I have this vinyl cutting machine....

[bonnienclyde]

And I think I can cut some custom vinyl overlays for e-cigs. I have a computer program that I can "design" with, and I'm thinking all I need to do is get some exact measurements and wha-la! Custom 510's, LOL!

I use this machine to sell custom graphics for cars, signs, wall words,etc. If I can get a pic on the computer of whatever you want, then I can cut it out, anywhere from 1/16 of an inch to 4-6 ft.

Has anyone done anything like this? Or does anyone already know EXACT sizes of batteries, atty's etc.?

Off to work! I want some pink, purple, baby blue, flowers, butterflies, Ahhhh.....I'm tired of black and silver!

 

[eikon]

flexi, corel or illustrator? you put design in quotes, so i'm thinking flexi (or worse)

 

[bonnienclyde]

Okay, on a 510 battery, I'm getting exactly 2.5 inches length and 1.25 width. Does that sound right?

 

[bonnienclyde]

Ha! None of those,LOL! You could say worse, but it works great for me, lol!

I'm using Inkscape and a program called "Sure Cuts A Lot" which is basically a svg program. I have my mat that my machine uses and what I get on the screen is exactly what I cut.

Let me take a screen shot and show you what it looks like.

 

[bonnienclyde]

I can design in any of those, and then use Inkscape to convert it to a svg file, so if anyone has a design already with one of those, I could just use it. (hint, hint, lol)

 

[bonnienclyde]

Ok, this is Inkscape, and here's is the "SCAL" program that actually does the cutting. :

 

[kylewinther]

That would be cool. I have seen an e-cigarette company out there that you can choose a "skin" for your e-cig battery. But a custom skin with what ever you want to put on it would be awesome. Let me know how it goes, we might be interested in purchasing some.

 

[bonnienclyde]

Ok, I got 2 done, and its going to work! I just need to fine tune it a little. Let me take a pic of these.

One one I put a "no smoking' symbol, LOL!

The only problem I can see is not being able to cut very detailed things. The tinier the "cuts" the harder to deal with getting them on, etc.

 

[bonnienclyde]

Remember, these are VERY rough, I made these in about 3 minutes, LOL. I'm going to work on them some more, fine tune them a little. Still, they turned out very good for a first try. Much better than I expected.

The first one is on a pass thru, and the second is a 510 battery that was rotten looking, lol. The paint had all rubbed off, it was a silver and black brindle.

 

[bonnienclyde]

I'm going to try some skulls, some 4th of Julyie ones, lol, and some patterns. And other suggetions?

 

[mrjaguar]

hmm.. custom stickers? oooohhhhh.

 

[Dkrom68]

I use a Gerber Plotter and Vinyl Express software and have done a few as well. They seem to hold up pretty well over time except for the small pieces as they tend to start coming off over time if you get juice on them. I have a company that actually prints pictures on vinyl and the material used in doing car wraps which seems to stick and hold up better cause you can use heat to shrink it on and it sticks a ton better. One other thing ive dont that seems to help is use spray clear coat after the vinyl is on and it gives it a nice gloss as well as keeps the vinyl protected.

 

[quasimod]

I downloaded Inkscape once to play around with it, and I think it's amazing for free software.

CorelDRAW 12 exports to SVG, is there some reason you prefer to use Inkscape to do the conversions?

I like CorelDRAW, mostly because it was my first experience with vector graphics (ver. 3, no instructions, no clue. Talk about a masochist!). Also, whenever a new version comes out, I always get the last version handed down from a family member. I still use it regularly, even though I'm not a graphic artist by profession.

 

[quasimod]

I use a Gerber Plotter /.../

Woah, those can get pricey!

 

[googled]

Do some custom eGo covers and you may have a winner. Easier to do too because you don't need to make a hole for the button, maybe even a cone cover too but that tends to get a little too warm with LR atties.

 

[Harleymedic53]

Omg i want something for my BB!!!

 

[bonnienclyde]

Dkrom68, you are waaaay above my head with that one, LOL! And way above my budget, too, lol.

Quasimod, I only had Corel(Illustrator) on my desktop, and never could quite 'get it". Everything I went to do was a pain in the .....

I'm not that much of a techie, so something simple is the best for me, LOL. My friend used Inkscape and he taught me the basics of it pretty quick. Its so easy to use for what I do.

Another free program that is pretty good is GIMP. I downloaded the 2.6 version, and I can not see the difference between it and photoshop. Now, I'm sure you guys could, but again,for what I use it for, its great. You can even use the "photoshop" brushes, etc. with it.

I don't have an Ego, send me the measurements and I'll make you one and send it to you and let you try it out.

Harleymedic, I'm pming you.

 

[Nyxie]

And I think I can cut some custom vinyl overlays for e-cigs. I have a computer program that I can "design" with, and I'm thinking all I need to do is get some exact measurements and wha-la! Custom 510's, LOL!

I use this machine to sell custom graphics for cars, signs, wall words,etc. If I can get a pic on the computer of whatever you want, then I can cut it out, anywhere from 1/16 of an inch to 4-6 ft.

Has anyone done anything like this? Or does anyone already know EXACT sizes of batteries, atty's etc.?

Off to work! I want some pink, purple, baby blue, flowers, butterflies, Ahhhh.....I'm tired of black and silver!

I have thought of doing this. But I don't have the patience to sit and pick the teeny pieces.

 

[Dkrom68]

Yeah its a few years old but it does the job thats for sure the software is as expexive as some of the plotters LOL

Looking good Bonnie, nice job

Woah, those can get pricey!

 

[bonnienclyde]

Lab, awesome!

The skulls are exactly like I envisioned, LOL!

You have the exact same countertop I have also!

I'm pm'ing ya, I've got a question...