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I ordered a GC on 2/1 from Hobby Lobby and I am still waiting for it to be shipped!!! I am so bummed! Granted, Oklahoma got a boat load of snow, but even UPS shut down? That's the story I got, so it's taking about 2+ weeks to get here!!!! Talk about stress!!!! LOL
__________________ Lynne Life is short, enjoy what you have! :cool:
I am so excited to report that I have a Grand Caliber on the way for my birthday...what a surprise it was to find that out today...
YEEHAH..
blessings.
I got my Grand Calibur on Tuesday. And I have to say that I'm a bit disappointed. :( I have a Spellbinders die (Fleur d' lis) that won't cut in one pass with my Big Shot. I thought that the Grand Calibur would solve this given how much pressure it claims to produce.
So I ran it through my new GC and it STILL doesn't cut in one pass. :( It did cut all the way through when I embossed it. But that's not the point. I used the right "sandwich" and it didn't work to cut.
Maybe I have a defective die, but I can't even begin to tell you where I bought it so I can't exchange it. I guess I expected too much from this machine to think that it would actually cut the dies that it's design to go with. :rolleyes:
I do like the suction-y thingy. That works tons better than the Cuttlebug one ever did.
I've the same problem with the fleur de lis pendant with my Cuttlebug. My stamp store even replaced it but I still had the problem, so I think it's definitely the way the die is made. However, giving it a quarter turn on the second pass seems to help. Also it helps to put a piece of waxed paper between the die and the cardstock to make the cardstock easier to come out of the die.
I am so excited to report that I have a Grand Caliber on the way for my birthday...what a surprise it was to find that out today...
YEEHAH..
blessings.
Amber that is great!! Condsidering the volume of cards that you make you will certainly make good use of it.
I, too, have both a CB and a Wizard. Bought the Wizard first and wrestled with the thing sliding all over the place. For some reason bought the CB and like the rolling hand crank better than the back and forth Wizard crank. But, the ideas for the Grand Caliber are so awesome and to make lots of flowers at the same time was the enticement needed to purchase it. I didn't get the deal from Hobby Lobby that some of you did, I paid $97 for mine on-line from Scrapping Circus. I got 3 dies for $32 each as well. After shopping a zillion places this was the best deal (until now I hear about Hobby Lobby. Sad thing is I am on their email list and never thought to check them out! Duh!) I have not received mine yet to check out how many trips around with the crank to get the job done, but I think the advantages for the large dies hopefully will outweigh the muscles building in my arm! If I could just do it backwards I could firm up the underarm while crafting! LOL.
Yes..a sweet friend of mine that I go to visit a couple times a year gave me a Grand Caliber 6 of the huge die sets, a new CB and lots of other things...she is just the sweetest thing...
blessings.
I just bought a Grand Calibur at Hobby Lobby. With the coupon it was $81.97 so I couldn't resist! It is big and so are the dies. I am thinking of making bigger cards with them. I will also try some books and scrapbooking. Not sure I should've done that because now I have Cuttlebug, Big Shot, Bind-it-all, Big Bite, Grand Calibur and the Cricut Expression. What is wrong with me - maybe I need to go to the forum about going cold turkey on the craft spending!
It is a lot of cranking to get the die through, BTW.
I have a GC and am really liking it. I figured out a way to use embossing folders in it so now I don't have to keep switching it out on the table with the Bigkick. I did want to say that if you have and ACMoore store locally check there for the Grand Nestabilities.. our store got some in and this week they are on sale for $26.99. The lady said that they are supposed to do a whole endcap of them but hadn't gotten in enough to do that just yet.
~ Pam
__________________ "The true soldier fights not because he hates what is in front of him, but because he loves what is behind him."
I have been eyeing that Grand Caliber for some time now . . . one of my big question is when I watched the video it appears that the plates are not see through (like the Cuttlebug). Has anyone had a problem with that?? I often line up my dies or need to see things when I'm die cutting so I just wondered if that has been a draw back for anyone???
So far I like it okay. The thing that is hard for me to get used to is I am used to putting the die down..so cardstock then die facing down when I use the CB. In the GC it seems like you have to place it faceup. I have not tried it any other way yet. I also have not figured out how I can use the embossing folders in it. So I still need the new CB that my friend has on the way to me.
blessings.
I see ACMoore is now carrying the Grand Calibur. They had them on sale 40% off, which made them in the $70 range. I didn't look that closely because I realized these are not for card makers. The dies are huge so I am guessing they are for scrapbookers? Just thought I would let you know my ACM is carrying them now, so maybe others are too.
