolts and the diameter of the mounting holes for the bolts in the rule. But this is rather a design flaw, and not the technology of its manufacture.

OK it's all over Now. It can be used as a stand-alone cutter or in combination with a factory-made small format cutter. But this is in case you need a more precise fit to the dimensions of the sheets.

Yuri Lymar, Novomoskovsk, Ukraine.Author's photo