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A Rotary Blade Changing Aid

June 30, 2019 4 Comments


While in Paducah this Spring Eileen and I stopped by a vendor booth owned by Cynthia Ellis. She is not a quilter, but she does beautiful wood turning. I already have a lovely turned seam ripper and pen, but what caught my eye were her magnets – they’re beautiful:

I wasn’t sure why I needed one and then she made it clear. Changing the rotary blade in my cutter is always a nervous time – I don’t like to bleed! With her Magne-Dots (magnets with handles) there’s nothing to worry about. Let me give you a quick step-by-step:

Begin by taking your cutter apart. I like to lay each piece out in order, with the part closest to the handle piece facing up, so it’s easy to put back together.

Pick up a Magne-Dot and grab the old blade.

Lift it off the cutter screw:

And dispose of it in your sharps container.

Pick up the new blade from its case. If it’s a multi-pack, pick up the stack. You’ll notice the lubricant on the blades. This often makes them stick together.

To separate the blades, place the other Magnedot on the bottom blade and slide them apart.

Place the new blade on the cutter screw.

I find it helpful to use the top of the second Magne-Dot to hold the blade while releasing the first Magne-Dot.

My fingers never came near the sharp edge of the blade and I’m ready to reassemble my cutter!

I love it when artists come up with great ideas for using their work and I feel it’s an honor to purchase from them. I’ve ordered a number of pairs of Magne-Dots from Cynthia’s website to give as gifts. To visit her site and get your own Magne-Dots click here!

And remember – they work best in pairs!

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Reader Interactions

Comments

  1. Nancy Hansen says

    June 30, 2019 at 7:13 pm

    Ohhh! I need some of those. Looks like you sold her out. The website shows only one left!

    Reply
  2. Laurie Neubauer says

    July 1, 2019 at 7:38 am

    Chris,
    When I got to the trick for two magnets to separate the multi-pack blade, I sighed an “awe” because the light went on. Separating those blades is so scary!
    I will look for them. Thanks,
    Laurie

    Reply
  3. Cynthia Ellis says

    July 1, 2019 at 1:41 pm

    Greetings Chris and company!
    I was so startled to see sale after sale of my Magne-Dots happening yesterday morning. Then I heard of your blog entry and it made sense! I will tell you that I have revamped the page, and streamlined the process, so that rotary cutters may again be put in working order, without the risk of bleeding! Happy quilting, one and all.
    Thanks!!
    Cynthia Ellis
    (I’m the “C” in WOODbyC.com)

    Reply

Trackbacks

  1. A Multi~Generation Quilt says:
    July 7, 2019 at 2:51 pm

    […] I jump into this week’s post, I need to share something about last week’s post (click here if you missed it). I should have warned Cynthia, the maker of the Magne-dots, that I was going to […]

    Reply

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