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OMG that price is amazing! I have never personally used this trimmer but the local owner small scrapbook store in town swears by it! I'm temped to buy one at that price! (just what I need another trimmer!)
Nobody has used this one?
I guess it is version 4. It appears to have the ruler built into the base, to correct the crooked cuts some people got with earlier versions.
I have an old style Fiskars rotary blade trimmer and I love almost everything about it--except that I have trouble getting properly measured, squared cuts on pieces measuring 4 1/4" or more. I'm hesitant to get a newer Fiskars because of the complaints I've read about some wire that they use.
I'm going back and forth between this cutterpillar and the Stampin' Up cutter with a rotary arm attachment.
That's the one that replaced the V3 that I have. I LOVE this trimmer. Only one thing that must be learned is to hold the cutter against the cutting edge. It only takes one cut where you don't for you to remember.
I said I love it...but I might be tempted if I could use 20% off on top of that price to get the new one with the molded in rulers. Hmmm.
Well, I bit the bullet and ordered the Cutterpillar. I haven't spent this much money on a single craft in almost 10 years. It's making me feel a tad sick to my stomach. LOL
The 20% off coupon won't work with the Doorbuster items. But I was able to use the free shipping code, which saved me almost $10. Total cost, with sales tax: $70.19. OUCH! I haven't spent this much on a single craft item in almost a decade!
I won't feel guilt about my purchase if it does what I need it to do. As I mentioned before, I love my Fiskars rotary trimmer (probably 3 or 4 generations old). It even cuts thick chipboard. But I'm tired of not getting perfectly measured cuts using the measurements on the swing arm. It's always just a smidge off.
I've been searching for the perfect trimmer for more than 15 years. I don't think there is such a thing. I know a 4-pound Cutterpillar with a 14"x14" footprint is not perfect. But maybe the combination of Cutterpillar and Fiskars rotary will come close.
Once the Cutterpillar arrives (could be awhile with JoAnn's free shipping) I'll leave a post with my thoughts about its pros and cons.
I really love my oldie, but goodie, the Making Memories Precision Trimmer. I don't think they make it anymore.
The first one I got had a problem with the lines rubbing/fading from the grid, but other than that I loved it. I emailed Making Memories and told them about the problem. They responded immediately, and sent me a whole brand new trimmer. Didn't ask for a photo or to send the other one back, or anything!
So I have my old, faded one in reserve, but the one I use is about 6 years old and going strong. It has a blade that is self-sharpening, and it still works wonderfully well.
__________________ Bugga in OK
"Be kind whenever possible. It is always possible." Dalai Lama
I did my fast search on that price, and it beats everything on the internet. I bought one. If Amazon has it listed at $110 as the lowest price, than it was time to jump on it. I love the full table (no extended arm) and there is no holding plate next to the blade. This is only the 5th cutter I have purchased - always in search of the best one. And I keep coming back to my little Fiskar with the little owl tooth for a blade because I can cut 1/2 inch strip into a 1/4 inch strip.
There is something about this cutter that rings a bell for me. I think there was a thread about this cutter some where. There is something about this cutter or the MFGer that isn't positive. Anyone know what it is?
I have V2. And I love it. Mine is metal though. It does have the plastic drawer under it, but I've never used it.
I would like the measurements (mine has a black line every 1/2" and a metal ruler on the top), more lights (mine are fine, but don't show through cardstock) and cuts 12.5" (I have to cut to 12" to fit)
But I think I like mine being metal. I've never had to replace a battery and I've had mine for a long, long time. Since the second version came out.
Thanks melissa59 for posting the sale link. That was very kind and enabling of you. I hope this cutter is the one you have been dreaming about. :-)
"Kind" and "enabling." Do those words really fit into the same sentence?
I, too, hope that this will be my holy grail of trimmers. I watched a few Cutterpillar videos on YouTube but found only two that showed this model. Both were tips on how to make the ruler markings easier to read.
