Cameo Pro Project Video Timelapse

This week I cut the pieces to make up 40 card kits for an event I’m teaching at. I set the video camera up to record a time lapse of the entire cutting process.

This was 3 hours of real time cutting.
23 – 12″ x 12″ sheets of cardstock cut on a 24″ x 24″ cutting mat with the Cameo Pro
40 card bases
80 daisy pieces
320 flower center pieces
80 leaves

I have added the video to my YouTube channel HERE.
It is condensed down to 7 minutes for the 3 hours in real time it took.

I’m sharing more tips below too!

Tips for cutting 4 sheets of cardstock on the
Cameo Pro at one time.

Guides

Use Guides in the Silhouette Studio software placed at the 12″ marks to show where your pages will meet. Keep the design away from the edges of the cardstock.

Guides are a Designer Edition upgrade or higher feature. For more on guides check out the Let’s Explore v4 – Page Setup Panel Tab 2 tutorial HERE.

Cameo Pro Workspace

One of the biggest issues I see when troubleshooting issues on the Cameo Pro is not having an adequate workspace setup for it to function properly.

This machine is big and it needs a large workspace to function and feed properly. It cannot work against gravity or the cuts will not line up consistently.

If you are using the 24″ cutting mat, it should have a workspace of 38″- 40″ in width for the machine to be securely and stable on and 52″ of length that is absolutely flat. This allows for 22″ in front and 22″ behind the machine for it to feed the cutting mat as flat as possible in and out of the machine as it cuts.

Check out this post HERE on the Cameo Pro Table Options for more tips & workspace suggestions.

Make sure the right roller is locked in position properly

The right roller should be rolling on the edge of the cutting mat and not across the adhesive on the cutting mat. The middle indent of the right roller should be lined up with the gray arrow on the machine at the 24″ mat mark.

The right roller can only be locked in place where the gray arrows point to on the machine roller bar. For the 24″ cutting mat, that is the far right gray arrow.

If you look at your machine closely, you will see that the right roller is directly under the indent on the white pinch bar. That is the only place that the roller makes contact with the surface underneath, so placement is very important for feeding properly.

If the right roller is not placed properly you may experience future cut issues which can include:
– gumming up the roller and there is no easy way to clean this roller on the Pro
– wearing a groove in the cutting mat which causes an uneven surface for cutting
– mat can get stuck inside the machine
– feed issues as the rollers do not roll at the same rate of speed because the right roller is either getting stuck or the roller is slipping on the material
– affect print and cut accuracy if the rollers are rolling at different rates
– cuts not connecting
– mat can skew
Note: the rollers rolling at different rates is not something you can usually see with the naked eye, even when studied closely. However, you can see it when the cuts do not connect completely.

Cutting Mat is loaded properly

The Cameo Pro is different than other machine models. It has 2 load lines. The line on the left side of the arrows is ONLY for the 24″ cutting mat.

The line on the right side of the arrows is for ALL other sizes of materials and cutting mats.

If the cutting mat is not loaded properly it can cause feed issues or it to skew in the machine as it’s cutting.

Above I shared a photo of the right roller, but where is the left one exactly?
If you look closely at the left roller, it is directly below the dot on the roller bar. This is where the roller grips the mat or material.

The 24″ x 24″ mat is a monster of a cutting mat and it has heft to it. The load line and the right roller placement is very specifically designed to gripe each side of the mat so it can feed it in properly.

If the mat catches on something or does not load completely straight, unload it and load it again – as many times as needed. If it does not start off straight, it’s not going to cut in the properly locations and the cuts may be off.
On my 1st set of daisies being cut, I did not notice that the mat was slightly off and it did affect a few of the flowers getting cut off a bit.
It happens – plan for it!
If in doubt, always reload the cutting mat.

Use the Autoload feature whenever possible

This will help to ensure that you are able to support the mat and hold it up to the rollers as even as possible. The monster mat can be difficult to get the hang of, but keep on practicing and you will get it. It is much easier to load if you have the proper clearance in front of the machine to help keep the mat flat and not hanging down over the edge.

Check out this video on how the Autoload feature works on my YouTube channel HERE.

Clean Debris off the Cutting Mat

Any debris on the cutting mat can interfere with the cut being clean as it creates an uneven cutting surface. Clean off any previous bits of debris left behind by the materials.

In the video I shared above, when I load the 2nd set of white cardstock, you can see me smoothing it down to secure it to the mat. When I did, I noticed uneven areas under the cardstock and I lifted it to clean it and placed it back down. Any debris can affect your cuts.

Weed carefully.

Sure you see videos of people all the time that seem to just rip off the excess of the material whether it’s for cardstock or vinyl. But, it is not always the case.

Go slow when weeding and you will find you can save your design most times. My Autoblade is very well used and it’s still cutting well, but the design I was using had interior corners and cuts. It cut, but by carefully removing the excess cardstock, I didn’t rip off any petals from the flowers or pieces of the centers.

I hope these tips have helped to show you a few things about the Cameo Pro!
For more tips and troubleshooting on the Cameo Pro –
check out the header on the blog HERE.

Check out how I created this Pop Out Topper card in the Silhouette Studio software in this video tutorial on my YouTube channel HERE.

I would love to see what you are creating with your Silhouette software or machines!
Feel free to post on my Facebook group at
Silhouette Secrets with EllyMae.

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