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I was lucky enough to buy a Precision Base Plate shortly after they were released. I've been using them for every intricate die I have and no longer have problems with "hanging chads" (everyone remembers that term, right!).
However, I recently had a problem with some dies that were shearing off their edges while using the plate.
I was working on a card competition and was working diligently all weekend on these cards. I kept getting metal filings in my fingers (or feet as I am always barefoot). After getting one deep enough to have me bleed on one of the projects, I asked my hubby to look at the plate.
I thought the plate was breaking off pieces of metal.
He told me there wasn't any kind of scratches or gouges in the plate so it must be the dies.
We took the die set I was using out to his work space and looked under his microscope (he uses this odd microscope thing for building computer motherboards). When we looked at the edges of the die, instead of being smooth, they looked like they were serrated and where they weren't broken off, their edges were sheared off.
He ran a strong magnetic wand over the die and picked up dozens of little pieces of metal!
Now, not only did I have to completely redesign my competition cards with another die set (and no precision plate), I had to email the company that made my die set to see if they had any other complaints.
On Monday, I received a very nice and apologetic email from the die company. They said they had sent me a new die set via express mail and an envelope so I could send them my broken dies. They said they wanted to actually see the dies so that they could be researched for the problem.
The next day I received my new die set and besides the postage paid envelope for returning the dies was a 50% off code for my next order.
As a retired mechanical engineer, I can only think that the metal used to make the dies wasn't strong enough to stand up against the pressure of the machine pushing it through cardstock and then into the annealed steel of the plate, but that is was designed to go into a softer material like the cutting pad.
I find it difficult to use some of my older dies on the plate due to my concerns over the shearing. I am making a dozen cards for a Breast Cancer drive (not SCS's because I didn't know they were having one until after I signed up for the other) and I have an old Cricut awareness ribbon die I'd like to use, It doesn't cleanly cut anymore on cutting pads. If I could run it through on the Precision Plate, I am sure it would cut cleanly, but as I said, I have concerns. I love that little die as it cuts the center of the ribbon out too and I like putting a little shaker area in that "hole".
When I telephoned customer service at Sizzix to find out what kind of thin dies can be safely used on the Precision Plate, I was told that any and all thin or wafer dies can be used on the plate. When I mentioned what happened to mine, they immediately started backing up, saying they were not responsible for damage to dies. He then went on to say that he believes that on the Sizzix website, there is information on what types of dies can be used on the plate. I told him that I could not find (at that time) any information about the plate and I thought he just told me that any or all thin or wafer dies can be used with the plate.
Then, by some "odd chance", we were disconnected.:rolleyes:
I was kinda irked about the disconnect and their inability to tell me the truth about the types of dies, so I haven't called them back.
I won't give the name of the dies I was using as I continue to buy their dies, I love them too much and they keep making new ones! Plus the company made more than up for it.
I only wanted to warn you that some dies cannot hold up against the Precision Plate.
If anyone knows anything about what dies cannot be used on the Precision Plate, I hope that they will post them on Splitcoast or on my post here.
__________________ Consultant for Fun Stamping Journeys!
Member of: AHF, FFRF, ACS Relay for Life
Thanks for this post. I just went to use one of my favorite dies and found it would not cut. It is a rectangle with dots around the edges. Only a few of the dots cut and the rest look embossed which is nice if it was consistent. I too was using my prescion plate for all thin not necessarily intricate dies. I failed to record the company so its now a loss.
But the most interesting part of your post made me think about the "splinters" I have been feeling in my fingers. I can't find them with the naked eye and cant think of anything but card making that is causing them. It didnt make sense but now I will check my dies I have been handling. It just might solve the mystery.
I loved the pad, but not to the extent of ruining dies I cant replace.
Ive already lost several favorite punches to better quality ( thicker) paper. Now this. Is it never ending?
I will now keep track of sucesses and failures and post what I discover. Thanks for the thread.
WOW. And here I finally ordered a precision base plate last night! Maybe I will just return it and use paper shims and rotating, as I have been doing.
I didn't mean to talk anyone out of buying the precision plate. I do love how it cuts precision dies (as long as the cutting plate is flat).
I just don't use it for ALL of my dies.
Meaning that if it cut easily before, then I use the regular cutting pads.
But all of my cutting dies that are very intricate, I continue to cut on the precision plate.
I cut 6 of Spellbinders Painted Lady dies last night for haunted houses and they were fine. They were cut well with no splinters.
However, I will not cut anymore framelit or open dies with the plate.
