rotary cutter: am I doing something wrong?

[happeeevraftr]

You all love your rotary cutters, so I bought one (olfa brand with mat, from Joanne's). But I'm a little disappointed. I thought it would be easier to cut through fabrics. Is it just that PUL and suedecloth are really hard to cut? I have to push pretty hard to even cut one layer, and it still skips spots! What am I doing wrong? Did I get a dud? It's brand new, so I wouldn't think the blade would be dull. I thought Olfa was the best brand.

How does it work for you on PUL?

Also, how many layers do you cut at once? How do you cut your fabric? Do you cut on the fold (just one piece of fabric?) or do you cut multiple layers of fabric together? I'm just having a really hard time getting my 2 pieces to match up perfectly.

[gethane]

I think they take some practice to get used to. I'm a quilter, well, I haven't made any for awhile, but I did make quilts steadily for about 6 years, so I've used a rotary cutter A LOT. I press firmly (you have a self healing mat right?) and cut through several layers at once, 4 layers feels about right to me (unless its something thick like terry cloth then its 2) I've cut through 6-8 layers of quilting cottons, but diaper making fabrics are always thicker.

ALWAYS pay attention to where your fingers are in relation to your blade. I cut off the very tip of my finger (just the soft tissue) once and it was NOT fun.

If you do a google search on quilting rotary cutter or heck, even just rotary cutter, you might get some good tips/directions/faqs.

[jmreinke]

Originally Posted by gethane

ALWAYS pay attention to where your fingers are in relation to your blade. I cut off the very tip of my finger (just the soft tissue) once and it was NOT fun.

YEEEEOWCH!!

[Basylica]

I'm gonna comment here instead of starting a new thread, hope thats ok!!

Anyone have any advice on when to buy a olfa at like joanns?
I know they have whatever-yearly sales, but I wondered if it was worth waiting a month or something

DH allocated (and we finially got!) our tax refund, and I just a major performace bonus at work, so i'm buying me a brand spanky new bernette
My first sewing machine!! (i've used them, my mom's always owned one, just never owned one of my OWN)

gonna need some cut'n tools!!

[happeeevraftr]

I just got mine there. All their rotary cutters and mats were 40% off. That was last weekend, not sure if they still are. But if you sign up for their coupon mailing list, they'll probably send you a 40% off one item coupon. That's what they did for me. (Through email).

[msright2474]

I've noticed that if I replace my blade and tighten up the tension nut too much, it will skip worse.

I have cut a couple of PUL layers, but it usually only cuts well through one unless the blade is super sharp and new. Usually, I layer a couple of inner layers and a PUL layer on the bottom for best results.

Make sure your pressure is even all the way around the diaper. If you let up your pressure, it will skip or not cut all the way through...just perforate the PUL.

HTH!