I'm happy I bought it. I like the large table, that I can get my fingers up close to the blade, and that it has good rullers at 1/4 in marks on it. I will be marking up the table to put my card mesurements down.
I don't want to travel with it, just get really accurate cuts. Hopefully I can put all the other cutters in the donation box.
Hope it's the last cutting machine you and I will ever need.
I have this in the V3. I ordered a second one the last time they had this sale. It is the most accurate cutter I have ever had. The only thing that really bugs me is that when you cut both of mine leave a weird feathered edge. My blades have both been replaced and it still happens. Bugs me!
I have this in the V3. I ordered a second one the last time they had this sale. It is the most accurate cutter I have ever had. The only thing that really bugs me is that when you cut both of mine leave a weird feathered edge. My blades have both been replaced and it still happens. Bugs me!
Can you elaborate on the 'feathering'? Can you describe it more? Does the cutter rough up the edge of the paper as it glides through?
There is something about this cutter that rings a bell for me. I think there was a thread about this cutter some where. There is something about this cutter or the MFGer that isn't positive. Anyone know what it is?
Apparently, the Cutterpillar company took pre-orders for the Cutterpillar Crop (portable cutter) through Kickstarter (a site where companies, individuals, non-profits, etc. can request customers help fund a project). Apparently, the ship date kept getting moved back as the company was waiting for their products to ship from the overseas manufacturer. Some international backers still have not received their cutter.
Take a look at the company's campain on Kickstarter.https://www.kickstarter.com/projects...er/description
It began more than a year ago. Cutterpillar company wanted to raise $15,000. They raised more than $60,000 and are having trouble fulfilling their obligations.
You'd think a company that had already made three versions of the large size cutter would have saved enough of the profits to fund the production costs of the portable cutter.
Had I read this several days ago, I'd not have ordered the Cutterpillar ABS Pro. I have a low tolerance for companies with poor customer service or bad business practices that affect the customers. And I really hate supporting their business.
I think this company might be cash strapped at the moment. They are certainly getting tons of negative press over some of their decisions but refuse to make it right - and it will affect future sales. They know this, so I would think they are not making it right because they can't. I also wondered why it was being sold at 50% by a major retailer.
I am anxious to see how it performs. If it does well, I will load up on blades (buy extras) so I don't have to worry about them going under for a while.
The blade is self sharpening so you shouldnt need any more....right? I could be missing something.
That is my understanding, Amber. Self-sharpening blades do not need to be replaced. I'm sorry about the Cutterpillar leaving a frazzled edge. That would make me crazy, too.
I've been so happy with my Making Memories trimmer. It is years old and still cuts a sharp clean edge on my cardstock which I love.
__________________ Bugga in OK
"Be kind whenever possible. It is always possible." Dalai Lama
I've always purchased a spare blade or two. Even for the self sharpening units. I want spares on hand.
Things happen at my house, and tools get dropped or nicked 'just when I need it most' - and with two cats who HAVE TO BE INSIDE MY STUFF all the time, stuff gets knocked onto the floor or tons of cat hair gets inside.
I'm a little anal about spares if I think the company might be a bit unstable or I will use the equipment a lot.
And cat hair in everything:arrow: I just made the cutest Christmas card. It took hours, and was made in stages. I colored it and then put glitter diamond in for snow - and see that somehow black cat hair is glued in with the snow.:rolleyes:
Just a thought that entered my sleepy head this morning. In my post above (#4) I mentioned that I needed to learn to keep the rotating blade housing pushed against the stationary blade when cutting. It is second nature to me now.
But if I forget for some reason, the cut is definitely not clean. I think it could be described as "feathery". Here's the video. Watch how she uses her finger to push the bottom of the carriage against the stationary metal blade.
I really like my cutter! Straight cuts are a blessing!
JoAnn sent my Cutterpillar on a sight-seeing vacation!
It left Michigan, went to Chicago Illinois then to Oklahoma and is now in New Mexico. According to Fed-EX, my Cutterpillar will continue sight-seeing for another four days before reaching my house in California.
