How to cut shapes from sticky backed paper?

Does anyone know if it’s possible to cut shapes from sticky backed paper on an x-carve?Obviously this is not possible using a spinning cutting tool but is there an attachment that could be used to cut cleanly through paper labels? I’m thinking laser cutter but that would leave a burnt edge so it would have to be some kind of knife blade that was able to cut in all directions.
Anyone any ideas?

There are things called drag knives. I have no clue how they work.

I have used my laser a couple of times to cut label material. I was white and did not leave any mark on it at all. You just can not go slow or it will leave a mark.The trick is to go fast enough to burn the the top but not burn thru the bottom. Not to hard to figure out you start at a fast feed rate and go from there. Either speed it up or slow it down until you find the sweet spot.

Search “Donek drag knife”, its principle is an angled razor blade where the cutter tip is slightly offset relative to center of path. This cause the tip to trail behing its path, following around corners etc.

Due to the offset mentioned a compensation of path is require to counter the tip offset. Otherwise the cutter will start to turn slightly earlier since its trailing behind.

The router is OFF obviously :slight_smile:

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[Drag Knife / Vinyl Cutter – V1 Engineering Inc

here is one that I designed in easel from several other designs I seen on the internet. If I remember correctly I used the same bearings that are common on skateboards. when I was done I had to round the top part to fit the router and clean some edges.

Thanks everyone. Some great suggestions which I will investigate. I’ve come a long way in understanding about drag knives in the last 24 hours. I didn’t even know they existed yesterday!

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well certainly with that attitude!