Hobby Cutting Mats?

[Green Jello]

I see a lot of people using these mats in their build threads:

I've never used one. They say they are self healing. Are they worth the cost?


https://www.hobbylinc.com/htm/hca/hcahcar0456.htm
https://www.cutting-mats.net/self-healing-green-black.html
https://www.hobbyking.com/hobbyking/store/uh_viewItem.asp?idProduct=19166

 

[cvanc]

I find them very useful. I have a couple different sizes. Tip: Make sure you store them perfectly flat. Once they get a warp in them they're a bit of a pain to flatten back out.

 

[o1d_dude]

What Evan said.

I have several in different sizes. If you are concerned about damaging the pretty lines and such, just flip the mat over and do your cutting on the non-printed size. Be careful of spilling chemicals on the print as they tend to dissolve the ink.

 

[WillMarchant]

I have a couple and find them useful. Double check the dimensions of rulers or grids on yours as I found that the ones printed on my mats were wildly wrong.

 

[Marc_G]

Also, use 40% off coupons at hobby lobby or Michaels...

 

[Green Jello]

How well does the "self healing" really work?

 

[cwbullet]

Well worth the cost. Uncle mikes has them cheap.

 

[beezwax]

How well does the "self healing" really work?

Surprisingly well, and it protects your table and also extends the life of your exacto blades too since it doesn't dull them as fast as cutting into your bench/countertop. And if/when you ever get into cutting fiberglass or carbon fiber cloth with a circular knife these mats are essential.

 

[luke strawwalker]

I see a lot of people using these mats in their build threads:

I've never used one. They say they are self healing. Are they worth the cost?


https://www.hobbylinc.com/htm/hca/hcahcar0456.htm
https://www.cutting-mats.net/self-healing-green-black.html
https://www.hobbyking.com/hobbyking/store/uh_viewItem.asp?idProduct=19166

Yeah, they're VERY handy! Saves your workbench (ok dining room table) surface and protects the edges of your hobby knives when cutting balsa and stuff...

Cheapest way to get one-- the 40% off coupon and your local Hobby Lobby-- check around-- they usually have them in the sewing/quilting section, the model/train/rocket section, and the woodcrafts/homecraft crapola section-- some are more expensive than others... (IE the Olfa's are usually pretty salty, but you can find the cheaper ones in different sections-- they're all pretty much the same. I got a green one from Hobbby Lobby and it works great!)

Later and good luck! OL JR

PS. buy the biggest that you have room to put down on your work surface-- you'll be glad you did... better "too big" than "too small"...

 

[luke strawwalker]

How well does the "self healing" really work?

Pretty decent... it levels out and smooths out well, but of course the cut is still there... just not really noticeable until you put a LOT of mileage on one...

They're worth the cost just in the savings on your hobby knife blades... they'll last probably twice as long when cutting into a work mat rather than table/workbench surface...

Later! OL JR

 

[T-Rex]

I've been eying them as well. Usually I use a plastic cutting board from the dollar store

 

[Tarasdad]

I got mine on clearance at Walmart. The part you see in my photos is actuall only half of it. I cut it in two to fit on my desktop and to give me a spare for when the on part gets too cut up to be useful. My main reason for getting it is to provide a decent working surface and protect my desk.

 

[Macky]

I see a lot of people using these mats in their build threads:

I've never used one. They say they are self healing. Are they worth the cost?


https://www.hobbylinc.com/htm/hca/hcahcar0456.htm
https://www.cutting-mats.net/self-healing-green-black.html
https://www.hobbyking.com/hobbyking/store/uh_viewItem.asp?idProduct=19166

I have been thinking about getting one also, I have a friend that has been using one for years
and says they well are worth the money. As others have said the best price I have found is my local Hobby Lobby, they have an 18" x 24" for $14.99 and with the weekly 40% off coupon = $8.99. I will be getting one before my next build. I just happan to have an 18" x 24" drafting board that I'm going to set it on, this should make for a nice flat building surface:wink:

Cheers,
Mike

 

[aditat2]

An absolute essential addition to any hobbiest's tool box. I have 5 in various sizes from 6"x14" to 18"x24". I will never cut on anything else, and are especially good when doing card-stock models. Over time the savings in Knife blades will balance out the cost of the mats - in like 20 years:lol:

 

[MarsFire]

As stated above, these are worth every penny. They come in many shapes, sizes, and colors. The decent quality ones will take a hell of a beating and are very tolerant of most chemicals (not so much the printing). They can be cleaned with water or windex without taking off the printing. I have a huge one on my bench that's well over 10 yrs old and it still works just fine.

Andrew

 

[Spooks]

Well worth the money, just avoid drilling on them, I'll never hear the end of that one when I was working on our dinning room table!

 

[mjennings]

I got two, a 36" by 24ish" (maybe it's a big un) and a smaller 18" x 12" Both Hobbyco (I think)

My big one came rolled from Hobby Town and took a while to flatten and then the movers folded it (fortunately they didn't try to crease it) and that took even longer to flatten out.

Well worth their cost, not that the small ones are that expensive, a small one is plenty for most purposes, I originally went with the big one to protect the dining room table when I build as well as for the cutting surface.

 

[AfterBurners]

excellent investment. If you work with glues and stuff I would take some masking paper that you buy in the roll at Home Depot to cover part of your area so you don't get epoxy and CA all over it...but yeah get one.

 

[cwbullet]

I own a 24x36 and a few smaller sized I use on deployments and in the field.

 

[Tarasdad]

My mat got quite a workout today as I was cutting out decals for my QCC Explorer. Worth every penny I paid for it!

 

[kjohnson]

Saw an 18x24 Fiskars brand cutting mat at Walmart for $15 the other day. So they can be had pretty cheaply. I've got a couple the next size up for my tables in the hobby room.

kj

 

[luke strawwalker]

Saw an 18x24 Fiskars brand cutting mat at Walmart for $15 the other day. So they can be had pretty cheaply. I've got a couple the next size up for my tables in the hobby room.

kj

You can get them for as little as $12-14 at Hobby Lobby, and if you use the 40% off coupon, it's even cheaper!

Later! OL JR