Tuesday, 5 March 2019

Uncurling a metal cutting die




Just a quick "How to care for your dies" post, prompted by the fact that one of mine was beginning to curl whilst cutting for a class.

Summary of cutting-plate care:

  • use the edges and corners of the plates when placing your dies
  • use both sides of the plates - flip the plate over after you have used it to cut from the opposite side next time
  • unless you are keeping one plate clear and one scarred, then move the top plate to the bottom after every second cut


if you look closely at the image above you will see that the centre of the die is now 3mm off the flat surface that the die is resting on.



In theory we all know not to put the cutting die in the centre of our plates each time, as this creates soft spots if we cut in the same place every time.


In theory we know to make sure we also use the outsides of our cutting plates, and we regularly flip the plates to cut from both sides.












If we have really done our homework we know to NOT put our long thin dies in the north-south alignment every time. Instead we remember to put them in the east-west position sometimes and in the diagonal position sometimes so that the dies don't begin to curl.

All this said, sometimes you might lend your die to someone who does not know all of the above, or despite doing all this you need to use the die a few dozen times and it does begin to curl, as pictured above.

If it has not yet curled, it is also important to use the die "upside down" on a regular basis to prevent curling. This becomes more difficult when you want the die in a specific position on your card panel.




There IS an easy way to fix a curl (or to flip your die to cut upside down), as long as your die is not too curled. If the die has curled to match the north-south placement (UNLIKE the one shown here - picture taken in diagonal placement, sorry), lay it in this position on your cutting plate with cutting blades facing down, place the top plate over it, grip the two plates firmly together and flip the whole sandwich (so the blades of the die are now facing upwards) and run it through the die-cutting machine.

Apologies for my very well used plates. You may like to note that despite heavy use they are not curled - this shows the benefits of making sure you use every bit of the plate when die-cutting and that you turn them over regularly. These plates are at least 4 yrs old and are used for class prep. Lots of use!!



If keeping everything together whilst you flip the sandwich is difficult you may like to use Washi tape to adhere the die and card layer in place on the lower cutting mat.








You may need to repeat this step a couple of times to fully uncurl the die.



My die was beginning to curl north-south so that is the position I have placed and flipped it into:

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