How to use a Circle Cutter by Dan Vadas

[Dan Vadas]

Hi all,

 

 Some time ago I bought one of these Circle Cutters, thinking it might be a useful tool. I gave up on it after a couple of tries, relegating it to the "Useless Tools" drawer :

 Recently I needed to cut about 200 circular discs (including the inner cuts of 1/3 of them) from thin card for the wheels of a Locomotive I'm building from Card - I started a Build Log for it in the Shore Leave forum (a Link to it is HERE). So I resurrected this device and gave it another go. Here are the results of a bit of (successful) experimentation :

And here are the secrets I discovered on how to use this formerly useless tool.

 

1. Buy a decent quality one. I actually snapped the first one I bought (one like this)- it broke under a bit of pressure. I can't really give you any tips on which one to buy, but I found the one in the picture above to work OK. There are probably better ones out there - check on Ebay or Amazon. I also found THIS beast, a German made Ecobra - I have no idea of the cost of it, but it looks quite sturdy and comes with several different types of cutters. There is a video on how to use it in that Link, it's a bit different to my tips - they make it look SO easy  .

 

2. Always use a SHARP blade. As with any type of cutting blunt blades are a no-no. The centering needle also needs to be sharp or it slips and won't work properly. I only had to change to a new blade after cutting about 150 circles. The cutting face should be pointing toward you, and the part rotated in a clockwise direction.

 

3. Use a Cutting Mat. The needle needs to be stable, and it can be pushed into the mat without damaging it. An unstable needle will slip.

 

4. Keep the tool VERTICAL when cutting on anything other than thin paper. This is very important when cutting through thicker or tougher material, as the blade will wander off-line if it's held on an angle. I use the grip in the pic below, with the end of the centre shaft nestled in the palm of my hand between thumb and forefinger :

4. Use LIGHT pressure on the blade and take small "bites" as you use a combination of moving the blade and rotating the card at the same time with your other hand, holding the part firmly down against the mat so it can't rise up and change the angle of cut. This applies to smaller diameter circles like the one above, larger circles are much easier to cut.

 

5. When cutting thicker card (0.5mm or thicker) several rotations will be needed. Don't attempt to cut right through in one pass, the blade WILL wander off-line. How many rotations will depend on the thickness and density of the material being cut, as well as how much pressure you put on the blade. Less pressure is best.

 

6. DO NOT push the blade downward so hard that it bites into the cutting mat more than making a slight scratch. The blade will bind up and shift.

 

7. These tools are not designed to cut through wood as it will follow the grain, but it can be done in densely grained timber like Boxwood or Swiss Pear. Many more rotations of the circle and much lighter pressure on the blade will be needed, especially as the blade follows the grain.

 

8. Cut OUTER circles FIRST if multiple cuts are needed on a part, or you will lose your centre.

 

9. Forget the scale on the tool, it isn't particularly accurate. Use a rule to measure the diameter, or use the part itself. Test it on some scrap before cutting the part, to make sure it is set up OK.

 

10. Some experimentation will be needed before starting to cut the "real thing" to get the feel of it all. Take the time to get it right on some scrap before committing to the printed part of a card model.

 

Here are the results of some of the wheels I made. There are up to 10 discs in each wheel :

 

Cheers, Danny

[Moab]

Thanx for the explanation Danny. Did your wrist hurt after making the 120 cuts for the 12 wheels? Thanx again...Moab

[druxey]

Thank you, Dan!

[BANYAN]

Looks good Dan and thanks for the feedback and tips.

 

cheers

 

Pat

[bruce d]

Hello Dan, good description, thanks. That was a lot of pieces to cut, whew.

Your cutter looks a bit like the ECOBRA circle cutter I have had for decades. My learning curve was exactly like yours: bad results, left it on the shelf for ages, tried it on a different job and bingo, figured out how to use it properly. 

https://www.amazon.co.uk/Ecobra-770630-Compass-Circle-Cutter/dp/B000KT8QDE

 

 

 

[Dan Vadas]

6 hours ago, bruce d said:

Your cutter looks a bit like the ECOBRA circle cutter I have had for decades. 

https://www.amazon.co.uk/Ecobra-770630-Compass-Circle-Cutter/dp/B000KT8QDE

Bruce, that's the same one I posted the Link to in my first post  . The accompanying video is worth a look, but don'y be fooled by how easy she makes it look - they are rather large circles she's cutting in it  .

 

"Did your wrist hurt after making the 120 cuts for the 12 wheels?"

Not really Moab, I didn't make them all in one go - that would have been the equivalent of tying Ratlines on a 3-master  .

 

Glad to be of assistance guys.

 

Cheers, Danny

[bruce d]

5 hours ago, Dan Vadas said:

Bruce, that's the same one I posted the Link to in my first post  .

?? Not when I follow the link. Must be a quirk of Amazon, clever software that knows my budget perhaps?

This is what mine looks like (from my link)

 

... and this is what the link for the  'beast' in your post takes me to ...

I like the look of the beast but then I am a sucker for tools with attitude.

[Dan Vadas]

8 hours ago, bruce d said:

Must be a quirk of Amazon

That's weird, now mine also goes to the red one above. As you said - a quirk  . Or maybe it was just me opening the wrong Window in the half-dozen or so I had open at the time .

 

Cheers, Danny

[popeye the sailor]

thanks for the tutorial Danny.......here's what mine looks like..

it looks the same as Bruce's 

Edited November 12, 2019 by popeye the sailor

[maaaslo]

Ok boys, you have all compared the size of your erm... tool. I have olfa cutter. Meant to be good. Found that i have to insert a wedge in between the sliding part and stationary part. There was too much play there.

[Dan Vadas]

On 11/13/2019 at 3:41 AM, maaaslo said:

Ok boys, you have all compared the size of your erm... tool. I have olfa cutter. Meant to be good. Found that i have to insert a wedge in between the sliding part and stationary part. There was too much play there.

Yep, the Olfa isn't much good at all. It's the first one I bought and found the same sloppiness - I'm glad I managed to snap it  .

 

I don't know if you noticed the pic of the new one I bought, but the arm adjusting lock isn't a screw but a plastic sliding wedge (there's another on the back for the "large circle extension") which does a good job of locking the arm without any freeplay. The whole unit is also a bit thicker than the Olfa, which takes a lot of flex out of it - and it hasn't snapped yet either  .

 

Danny

[BETAQDAVE]

4 hours ago, Dan Vadas said:

Yep, the Olfa isn't much good at all. It's the first one I bought and found the same sloppiness - I'm glad I managed to snap it

Yes, there are quite a lot of poor quality tools out there, especially on the WEB.  This quote sums up my view of why it persists.

 

 “As long as people will accept crap, it will be financially profitable to dispense it.”

– Dick Cavett