I am so sorry to have frightened anyone!!!:oops:
__________________ Consultant for Fun Stamping Journeys!
Member of: AHF, FFRF, ACS Relay for Life
I just found this post after noticing the Spellbinder rectangle die I had been using for months has gotten warped and is now cutting rough edges on my cardstock. I hadn't realized you shouldn't use this plate for open dies so I think I messed up my die! Luckily it was the one of the Mat Basics and they are easy to replace but it makes me mad at myself for not having all the information on what to cut with this precision base plate and what not to cut. Do you think there would be any possibility of smoothing the edges of the die, maybe with a file? Thanks for posting the "warning". I hope others getting the plate will make sure they have all the facts on what to use with the plate and what not to use. Thanks
I didn't mean to talk anyone out of buying the precision plate. I do love how it cuts precision dies (as long as the cutting plate is flat).
I just don't use it for ALL of my dies.
Meaning that if it cut easily before, then I use the regular cutting pads.
But all of my cutting dies that are very intricate, I continue to cut on the precision plate.
I cut 6 of Spellbinders Painted Lady dies last night for haunted houses and they were fine. They were cut well with no splinters.
However, I will not cut anymore framelit or open dies with the plate.
I am so sorry to have frightened anyone!!!:oops:
I'm glad you posted this warning. I viewed a video Sizzix did on the precision plate. I had no idea that you couldn't use framelits. Also, they cautioned that once you use the plate with these dies, you should not use the dies like you did previously. So, the die is altered. I am going to post that video. https://youtu.be/rwQ8Q0y5bjw
I'm glad you posted this warning. I viewed a video Sizzix did on the precision plate. I had no idea that you couldn't use framelits. Also, they cautioned that once you use the plate with these dies, you should not use the dies like you did previously. So, the die is altered. I am going to post that video. https://youtu.be/rwQ8Q0y5bjw
Well I went ahead and used my new one this week. I went by the instructions given by store owner who had used it to cut 100 spell binder dies for Cards for Troops last week end.she did not specify it should not be used for all dies.
I watched the video and they said not to use it " on thinlets or steel ruled dies". Okay so call me stupid but what does that leave? I was thinking of contacting Sizzex and asking them to clarify . I don't think they Would suggest which company dies are not compatable. I am so glad I saw the video before cutting more. It seemed like the ideal tool, but it appears it is not what it appears at first glance.
Dies anyone know specifically which company dies should not be cut on this case?
I was cutting the Penny Black "Prestige" die on the Precision Plate and struggled for several hours, determined to make it work since I had bought all the supplies to make 100 Christmas cards with it. No matter what cardstock and/or how many shims i used, I could not get a clean image, so I sent e-mail to Penny Black complaining. Their response was that they would "look into" the problem, so since I was in a hurry, i bought another of the same die from Ellen Hutson. That worked no better. Then a replacement came from Penny Black, and that too was not turning out a clean image. So then Penny Black sent me the name and address of the person who makes their dies and told me to send the dies to them, and to write to Ellen Hutson and ask for a refund as well. I did not think it my job to do either one, but I did them both. i got my money back from Ellen Hutson immediately and have not heard anything from Penny Black or her die-maker in 3 weeks.
And now, from this Thread, i understand why I kept feeling there were glass shards in my fingers, during all the struggle......it was because of the Precision Plate, which may be why I never got a clean image with the Prestige die. Wasn't that Precision Plate $39.95? What a waste!:(
I don't use my Precision Base Plate except for dies like Tattered Angels or something like that, where they are so intricate and a kazillion pieces... It has not failed me once. All of the pieces came right out---completely! But, I don't use it ALL the time. I continue to constantly use the plastic cutting plates from Sizzix and as soon as those start curling up from tons of cuts, I pitch them, so that I always have clean cuts! Not very cost effective, but works. I do use my coupons from Hobby Lobby and Michaels to purchase my plates so that helps make it a little more cost effective.
You don't need to throw the cutting plates away when they warp.....here is a video on how to clean and straighten your plates out for more use. I have done this once to my plates and it worked great!
That metal plate warps faster than the acrylic plates warp. But I think it could depend on the cutting machine. I'm using a Big Shot and it is about five years old. Also I use it a ton. The older it gets, the more shims I have to use. My Cuttlebug wasn't so hard on the cutting plates and now I wish I hadn't given it away. In fact, next time I see it on sale I will buy another because I haven't found a single thing the Big Shot does that the Cuttlebug doesn't do as well. And it takes less space and is easier to churn.
I wonder if the dies are becoming work hardened and the metal then becomes brittle. Sometimes manufacturing of metal pieces leaves a "scale' and that is also brittle and will break like glass or the finish on the dies could be what is causing the problem. Just another engineer trying think of what might be going on with the dies. I don't use dies much (I have a Zing) but do have some that I'd like to keep in good shape.
I wonder if the dies are becoming work hardened and the metal then becomes brittle. Sometimes manufacturing of metal pieces leaves a "scale' and that is also brittle and will break like glass or the finish on the dies could be what is causing the problem. Just another engineer trying think of what might be going on with the dies. I don't use dies much (I have a Zing) but do have some that I'd like to keep in good shape.
