Roland VersaWorks Cut Line Tutorial

Your Roland printer cutter can print stickers beautifully, but it will not cut them unless your file contains the right instructions. This tutorial explains exactly how cut lines work in VersaWorks, what goes wrong when they do not, and the fastest way to get a working cut file.

How VersaWorks Reads Cut Lines

When you import a PDF into VersaWorks, the software scans the file for spot color separations. If it finds a spot color named exactly “CutContour” (capital C, capital C, no spaces), it treats any vector paths assigned to that color as cutting instructions. Everything else in the file is treated as artwork to be printed.

VersaWorks then prints the artwork first, including crop marks for alignment. After printing, the machine reads the crop marks with its optical sensor and cuts along the CutContour path. The result is a sticker that is printed and cut in one pass.

The Spot Color Has to Be Exactly Right

This is the number one reason cut lines fail. VersaWorks is case-sensitive and picky about the spot color format. Here are the requirements:

Common mistakes: naming it “cutcontour” (lowercase), “Cut Contour” (with a space), or “CutContour” but saving it as CMYK instead of a spot separation. Any of these will result in VersaWorks printing but not cutting.

Method 1: Creating Cut Lines in Illustrator

Open Illustrator. Place your sticker PNG on the artboard. Use Image Trace to convert it to a vector outline, or manually draw a path around it with the Pen tool. Select the path. Open the Swatches panel and create a new swatch. Set the color type to “Spot Color” and name it exactly “CutContour”. Apply it to the path.

To add a kiss-cut border, select the path, go to Object > Path > Offset Path, and enter your desired offset (0.05” to 0.10” is typical). Apply the CutContour color to the offset path and delete the inner one.

Save as PDF. In the save dialog, make sure “Preserve Illustrator Editing Capabilities” is unchecked, and the PDF/X preset preserves spot colors. Open the PDF in VersaWorks and check that the CutContour layer appears in the separation preview.

Method 2: Using CutContour App (10 Seconds)

CutContour does everything described above automatically. Upload your transparent PNG, set the sticker size and border offset, and download a PDF. The CutContour spot color is correctly embedded as a /Separation, the path is a smooth vector, and the offset is precise.

No Illustrator subscription, no spot color setup, no PDF export settings to worry about. The output is verified to work with VersaWorks 5, 6, and 7.

Verifying Your Cut Line in VersaWorks

After importing your PDF, check that VersaWorks recognizes the cut line. In VersaWorks 6, look in the Quality tab under “Spot Color Settings”. You should see “CutContour” listed with an action of “Cut”. If it shows as “Print” or does not appear at all, the spot color is not set up correctly in your PDF.

In VersaWorks 7, the separation preview shows CutContour as a separate layer. Toggle it on and off to confirm the cut path matches your sticker outline.

Troubleshooting Common Cut Line Issues

VersaWorks does not show CutContour layer: The spot color name is wrong or it was saved as a process color. Re-export the PDF with the correct spot color settings, or use CutContour to regenerate the file.

Cut is offset from the print: Crop marks are not being read correctly. Ensure there is enough white space around your design for the crop marks. Clean the optical sensor.

Cut path is a rectangle instead of following the sticker shape: The path is tracing the PNG bounding box, not the artwork. Use a transparent PNG so the cut path traces the actual shape.

Jagged or rough cut edges: The cut path has too many anchor points. CutContour uses path smoothing to generate clean curves. In Illustrator, use Object > Path > Simplify to reduce anchor points.