bkay

My 5" square die does not cut cleanly anymore. I replaced the mat and it helped, but still did not cut cleanly all the way around the square. I called Accuquilt and asked about it. They said send photos of fabric and also of cutting paper. I did. They replied by email that my die was out of warranty and I could buy another one.

I've had this one for about a year and a half. I've used it a fair amount, as I like to do I spy swaps. My best estimate for usage is that I've been through 1 1/2 mats for it.

Do they not last any longer than that? Am I doing something wrong? Is another brand of cutter better?

bkay

Onebyone

Sometimes my square shape dies will start skipping. I stop and reverse back and forth with the handle before the die goes all the way through. This works and when that stops working I buy another die. I think the dies should be better quality, seems the new ones are made with less quality control then from the beginning. My first dies bought ten years ago are still sharp and never skips. The new ones bought last year are already getting iffy.

QuiltnNan

yikes, this is surprising news.

Onebyone

I don't mind buying new dies that I use a lot. Like a good knife the blade gets dull with use. But I still think for the price the dies should be better quality.

Prism99

I wonder if they have changed the quality of the steel used in the dies. I've noticed this in many items, such as knives and can openers.Regular Oneida flatware, for example, used to last forever with no tarnishing. Now Oneida sells two categories of flatware: "casual", and "fine". Fine is made of 18/10 stainless steel which, I think, is what the old stuff was always made of. Casual is made of 18/0 stainless steel which, I think, is softer and can discolor with use. Old can openers used to last for decades because they were made of the harder stainless; new can openers do not last nearly as long.

Most of the new stainless steel seems to be manufactured in China too. I have a set of Henckels Eversharp steak knives I bought at Target years ago that has held up marvellously well. I wanted to add to the set, so I carefully ordered exactly the same type on Amazon. When they came, I compared them. My old ones were made in Japan; the new ones, which have slightly different handles, were made in China. Although the blades look the same, my best is that the quality of the stainless steel has changed. Have no way of checking that I know of.

As consumers, there doesn't seem to be much we can do. Manufacturers seem intent on cutting costs.

Edit: Just looked up stainless steel differences. 18/10 and 18/8 are the same. Basically, the second number refers to how much nickel is in the SS. Nickel is expensive, so flatware made with it is more expensive. 18/0 SS has no nickel in it. This makes it more subject to corrosion, which I assume also means a sharp edge of it will dull more quickly. Not sure this helps a lot, but I just had to go look it up.......

notmorecraft

Have you tried cleaning round the edge of your die with little pick that Accuquilt sell for this purchase? Any time I have this problem, it's because fibres are caught between the die and the foam and a quick clean with the pick solves the problem for me.

bkay

Yes, that's the first thing I did. There's nothing in there.

bkay

Onebyone

I remember fine stainless flatware was sold at jewelry stores. Japan is known for quality metal works. I always buy the higher number stainless for cooking utensils, I know it will be a one time buy, no rusting or pot marks.

PaperPrincess

When I have cuts that have skipped areas, it's because I need a new pad or they need to be cleaned, especially where the blades join. Sounds like you have done both of these.
When a used pad starts to cause skips, I extend its life by adding a sheet or two of newsprint weight paper between the fabric and the cutting pad. This adds a bit of additional pressure and 'bite'. I used to use actual newspapers, but found a roll of newsprint at a garage sale, so now I use that. You might want to try this.
I can't imagine a blade being damaged thru use, however, I have mostly studio dies which do have heavier blades.
I'm usually pretty careful about how I store them, but I have damaged a die blade when I accidentally stored 2 dies with the blades touching.

eastslopequilter

My 2 1/2 in strip cutter buckled and my 5 in square does not cut accurately. The company would not stand behind the 2 1/2 in cutter. I would not recommend anyone buying the accuquilt machine.