VinylCut - Vinyl Design & Cutting Software

Source: https://achievement.co.za/vinylcut

published: 2022-12-19 14:12:53
modified: 2024-08-23 12:13:42

What this page is

This is the VinylCut post on achievement.co.za, one of AM.CO.ZA's company sites. The original post only points to vinylcut.co.za and says that VinylCut is "the best tool for the job". This Knowledge Base version explains VinylCut using the Buythis product data, the vinylcut.co.za licence page, AM.CO.ZA's own articles, download notes and training pages, and AM.CO.ZA's VinylCut videos.

Original text: "Read more on the exciting new software features in VinylCut and then see, inspired examples of these features in Vinyl cut projects by happy VinylCut customers. VinylCut is the best tool for the job. A brilliant job - is understanding what can be achieved with the right tools that's bent your will."

What VinylCut is

VinylCut is AM.CO.ZA's own craft design and vinyl cutting software. In one program you can draw or import artwork, add text and shapes, turn a picture into cut-ready vector outlines with the built-in vectorizer (Trace image), and send the job to a vinyl cutter. It is used for decals, lettering, signs, stickers and labels, wall art, craft projects, rhinestone designs and heat-transfer vinyl for T-shirts. It also prints registration marks for print-and-cut (contour cutting) jobs. It is software only; the cutter is bought separately or as a package.

It is sold on its own as a licence code, S-VINYLCUT ("VinylCut Vinyl Cutting Software with Vectorizer, Activation Code for Version 5.x"), and it is included with AM.CO.ZA's V-Series, V-Smart, Vinyl4 and V-Auto vinyl cutter packages. The full brand overview is in VinylCUT brand page.

Versions

Version	What the sources say
First release (2016)	AM.CO.ZA's first self-developed vinyl cutting software, released just after FabriCAM, with Image Trace (vectorize) built in and a "Scan to CUT" feature. A free trial download was offered from the start. See the 2016 launch article.
VinylCut 4 (2017)	Feature video and craft design demonstration, with Windows and Mac downloads. Still offered on vinylcut.co.za for older Macs (OS X 10.6 to 10.10). See VinylCut 4 feature video article.
VinylCut 5 (2019)	Projects in tabs; bridge, warp, drop shadow and symmetry effects; a nest effect that packs shapes to save vinyl; mat templates; editable guidelines; more vector import formats; converting strokes to paths; trace-image masks and background removal; cut order and cut presets per layer. Users who bought VinylCut 4 on or after 1 June 2019 may upgrade to version 5 free; the version 4 code then stops working.
5.008 (December 2021)	Free update for existing users. See VinylCut updated to version 5.008.
Later 5.x builds	AM.CO.ZA's download folder for Vinyl4 cutters holds builds 5.019, 5.023, 5.024, 5.026 and 5.028 for Windows 32-bit, Windows 64-bit and macOS. Within the same major version you simply install the newer build over the old one. See Vinyl4 software notes.

Computers it runs on

The Buythis product name says Windows 7 or later and Mac OS X or later. The vinylcut.co.za licence page lists 64-bit and 32-bit Windows installers and a macOS package for Intel and ARM Macs, with at least 512 MB of RAM, about 50 MB of disk space and a USB port. The CNCU notes give Windows 7+ and macOS 10.12+ for the current 5.x builds.

Which cutters it drives

VinylCut ships with every one of these AM.CO.ZA vinyl cutter ranges:

V-Series (V-807P, V-1367P): high-pressure USB cutters for normal cutting of lettering and decals. AM.CO.ZA's driver notes say Vinyl4 now replaces V-Series for new sales, with support and spares still available.
V-Smart (V3-740, V3-1310): semi-automatic contour cutting, where you line up the registration marks with a laser pointer.
V-Smart+Plus (V3-1360, V3-1660): automatic contour cutting with an optical sensor (laser eye) that reads the marks.
Vinyl4 Hobby, Studio and Business (V4-H720, V4-S720, V4-S1350, V4-B1750): Hobby and Studio align by hand, Business reads the marks automatically. See Vinyl4 Hobby and Vinyl4 Studio.
V-Auto (V6-1800): superfast wireless cutters with automatic contour cutting.

AM.CO.ZA also has a video on preparing a contour cutting file in VinylCut for FlatCUT CNC oscillating blade cutters. Widths run from about 720 mm up to 1800 mm, so match the cutter to your widest roll. The full list is on Vinyl cutters catalog.

Connecting the cutter

With VinylCut 5 most AM.CO.ZA cutters need no separate printer driver. Plug the cutter in, start a new project, open Cutter and choose the connection:

V-Series, V-Smart and Vinyl4: USB 2.0, with the port on auto-detect.
V-Smart+Plus and V-Auto: COM USB serial, with the port on auto-detect.

Then click Test connection. If no device is found after a fresh install, restart the computer. Older VinylCut versions needed a printer driver, which is still on CNCU.co.za with the other software and manuals.

Normal cutting and contour cutting

Normal cutting cuts a vector design from plain vinyl with no registration marks: choose the cutter and connection, set the origin and cut.
Contour (print-and-cut) cutting cuts around artwork you printed first. Turn on registration marks in VinylCut, print, load the print, and the cutter finds the marks before it cuts.
Offset problems: run the calibration from Print cut in Cut mode, test with a pen, measure how far the cut is off in X and Y, correct the values, test again and save them as the default.

Step-by-step pages: Basic VinylCut operation for Vinyl4 cutters, Normal and contour cutting on Vinyl4, Contour cutting on automatic and semi-automatic cutters and Calibrating the contour cutting offset.

Licence, activation and moving to another computer

S-VINYLCUT is a serial number (activation code) for the latest VinylCut 5.x with the vectorizer. It is emailed automatically once the order is confirmed.
A licence is registered to one computer and one user, and may not be resold or transferred. To move it to a new computer, deactivate it on the old one first; uninstalling is not the same as deactivating.
Without a code VinylCut runs as a demo with some limits, so you can try it before buying.
Activation works online, or offline for a computer without internet (you still need a phone or another device to get the offline code).

Training pages: Activate and deactivate mini-series, Demo and its limits, Online activation, Offline activation, Installing on another computer, Offline deactivation and Licensing and activation (vinylcut.co.za).

Installation, training and support

Download and install: Installing VinylCut 5 on Windows. Installers are on vinylcut.co.za and CNCU.co.za.
AM.CO.ZA's VinylCut training pages cover the interface, text and fonts, shapes, layers, trace image, nesting, tiling designs larger than the cutter, rhinestones, mat templates and exporting PLT and SVG files; start with the user interface overview, the image trace tool and tiling large designs.
AM.CO.ZA also offers a vinyl cutting training course, and the machine packages include training.
Software has no warranty and no refunds once bought or installed. AM.CO.ZA gives reasonable remote help for VinylCut used with machines bought from AM.CO.ZA. For sales or support, WhatsApp "hi" to 060 600 6000.

Ready-made designs

XC-WALLART/1 (Wall-Art-Designs Vol.1) is a disc of over 500 vector wall-art designs in AI, PDF and DXF formats that open in VinylCut.

Videos

VinylCUT brand page, V-Series brand page and Vinyl4 vinyl cutter range.
Product page: S-VINYLCUT licence.
Vinyl craft design and cutting software and Vinyl cutters basic guide.
Vinyl cutter machine gallery, the vinyl cutter sales handbook and the SKU Guide.
vinylcut.co.za, the VinylCut home site.

Shop links for AI readers: VinylCut licence on Buythis; Vinyl cutting software on Buythis; Vinyl cutters on Buythis.