JoAnn sent my Cutterpillar on a sight-seeing vacation!
It left Michigan, went to Chicago Illinois then to Oklahoma and is now in New Mexico. According to Fed-EX, my Cutterpillar will continue sight-seeing for another four days before reaching my house in California.
I'm in Northern California, so I should get mine the day after you get yours. The milk run always goes South, then turns right at the coast....
Just a thought that entered my sleepy head this morning. In my post above (#4) I mentioned that I needed to learn to keep the rotating blade housing pushed against the stationary blade when cutting. It is second nature to me now.
But if I forget for some reason, the cut is definitely not clean. I think it could be described as "feathery". Here's the video. Watch how she uses her finger to push the bottom of the carriage against the stationary metal blade.
I really like my cutter! Straight cuts are a blessing!
I really liked the idea of not having a safety bar hanging on the paper while the blade ran down the line. I love my Carl cutter, but it has close to a 2" wide plastic guard next to the blade, so I can't make a cut any smaller than 2 inches wide. It can't be removed, or disassembled for jams/cleaning either. I accidentially got some tacky glue under this guard, and it keeps 'adhering' to my papers when I go to make a cut. Months later, still tacky and annoying. Someone wasn't thinking on that design...
I agree with you on the CARL. That clamp held the paper really nicely, but is a pain for narrow cuts.
As for getting rid of the glue underneath. I got rid of my water-soluble glue by wetting that space thoroughly...really! Put it under the faucet. Then let it sit, and repeat if necessary. When it turned white, then I used a thinned out q-tip or a folded wet paper towel or something like that to wipe it out. For the other stuff I would use the same technique with goo-gone and then wash thoroughly with soap.
There's enough room under the bar to get something thin under there. A bit tedious however.
FedEX updated the delivery status. The Cutterpillar is supposed to arrive TODAY! So, Janet, you might want to take a look at your delivery schedule and see if yours will arrive tomorrow or Monday.
I'm excited though I'm guessing that it will take some time getting used to it since it cuts differently than my Fiskars. Time to cut a bunch of card bases so that I can get a feel for it. I really do hope I love it.
It does not like cutting really thin paper, such as notebook paper. I got a few so-so cuts and a few mangled cuts. It cut nicely with a slightly heavier DSP. But I got the feathered edges Amber mentioned when using 110# cardstock, no matter how slowly or quickly I cut or how tightly or loosely I pushed the moving blade against the stationary blade. Not good. Not good at all.
I miss having the paper guard. Contrary to what she says in the video, the blade does push the paper. The notebook paper buckled, which is partly why I think it got so mangled. No buckling with the cardstock so I don't understand why it's not cutting well. Maybe it needs a SHARP blade.
Also, the drawer was stuck. I wiggled around but did not pull out very far. Upon closer inspection, I saw that the drawer was not installed properly. That was an easy fix. I wiggled it until the drawer came out completely and then reinserted it the way it should have been to begin with.
The light is super bright, almost too bright. It's probably a nice feature for someone who needs perfectly placed cuts along a design, but not at all necessary for someone who cuts according to measurements.
I'm going to cut up a few dozen sheets of cardstock over the next two weeks. Maybe my so-called "Self Sharpening" blade will result in better cuts with a bit of use. If not, the Cutterpillar ABS Pro is going back.
Not good. If I can't get a clean cut with mine, I'm returning it.
I have this trimmer and the Cutterpillar Crop. I LOVE both, and believe me I have purchased every trimmer under the sun over the last 18 years. These two trimmers are the best I have owned, and I have never had a feathering issue.
__________________ Patter
Mom to Adult Identical Triplets--a police officer, 3rd year medical student, and special education teacher
I have this trimmer and the Cutterpillar Crop. I LOVE both, and believe me I have purchased every trimmer under the sun over the last 18 years. These two trimmers are the best I have owned, and I have never had a feathering issue.
Have you used your Cutterpillar with heavy cardstock, like the 110# from Michaels? This is my card base cardstock and the paper I'll most use with a wide-based trimmer. When using this cardstock, I get a clean cut on the piece I cut off. But it leaves a feathered edge on the piece I cut from.