I don't think the die I was crabbing about was work hardened. Only the first die-cut was clean. Today I bought a new Cuttlebug and put a brand new die through. The die is 4 attached really simple basic snowflakes. Two cut and two didn't, so I cut the four apart and tried every which way to get the other two to cut, separate or at the same time, and I ran them through 4 times, turning the platform and plates each time. Still no joy. The sandwich is really tight, as you would expect with a new machine, so I'm not about to resort to shims just yet.
I don't think the die I was crabbing about was work hardened. Only the first die-cut was clean. Today I bought a new Cuttlebug and put a brand new die through. The die is 4 attached really simple basic snowflakes. Two cut and two didn't, so I cut the four apart and tried every which way to get the other two to cut, separate or at the same time, and I ran them through 4 times, turning the platform and plates each time. Still no joy. The sandwich is really tight, as you would expect with a new machine, so I'm not about to resort to shims just yet.
I'm thinking then that the etching solution may have eaten away a little more material on those uneven dies. I don't think they would use as stringent methods as they would use for precision metal etching. Makes me even more happy I have my Zing.
Hi there,I've just come late to this forum, because i was doing some google search of problems with this plate. I too ended up with a metal splinter in my thumb (very painful and I'm not sure how to get it out!) and some damage to dies. I think I will stop using the precision plate now. Interesting to hear the response from sizzix!
Hi there,I've just come late to this forum, because i was doing some google search of problems with this plate. I too ended up with a metal splinter in my thumb (very painful and I'm not sure how to get it out!) and some damage to dies. I think I will stop using the precision plate now. Interesting to hear the response from sizzix!
You don't need to throw the cutting plates away when they warp.....here is a video on how to clean and straighten your plates out for more use. I have done this once to my plates and it worked great!
I just watched this video!!! WOW.. what rock have I been hiding under??? What I didn't catch was the "secret ingredient" from the dollar store she rubbed on the plates after they were cleaned... can anyone enlighten me???
Hi there,I've just come late to this forum, because i was doing some google search of problems with this plate. I too ended up with a metal splinter in my thumb (very painful and I'm not sure how to get it out!) and some damage to dies. I think I will stop using the precision plate now. Interesting to hear the response from sizzix!
Sorry to hear of your issues. I only use the precision plate for the thinlet dies. It will damage other dies. Also, it is a thick plate. How the heck did you get a splinter. Lol. Anyway, the plate was created by Sizzix to help with intricate dies. But many of us thought it was the answer to other dies like framelits and have ruined them. So, I think they need to go back to the drawing board and figure something else out like a simple metal shim offered by other companies like Cheery Lynn. Please make sure you tell us what Sizzix says. I know they have gotten many, many complaints!
I just watched this video!!! WOW.. what rock have I been hiding under??? What I didn't catch was the "secret ingredient" from the dollar store she rubbed on the plates after they were cleaned... can anyone enlighten me???
I'm glad you posted this warning. I viewed a video Sizzix did on the precision plate. I had no idea that you couldn't use framelits. Also, they cautioned that once you use the plate with these dies, you should not use the dies like you did previously. So, the die is altered. I am going to post that video. https://youtu.be/rwQ8Q0y5bjw
Just watched the video and she said not to use framelits not thinlets; I have read that you are not to use any die with a large open area that it will bend the dies.
I was working on a card competition and was working diligently all weekend on these cards. I kept getting metal filings in my fingers (or feet as I am always barefoot). After getting one deep enough to have me bleed on one of the projects, I asked my hubby to look at the plate.
I thought the plate was breaking off pieces of metal.
The next day I received my new die set and besides the postage paid envelope for returning the dies was a 50% off code for my next order.
I only wanted to warn you that some dies cannot hold up against the Precision Plate.
If anyone knows anything about what dies cannot be used on the Precision Plate, I hope that they will post them on Splitcoast or on my post here.
Well that's not good. I had to look up the item since I don't use it and never felt a need to get one. I've started using used dryer sheets with intricate dies by layering 3 folded sheets under the paper/cs place the die on top and cut away... no shards/shavings of metal to deal with...Plus I use them for multiple cuts by shaking off the cut bits.
I was seeing the same thing with my precision base plate using regular thin wafer dies. Then I happened to watch a scrapbooking made simple video and Stacy indicated that the reason this is happening is because the precision base plate is made with a much harder metal than the dies, which is why it cuts intricate and fine detail dies so well, and it will shave some of the regular die edges. Since then, I've only been using my precision base plate for really delicate, intricate, fine detailed dies that are hard to cut through using the regular plastic plates (Sizzix). I had been using it with ALL of my die cutting, but have since stopped that!
Precision Base Warning
clean and straighten cutting plates
