Cutting Machine Silhouette Curio 2

The Silhouette Curio 2 is a precision flatbed cutting machine featuring an electrostatic bed for cutting without a mat, 20mm vertical clearance for thicker materials, and two tool holders. It offers automatic tool detection and material thickness measurement. Supports projects including cutting, engraving, pen plotting, foil heat transfer and embossing.

Silhouette Curio 2 info

Usage: free for all

Model: Silhouette Curio 2

Work surface: 12x12"

Clearance: 20 mm max thickness

Booking: First come, first serve

Cost: None (but vinyl by the dm is purchased in web store)

Logging: None

Location: Big Room

This cutter is a great all-round choice and easy to load/unload as long as the material is ≤ 12" (30 cm) on both axes. If you need a larger work surface, loading vinyl straight from a roll, or just in a hurry (it's roughly twice as fast), the Cameo Pro MK-II is for you.

Setups & settings

TODO: add name of Silhouette presets for these tasks


What to make	Material	Tool	Support
Vinyl sticker/fabric transfer	Vinyl	Fixed or AutoBlade	Debris tray with taped-on Cameo mat
Shape-cut card	Card stock	Craft blade (orange)	Debris tray with taped-on Cameo mat
Cut fabric	Fabric	Rotary blade (gray)	Debris tray with taped-on Cameo mat
Embossed card	Card stock	Embossing tool (narrow/wide)	Debris tray with taped-on soft embossing mat
Foil on paper	Paper & card stock	Heat foil tool 0.5-2.5	Cameo mat or electrostatic tray
Foil on leather	Leather	Heat foil tool 0.5-2.5	Debris tray, taped-on directly or on Came mat
Foil on acrylic	Acrylic (and other hard, smooth plastics)	Heat foil tool 2.5	Debris tray with material taped down
Paper plotting	Paper	Cameo pen/adapter	Electrostatic tray
Surface plotting	Acrylic, metal, wood etc.	Marker in pen adapter	Debris tray with material taped down
Engraving	Acrylic, wood, aluminium, copper	Power engraver	Debris tray with material taped down

Cutting instructions

Important: The electrostatic cutting table must always be used with the protective plastic sheet on top. Failing to do this will cause permanent damage to the electrostatic grabbing surface.

Starting the Machine

Power on the machine by pressing and holding the power button on the right side.

Preparing the cutting Table

Make sure the debris tray (all plastic, raised edges) is mounted in the machine
To change it, flip the release levers on both sides, pull the table straight out towards you. About halfway out, it can be lifted free.
Insert the debris tray the same way, flip levers to lock it into the machine
If you need a Cameo mat, place it within the matching raised markings on the tray, use sticky tape to hold it in place

Preparing the material

Place the material you want to cut on the table.
The material must be completely flat in order to adhere well electrostatically.
You can also place a regular Cameo mat on top instead.
Wait for around a minute for the electric charge to grab the material properly.
Try moving the material with all fingertips on one hand. If it resists movement, the hold is strong enough to cut.
If the material does not adhere well, switch to the “debris” plate (made entirely of plastic with raised edges) and tape a Cameo mat onto it.

Tool selection

To change tools: pull forward on tool holder's protruding tab, lift the tool upward. Iinsert the new tool using the same procedure in reverse.
The completely white cutting tool is “auto depth” one, suitable for cutting when you are unsure of the exact settings.

Software preparation

Start Silhouette Studio on the computer next to the cutting machines.
Select Curio 2 in the top right white box. It should say "ready" in green letters, if not, check that it's
1. Turned on
2. Connected via USB
Open your design and adjust its size and placement.
If using the Cameo grid mat for precise placement, select Cameo Mat from the options on the right side of the window, and adjust the transparency slider so you can see lines and numbers.

Cutting

Click the SEND tab.
Select the tool(s) you inserted and the material you are using.
Adjust the force and cutting depth settings.
For textile transfers, stencils, and use cases, choose Mirror (unless you have already mirrored your design, earlier in the process).
Click Send.
Your design will now be cut / drawn / engraved

Pausing/emergency stop

Press the ⏸️ button in the control panel (only lit while cutting)
To cancel cutting completely:
1. Long press the pause button again for ≈ 10 seconds
2. Find the cut job listed next to the Send button in Silhouette studio. Press close ╳ next to the cut job.
To resume, press ⏸️ button again

Heat foil instructions

The Curio can be used to apply shiny foil to a variety of surfaces including paper, cardboard, leather and various plastics.

Instructions below are for applying heat foil to an acrylic/plexiglas piece whose outer shape is laser cut. Some steps can be left out, or differ slightly when using other materials.