I'm hoping the cuts will improve with use. Each time I walk past it, I run the blade up and down 20 or 30 times, as if I'm cutting in hopes that the two blades will somehow match up and work better together.
Below is a card base using one of the earlier cuts on this Cutterpillar:
Below is that same card base, trimmed down after running my blades together about 300 times (some cutting paper, some without paper). Better, but still not acceptable:
Amber, is this what you are experiencing with yours?
I hope that over the next few days I can move from disappointed to love-it mode. I do love the precise 1/4" measurements in the grid and the 1/16th measurements on the built-in ruler. And I'm really happy that I can get a nice squared cut by pushing my paper up against the ruler edge (something I could not get with my old Making Memories trimmer). If I can eventually get a CLEAN cut I'll be a very happy camper. If not, well, it's bye-bye Cutterpillar. I'm going to continue breaking it in and hope like heck that it helps.
Edit: I just sent an email to the Cutterpillar folks. Hopefully they can help me. (fingers crossed, but not holding my breath)
__________________ Melissa59 ♥
Last edited by melissa59; 10-18-2015 at 11:06 AM..
Reason: Add a follow-up
Wow, Melissa59, that is awful. I do use 110 lb. cardstock, and I do not have any issues. I use the PTI cardstock. Your pictures look like your blade is off track somehow. I had that happen once, and I was able to fix it but I don't remember what I did. But that definitely is not normal.
__________________ Patter
Mom to Adult Identical Triplets--a police officer, 3rd year medical student, and special education teacher
Might be worth a look at the manual to see how that cutting blade works. It is on gears inside that head.
Also, I chatted with another owner who loves this cutter. She said cut card stock about 20-30 times. Just take a sheet of it and cut on it over and over. Kind of like breaking it in. She said hers does not feather either.
Here is to hoping customer service answers your questions on the feathering in a timely manner.
I already buffed the stationary blade with a fine nail file.
The thing I've not tried is:
"To fix this, turn your CutterPillar upside down. Look at the two metal brackets that hold the rod. They should be parallel to the CutterPillar base. If one or the other side of either bracket is raised higher than the other, your brackets are out of alignment. You can loosen the screws holding that bracket to the base, make the bracket perfectly parallel (it may stick up slightly above the green lip it is screwed to, but should be parallel to it), and retighten them. This should allow your rod to carry the blade at the proper angle. If this doesn't work, try shifting both brackets forward (away from the cutting surface) and tighten them down."
I've looked and I can't tell if the brackets are crooked or not. Even if they were, I don't know I'd adjust them. It takes a hex screwdriver to loosen them and I don't have one. There does seem to be some play on the rod between the two brackets. So it is likely a bracket problem.
I'm scared to mess with it too much. I don't want to loosen something and not be able to tighten it or adjust something and make it worse--and then have them or JoAnn's tell me I've voided my warranty.
I already buffed the stationary blade with a fine nail file.
The thing I've not tried is:
"To fix this, turn your CutterPillar upside down. Look at the two metal brackets that hold the rod. They should be parallel to the CutterPillar base. If one or the other side of either bracket is raised higher than the other, your brackets are out of alignment. You can loosen the screws holding that bracket to the base, make the bracket perfectly parallel (it may stick up slightly above the green lip it is screwed to, but should be parallel to it), and retighten them. This should allow your rod to carry the blade at the proper angle. If this doesn't work, try shifting both brackets forward (away from the cutting surface) and tighten them down."
I've looked and I can't tell if the brackets are crooked or not. Even if they were, I don't know I'd adjust them. It takes a hex screwdriver to loosen them and I don't have one. There does seem to be some play on the rod between the two brackets. So it is likely a bracket problem.
I'm scared to mess with it too much. I don't want to loosen something and not be able to tighten it or adjust something and make it worse--and then have them or JoAnn's tell me I've voided my warranty.
