Glove box service card, die cut need help

[Studebaker Wheel]

Anyone have any experience at die cutting paper? A Canadian member has sent me a rather tattered glove box service card from a 1947 Studebaker. I put it in photoshop and cleaned and repaired it as well as I could (shown in image #1). Came out ok but cutting the patterns by scissors and a razor blade yields less than satisfactory results (image #2). Does anyone have the secret for doing it like the original and making it look more professional?

Also can anyone tell me if this card is the same (or close) to the 1948 and 1949 models?

[mbstude]

The company I work for has a couple of these. http://www.zund.com/en/

Though dropping $100K+ to make a glove box door insert might not be something you want to do. <grin>

[ddub]

You might talk to some ladies who are into making their own greeting cards. They have tools to make very professional looking cuts.

[Studebaker Wheel]

You might talk to some ladies who are into making their own greeting cards. They have tools to make very professional looking cuts.

Now to find these ladies. Oh well I am always on the lookout anyway.

[Studebaker Wheel]

The company I work for has a couple of these. http://www.zund.com/en/

Though dropping $100K+ to make a glove box door insert might not be something you want to do. <grin>

No problem. I will just send the masters down to you and you can have them cut for me....at no charge of course.

[Guido]

How about a picture framing shop? They cut mats all the time, not sure how they would do on the ins and outs of your design. I have a rather large Exaxto knife set here that I would let you borrow, but it is apparently already boxed for my move.

[garyash]

W.R. Sharples in N. Attleboro, Mass. is a good place to have a steel rule die made for cutting paper, cardboard, rubber, felt, and many other things. They can also laser cut or waterjet cut on sheets of plywood or steel up to 5 ft x 10 ft. I don't know what a die would cost for cutting an 8.5"x11" sheet of paper. You would need to provide them with a DXF file for the shape of the cutting edges. They can probably link you up with a shop that will use the die to cut your paper. Talk to Bud or to Dan Sharples. You might even convince them to cut your paper for you if the quantity is small.
See http://www.sharplesdie.com/

Stop in at your local sign shop where they cut vinyl signs. They may be able to cut the paper for you - and they only need the DXF file, no die.

Those ladies cutting things out may be using a Cricut machine, or similar. You can get one at Walmart for about $200. It does seem possible to load a DXF or SVG file into the machine to cut. For the stuff you want to do, this may be the cheapest, easiest way out, though I'm sure there is a learning curve. You could go into the gasket cutting business, too - not all bad!

http://us.cricut.com/home

Let me know if you want some help on preparing the DXF or SVG file. There are some tricks to getting the shapes laid out and getting curves to be smooth.

[oltrknut]

.Find an old print shop that still does embossing and die cutting on a platen press. They will make the die and cut the product for you.

[DEEPNHOCK]

When I cut mine, I just used a steel straight edge and an X-acto knife.
Took a while, but it turned out ok...

[Studebaker Wheel]

That one a lot easier than the '47.

[4961Studebaker]

May be able to help. i have one of those cutters (silhouette brand).

Never cut anything other than preloaded designs or alphabet letters in a specific font. So if Gary or others could help with software file/or tech help, I have the hardware to attempt. Only limitations I'm aware of is item can't be wider than a sheet of paper 8 1/2"

There's always a vynil sign shop who may be quicker and make corrections faster.

[Studebaker Wheel]

Thanks to everyone!! Am proceeding to investigate all of the suggestions....at once!

[Mark L]

Does anyone sell reproductions of these cards? I could use one in my 51 Land Cruiser.

[Studebaker Wheel]

Does anyone sell reproductions of these cards? I could use one in my 51 Land Cruiser.

Ed Reynolds at Studebaker International lists them at $4.95 for the '51.

[altair]

Your best suggestion is # 8 above. I had a small print shop business with a chandler & price platen press and I did die cutting and embossing. Most print shops don't make their own dies. Die making is a specialty business, there is special bending tools then the die is fitted into a plywood form cut with a scroll saw and a foam pad is glued on the plywood with the die cutting rule exposed. When the cut is made the foam rubber pulls the paper from the cutting rule. These cutting dies are designed for thousands of impressions and to go through the procedure for one or two cuts would be extremely expensive The only option if you are handy is to precision sharpen some hack saw blades and bend them in the shape required around a wood form, the blade might have to be annealed first to be bent then rehardened. You would have to hold the die firm in a plywood form cut with a scroll saw. Place the die on the job and firmly tap with a hammer to cut through. It would be best to place the paper to be cut on a metal plate to achieve a clean cut.... It can be done!!!