Video overview: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uXTAYRAT-X0

Acrylic cutting

Set up Lightburn with the contour of your design
Add a second outer cut like a ”box” to use as a jig in the foil step
Cut both these shapes in the laser
Remove protective foil from acrylic (if any), both top and bottom
Take both pieces over to the Curio

Positioning in Curio cutter

Foil application setup for acrylic, ready to start, with an extra piece at 0,0 position to guide the thickness detector.

For materials other than acrylic, pick heat pen size corresponding to the desired line width. For acrylic and similar rigid materials, the result will be significantly thinner than the indicated size and so the 2,5mm pen is recommended.

mount the debris tray and a sticky cameo mat on top (instructions above)
select Cameo mat in the silhouette software (important, otherwise the registration lines won’t line up)
put down the piece in a suitable place on the cameo mat
put down the jig (box) around the piece on the Curio
set up for thickness detection success:
- put a small piece of non-transparent acrylic of same thickness at the 0,0 point on the mat
- this gives the automatic thickness detection something to work with
- avoid having reflective foil at the 0,0 point since it confuses the thickness detector.
rub and press to make the piece and the box stick well to the surface.
If it does not feel completely fixed, use some masking tape to hold it in place, avoiding the parts that are going to have foil applied to them

Software set-up


Foil setting	Acrylic
Speed	4
Pressure	12
Line raster (2,5 mm pen / 100% fill)	0,2mm

Heat pen will take > 5 minutes to warm up. By doing the software part first, you get the opportunity to start the heating in advance and have it ready when all setup is finished.

open your design in Silhouette software
go to send tab
choose ”acrylic, foil” material preset
Insert 2,5mm heat pen into slot 2
Start pen heating by clicking thermometer button in the silhouette Send tab
choose ”cut by color” mode
Go to Design tab
line up your design with the cut piece on the mat
make sure only the parts you want to apply foil to are selected for tool 2, everything else (laser shape etc.) deselected
If you want to have some areas filled rather than contour drawn:
1. Select the part to be filled
2. Choose special tools, heat pen fill, and enable the fill style of your choice
3. For a 100% fill, use hatch (lines) fill style with setting from the table

Material set-up

wipe the acrylic surface with isopropyl alcohol so that it is squeaky clean
measure a suitable length of heat transfer foil to cover the areas with the design
cut it using the best pair of scissors you can find as the foil is very delicate
roll foil onto piece + jig, use squegee (part of the cutter tools on the wall) to wipe the foil all flush against the surface
apply masking tape at the edges, gently pulling to get the foil flat agains the surface

Foil application

press "Send" to start foil transfer
pay attention to whether the pen hits the surface and the thickness was correctly detected. If not, make sure you are using the trick with a "reference piece" of opaque acrylic at the 0,0 point, see above
peel away foil and inspect results. If not satisfactory, you can change settings and apply new foil as long as you do not move the jig in the meantime.
remember to remove the heat pen (or turn it off in software) so that it won't sit heated in the machine for hours on end.

Pen plotting instructions

Pen plotting can create stunning designs using materials and inks not available with ordinary printers. The Silhouette system allows special plotting pens in a variety of colors, as well as attaching your own pens provided they fit in one of the available pen holders.

Choose material:
1. For copy paper and other thin papers, use the electrostatic mat (with protective sheet, but no additional mat on top)
2. For thicker materials that might not adhere properly to the electrostatic mat: use a Cameo mat with suitable adhesion strength taped onto the debris (non-electrostatic) tray
Choose pen:
- Silhouette pen:
  1. Insert pen into holder
    
    Mount pen holder to cutter just like a blade tool
- Custom pen ("C" adapter)
  1. Try out the 3 colored adapter rings to see which one fits your pen the most snugly
    
    Inserting the pen into adapter ring of suitable size
  2. Insert pen into the white bottom part and screw the adapter into it
  3. The pen tip must reach out of the bottom hole at just the correct distance.
    1. Push the pen as far as it will go out of the white holder
    2. Attach the transparent pen holder cap, pushing the pen back in until the cap is fully in place
    3. Check that the pen tip sits centered in the cap
      
      Pen adapter assembled, note the transparent cap, pen tip should be just touching it.
  4. Screw on the white top adapter ring, gentle fingers as it is prone to breaking
  5. Check that there is no play (wiggle) in the pen
  6. Mount pen assembly in tool position 2, just like a cutting tool
    
    Adapter with pen fitted to Curio tool holder #2
  7. TODO: list of known pen types that fit one of the adapters
Perform the same steps in Silhouette studio as for cutting, selecting "Pen holder", suitable material, and "Sketch" instead of Cut.
To plot in multiple colors, use the "Cut line by color" feature to only plot lines having the currently mounted pen color. Then switch pen color, change the setting accordingly, and plot again.

In the send panel, tool action can be determined by color

Accessories

Cutting mats with registration grid
Heat pen
Power engraver
Leather punch
Embossing tool
Gel pens
Pen Holder (for regular pens)