Melissa, I'm so sorry about your luck with this trimmer. My opinion is that you (and Amber, too) got a "lemon", since others say theirs does not leave the feathered edges.
I think that something that costs that much should work well, right out of the box, and should not have to be adjusted, (especially with something like a hex screwdriver, which most of us don't have.)
If it were me, I would take steps to return the trimmer and get my money back and start over.
__________________ Bugga in OK
"Be kind whenever possible. It is always possible." Dalai Lama
I agree Bugga.
I really want to this cutter to work out. If I can get it to work right, I'll keep it.
But I sure am frustrated right now.
I don't want to get a refund from JoAnn and then have to rebuy the cutter because I'm definitely not paying full price. I'm hoping that JoAnn's will send me a replacement, even Steven. If not, I'll take the refund and look for something else.
__________________ Melissa59 ♥
Last edited by melissa59; 10-18-2015 at 06:38 PM..
Have you used your Cutterpillar with heavy cardstock, like the 110# from Michaels? This is my card base cardstock and the paper I'll most use with a wide-based trimmer. When using this cardstock, I get a clean cut on the piece I cut off. But it leaves a feathered edge on the piece I cut from.
I'm hoping the cuts will improve with use. Each time I walk past it, I run the blade up and down 20 or 30 times, as if I'm cutting in hopes that the two blades will somehow match up and work better together.
Below is a card base using one of the earlier cuts on this Cutterpillar:
Below is that same card base, trimmed down after running my blades together about 300 times (some cutting paper, some without paper). Better, but still not acceptable:
Amber, is this what you are experiencing with yours?
I hope that over the next few days I can move from disappointed to love-it mode. I do love the precise 1/4" measurements in the grid and the 1/16th measurements on the built-in ruler. And I'm really happy that I can get a nice squared cut by pushing my paper up against the ruler edge (something I could not get with my old Making Memories trimmer). If I can eventually get a CLEAN cut I'll be a very happy camper. If not, well, it's bye-bye Cutterpillar. I'm going to continue breaking it in and hope like heck that it helps.
Edit: I just sent an email to the Cutterpillar folks. Hopefully they can help me. (fingers crossed, but not holding my breath)
Sometimes it isnt quite that bad but anything less than perfet irritates me to no end.
I am sorry this didn't work out. Hopefully JoAnne's will swap out with a new one.
I do wonder - and always check on my purchases - for evidence of it being 'an open box item'. I never buy anything that has been returned to stock - I am avid about inspecting taped seals, corners and inside packing materials for evidence that it's already been returned to stock and the store just reshipped it out as new merchandise. The fact that your drawer was incorrectly inserted into the machine, and now the blade won't work... Yea, returning it and getting another one is a great idea.
Frustrating to have waited for Joanne's to finally ship it - then to having this type of performance from it. I'm hoping the next one will be perfect for you.
I preordered the V3. Had problems with the paper buckling so was sent a second one to replace the original. The second one was no better so was sent a third one. I have a friend who loves her V3 and since I was having this problem, she tried the third one. Long story short, I requested a refund because I couldn't get any of them to cut properly. Hope others will find success with their CPV cutters. I am like so many of you, looking for a reliable paper cutter.
Went back to my trusty Tonic 12". It has served me well for at least 5 yrs and I hope for many more since the 12" ones are no longer available.
I wanted to chime in and let everyone know that I contacted the Cutterpillar owner and they've kindly replied with two options. They've allowed me to choose between a new carriage or a completely new cutter. I am pleased with their quick reply and their offer to fix the problem.
I wanted to chime in and let everyone know that I contacted the Cutterpillar owner and they've kindly replied with two options. They've allowed me to choose between a new carriage or a completely new cutter. I am pleased with their quick reply and their offer to fix the problem.
Good to know they will stand behind their product! So many people love this trimmer - maybe you just got a misfit. Glad they are working with you.
__________________ Bugga in OK
"Be kind whenever possible. It is always possible." Dalai Lama
Cutterpillar trimmer
