Hi Monte,
Logan makes some very nice cutters at quite reasonable prices. I have the Logan Compact and it has done a good job for me.

If you're really interested you should ask on my forum what mat cutter others recommend. I don't do my own mat cutting anymore and now pay to have the mats cut and shipped to me. The Speed Mat is a great cutter, but it takes a very large empty wall. I had to extend my wall with a sheet of one inch plywood when I bought it. Back when I first started cutting mats, there were only two options, Keeton and C&H. I had both because if you were doing it for a living, you always needed to have a backup. Currently I think the Fletcher is the best you can get. But for occassional use, anything you can get a good deal on should work.

Quote:
Larry I see you have a Speedmat cutter. I cannot aford one of them but am looking to buy something I can use. I have looked at the Logans 750 and 650. Also C&H which an Artist friend has. Any thoughts here?

Hi Dave, The Logans I am lookiing at because of price. My budget is tight. My friend has the compact Logan also and is happy with it. There are other options such as Alto EZ mat cutters. I hope to get more into it than cutting my own. That is why I looked at the higher end.

Thanks Larry, I have looked at the Fletcher 2200 and believe it would be a good choice if I can swing it. For now I am cutting mats for my prints to go to the Iowa State fair in August. I will probaby opt to get a less expensive cutter for now. I know I will get good use out of one in the future.

Monte, I've been using my Logan 650 for about four years and I'm very happy with it. There's a bit of a learning curve involved in getting it set up just right, and a lot of practice on cheap mat board material, but it's worth the effort. I buy matboard in 32X40 sheets at art supply stores and cut them to whatever sizes I need. You do need a very flat, solid work surface for it. The dimensions are about 36X46 inches, and it fits very nicely on my parents' old and very heavy dining room table. So, while wall space is a requirement for Larry's cutter, floor space is needed for the 650.

Thanks Bill. The 650 is priced very reasonable. I have heard there is some problems getting it not to over cut. I have bought my foamboard and mat board in 32x40 sheets. I like the 650 because the cutters are attached to a rod.

"I have heard there is some problems getting it not to over cut."

Yep, that's part of the learning curve I mentioned. It takes careful measurement of the image, and the adjustment scales are critical. Even differences in matboard thickness can have an impact on the overcut issue. But these things are probably true for any matcutter, and the 650 handles them better than anything else I've seen in the price range. If you go for one, and you have any problems getting it set up right, let me know.....

Bill, I might go ahead with he 650. I am not sure yet. A store in town has an older Flecher I am trying to talk them out of but they have not given in yet. Right now I can buy the 650 for 399 with free shipping. Problem is I have to be ready for the State Fair in a month with limited funds. I feel though that the 650 would do a good job for the money.

You need to use "production stops" with any mat cutter you purchase. Those are stops that lock onto the bar along a ruler so that the head stops at the point where you need it to based on the dimensions of the opening in the mat.

Additionally you need to use an under mat so the cut is clean and doesn't tear the edge of the mat.

Thanks Larry, I have been doing some reading on just what you have explained here. Being new to this area of work. I am opened to all help. Like all things you get what you pay for. At this time I am holding off for a while to make sure I will invest to the best of my needs.

Monte, just for info, the 650 comes with the production stops Larry referred to. And, he's absolutely right about the undermat. I use the long scrap pieces left over from cutting 11X14 mats from the full sheet. More learning curve stuff...

Bill I printed off the manual of the 650 and read it. That gave me a better idea of the unit. my friend has a lower model Logan so I will try his to do a couple mats before I buy one. He said I can use it anytime. Problem is it will not take a full sheet of matboard. Most of the mats I need to cut are for 16x20 prints. Some for 20x24. This makes using his more difficult.

Monte,

I have a Logan Model 655 Framers Edge Export mat cutter. It handles up to 48" long material. I'm reasonable happy with it, but not completely so since I can't get it to cut totally straight. There is an adjustment for that; a little screw pushes against the blades which causes the blade to push harder against the rail which should result in a straight cut, but mine still wavers a little: the first couple of inches the blade moves away a little from the rail and if you look closely you can see that in the cut.

Any advise on how to overcome that is more than welcome.

Another issue is over- and under-cutting; with undercutting the cut-out won't release and you've got a real problem on your hands (meaning the mat is virtually lost). With overcutting you have less of a problem; picky people may notice. It is impossible in my experience to get it just right, meaning a minimum amount of overcut; if you try to get it too close than variations in the process will cause undercuts often. I've settled for some overcut, but this is barely visible, even if you look closely.

Lately I've been buying cut mats from my supplier, figuring that the couple of dollars per mat extra is well worth the saved aggravation, particularly the wavy cuts.

If you use an undermat, will it cut straight. That's usually the solution for hooking. That and more frequently changing the blade. I've also found that tightening the screw too much that forces the blade up against the guide usually slightly dulls the reverse side so you can only use one end of the blade. But that may only be the mat cutters I've worked with.

Under cutting can be fixed by carefully turning the mat face up and reaching underneath with a single edge new razor blade, continue the cut carefully until the inside mat drops out. It's over cutting that can't be fixed.

Thanks for the info Frans. I have hesitated to buy anything because of some of the problems some run into. I have a friend who has a C&H 40" mat cutter and he says it works very well. I can see it has quality. I know many have went to having their mats cut. I would like to do my own because I have time and I am small time. I have another friend who has a compact Logan and he does very well with it. I am going to try my friends Logan this week and see how much trouble I have. If it works I might get the 750 for now. I have read where some like it better then the 650 for the price. I found a used Fletcher 2200 for 590. I might call on that one.

Larry I can see why many buy their mats cut. I know you have had experience here. I think for me it would be a new venture to give it a try. I just don't know if I want to invest a lot of money to find out. Thanks for taking the time to answer back to my forum.

I haven't cut mats for about five or six years. I now order mats from a company called Dixie Matting, but I order in quantities. For single mats, I always recommend Michael's when they have a 50% off sale.

Larry looks like their prices would be hard to beat. Question is there is very little information on their site as far as selection.

But not if you call them on the phone. I don't know what kind of selection you're looking for. The'll cut any manufacturer's mat board.

I use Crescent SRM918 which is white core "very white" mat board.

Thanks Larry, I am going to call them in the next week. 100 dollar mim. order is no problem. I want double mats and I see they will do that. They have the best price around I can find. I cut some mats yesterday on a friends mat cutter. I can find better things to do with my time.

Monte,

I abandoned double mats in favor of singles; they're a lot less expensive and single mats divert less attention from the image, IMHO. I've also switched to simple photo white from NB for all my images; colored mats never seemed satisfactory to me and they are more of an issue of personal preference and thus limit the appeal to others. The only other "color" I consider is black for things like colorful flower images and the like.

Great to see you more active on the forum again!

Frans for the most part many I sell will have the single mats. You are right there. The ones I want for myself or use for presentation have double. Since I do only BW usually grey,black combo or black white.

I use double white for the larger prints (16x20) matted 22x28. I use single white mats for 8x10 matted 11x14 and 11x14 matted 16x20. The white that I use (SRM918) is white core so it won't yellow. If I were to use black, it would be black core. I wouldn't use any other color, like gray, but that doesn't mean you shouldn't.

I will consider that Larry. Most of my prints are 16x20.

Larry I want to thank you for taking the time to tell me about Dixie Mats. I placed an order today. It was very reasonable. also takes the stress out of it. I bought 11 double mats and foam backs. Thanks again.

I also wanted to say thank you all. I am new to this as well and found the information here very useful. I am going with the Logan 750, found it at $229 free shipping.

Luca