I have been eyeing that Grand Caliber for some time now . . . one of my big question is when I watched the video it appears that the plates are not see through (like the Cuttlebug). Has anyone had a problem with that?? I often line up my dies or need to see things when I'm die cutting so I just wondered if that has been a draw back for anyone???
Julie,
The beauty of Spellbinders dies is that they are open. So what I do is position the die where I want it and use some repositionable tape to hold it in place while I cut.
I see ACMoore is now carrying the Grand Calibur. They had them on sale 40% off, which made them in the $70 range. I didn't look that closely because I realized these are not for card makers. The dies are huge so I am guessing they are for scrapbookers? Just thought I would let you know my ACM is carrying them now, so maybe others are too.
The beauty of the Grand Calibur for card makers is that you can use all of your Spellbinders dies in it and cut everything you are using on a card at one. Depending on the size of the die, I've had up to 15 dies on the plate at once.
The grand dies are also great for making shaped cards. It is really a very versatile machine.
At the moment, the universal mat that came with the Wizard is what people are using for embossing folders. It works fine except that it is not large enough for the larger folders. Spellbinders is coming out with the same mat in the large size so that you will be able to do 2 folders at once.
I love all of my Spellbinders dies and they are easy to line up, you're right. But then sometimes you know you just want to see what you're doing - or you're using dies that don't have openings. Seems like nobody has issues with it so maybe it's just me over -thinking - lol! Great to see what everyone's opinion is - thanks!
So ladies...anyone who has successfully used an embossing folder in the Grand Caliber...how are you doing it>? I have not been able to do so yet...thanks so much in advance for the assistance.
blessings.
The beauty of the Grand Calibur for card makers is that you can use all of your Spellbinders dies in it and cut everything you are using on a card at one. Depending on the size of the die, I've had up to 15 dies on the plate at once.
The grand dies are also great for making shaped cards. It is really a very versatile machine.
At the moment, the universal mat that came with the Wizard is what people are using for embossing folders. It works fine except that it is not large enough for the larger folders. Spellbinders is coming out with the same mat in the large size so that you will be able to do 2 folders at once.
So ladies...anyone who has successfully used an embossing folder in the Grand Caliber...how are you doing it>? I have not been able to do so yet...thanks so much in advance for the assistance.
blessings.
Amber, I ordered two of the original Sizzix adapter mats from scrap-mart to use with embossing folders. But I haven't tried it yet. I did put a PTI Impression Plate through with the standard embossing "sandwich" and it worked great.
So ladies...anyone who has successfully used an embossing folder in the Grand Caliber...how are you doing it>? I have not been able to do so yet...thanks so much in advance for the assistance.
blessings.
Amber,
My sandwich is:
base plate
embossing folder with cardstock
pink mat
....its a little tight but it such a good impression!
Dear Ladies,
I'm new to this forum, but am in need of help and I didn't know where else to turn to for answers. I own a Big Shot and several Spellbinders dies. I am trying to die cut two pieces of cardstock together from one of the dies to make a card front and back with the same die design. However, my Big Shot is not able to do this, and I can't buy a Grand Calibur. I am left with parts of the front and back cut out, but not thoroughly and cleanly. I am not liking how I'm wasting my paper, too.
I started off with the basic layering instructions: base plate, card stock, die, top plate. That didn't work. I tried adding a metal shim. That didn't work. I tried adding wax paper. That didn't work. It seems all my ideas are not working. Do you think my Big Shot roller inside needs adjusting? Am I missing something in my "sandwich"? I really like seeing cards that display the die cut design on both front and back. It makes the card "elegant." Thanks for any help!
Silverwind,
Try cutting with cutting plate, die facing up, paper and top off with another cutting plate and see if that works for you. If you just bought your machine maybe it's defective and exchange it. HTH
Thanks for the help, Twinkles. However, it still didn't work. Even adding an extra shim (just another plain cardstock on top of the cutting plate) didn't pierce the two pieces thoroughly. My conclusion is my Big Shot cannot pierce two cardstock pieces together and therefore, I won't be able to do make those "elegant" cards. I will think about saving money to afford a Grand Calibur. I'm sad, but at the same time, I realize the Big Shot is not completely worthless. That's a good thing.
Silverwind try cutting one piece of your cardstock and then put the die back into the cut out and cut your second piece. This way you are only cutting one piece at a time and the placement should be what you want.
__________________ Mary Jo
prairiepapercrafter.blogspot.com
