Cutting Slippery Fabric?

[MAD777]

My rotary cutter is the best DIY tool I ever bought!
I bought a 2'x4' by 1/8" thick HDPE from US Plastics for a cutting surface.

[turnerminator]

An Olfa rotary cutter on a proper mat, proper tailoring scissors and an electric instant soldering iron with a cutting tip on along piece of 1/4" plywood run along a metal straight edge cut my fabric.

The rotary cutter is awesome but I need a long mat to make use of it better.

[Tenaya]

I picked up a 24" x 36" cutting mat at Wally World, and a couple of rotary cutters. The cutters were on sale for $5, so I bought 2: one for use only on the mat so it stays sharp, and one for cutting directly on the floor for large pieces (using the seam between floorboards as a cutting groove). Works fine, and gives a nice straight edge for seams, but I could see using a hot knife being better for synthetics...I had a lot of fraying on both my polyester and ripstop nylon edges. Might look into that for the future.

On the other hand, I've been looking for an excuse for one of these bad boys



Dragon Lasers Spartan Series 1W Blue Handheld Laser, Rectangle Beam

Wicked Lasers S3 Arctic Spyder III Blue 1W Laser

[NCPatrick]

Question: with large pieces of material, how do you use the rotary cutters? If you were going to cut a large piece of material (say 72") out of a roll and cut off the selvage, and you don't have a seam or groove in the floorboards to use (concrete or mixed carpeted flooring) how does that work with a rotary cutter?

[hippofeet]

I cut from the roll with a rotary cutter on a 2x4 on the concrete. I have found that anything other than perfect sharpness will push the material into the grain of the wood in spots. Spraying the 2x4 with rubberized truck bed liner helps. I just moved my sewing room into the attic (its pretty big) so I need to find new way. I dont have 40 feet of space to play with anymore. I worry that that I will dull rotary cutters faster than should be.

[Catavarie]

Dragon Lasers Spartan Series 1W Blue Handheld Laser, Rectangle Beam

Wicked Lasers S3 Arctic Spyder III Blue 1W Laser

Am I the only one that watched this and thought, "Why am I carrying a lighter when I could use a freakin laser to start a fire?"


But back on point. I use scissors or a rotary cutter. To cut larger pieces I will fold them over until they are a managable size to cut, being sure they are flush all around before I slice, and binder clips used around all edges to hold in place.

[gargoyle]

Question: with large pieces of material, how do you use the rotary cutters? If you were going to cut a large piece of material (say 72") out of a roll and cut off the selvage, and you don't have a seam or groove in the floorboards to use (concrete or mixed carpeted flooring) how does that work with a rotary cutter?

They sell giant roll out plastic mats for the cutting. They are pricey, so not a practical solution for the occassional diy'er. here and here (puzzlemat)
An economical solution is the folding plastic table. Like this one (I'm sure you've seen them) I use one as my sewing table and can cut on it with minimal damage to the table and the rotary cutter. It skips at the fold/hinge, so I finish the cut and shift the material to complete the skipped section.
Some projects are to bulky for the table, so I'll lay them out on the floor, and mark the shape I need. Then slide the smaller cutting mat under the line/fabric, cut a few feet, move the mat forward, repeat till done.

I cut from the roll with a rotary cutter on a 2x4 on the concrete. I have found that anything other than perfect sharpness will push the material into the grain of the wood in spots. Spraying the 2x4 with rubberized truck bed liner helps. I just moved my sewing room into the attic (its pretty big) so I need to find new way. I dont have 40 feet of space to play with anymore. I worry that that I will dull rotary cutters faster than should be.

Cutting on wood or anything else other than a plastic mat will quickly dull a rotary blade in my experience.
My space is limited, with a little thought and effort, fabric can be folded and cut accurately for larger pieces. A 64 wide piece of roll goods folded is only 32" so it will fit in a hall way if needed. Long sections like a tarp at 13', can be folded length wise to 6'-6" and cut. Combine the two tricks and you'll fit a large piece into a very small area.
It can take some fiddling to get everything lined up, but it can be done.