The basic techniques used to cut and scribe resilient sheets are similar for all sheet products, including lay flat vinyl, commercial vinyl and linoleum.

We covered these principles in Lay flat vinyl, under the lessons shown below.

So in this lesson we'll look at the main differences that apply to commercial vinyl.

Seams and joins

Commercial vinyl is thicker and tougher than lay flat vinyl, so you need to cut it in two passes of your knife - first with a straight or concave blade and then with a hook blade.

With the first cut, keep the blade vertical so that it runs cleanly and safely along the straightedge.

Maintain an even pressure and cut to a depth of about halfway to two thirds.

With some materials you may need more than one pass to achieve this depth.

Then complete the cut with a hook blade.

If you want to make a bevel cut, such as when you're fitting to a wall, you can tilt the blade slightly.

Using a recess scriber

When you get to the second sheet, you can mark it with a recess scriber instead of using the straightedge, if you prefer.

A recess scriber is also called an under and over scriber, or simply 'unders and overs'.

The scribing procedure is as follows:

• Set the 'over' scribe pin to the point where the 'under' guide will run along the true edge. You can test the setting at one end of the sheet nearest the wall and make adjustments if required.
  
  
• Place the second sheet over the first sheet.
  
  
• Scribe the top of the second sheet, keeping the 'under' firmly against the true edge of the first sheet.
  
  
• Cut the scribed sheet using a straight blade and then a hook blade.

If the scribe mark is hard to see in the vinyl surface, you can rub it with chalk to highlight the line.