Entry level-ish vinyl cutter recommendations?

[erebus]

Hoping to tap into the width and breadth of the hive mind here and get some recommendations on a vinyl cutter.

Want to get one for me personally but also for some use at the boatyard.
Don't really want to spend more than $500.

Just want to be able to do registrations numbers, boat names, and logo replications for when we do paint jobs.
Needs to be able to cut vinyl sturdy enough for a boat.
Probably 24" wide at the max.

Figured our knowledge base on here is so wide and deep, I might be able to get a little insight, some pointers, or a simple wave off.
Have done some research, and I used to be a graphic designer, so have no fear of the software end of this project.
Just don't know what to look for in a (cheap-ish) machine.
Also any pointers on vinyl etc. would be awesome.

Was looking at the US Cutter Titan- $395:

http://www.uscutter.com/TITAN-Vinyl-Cutter-28-53-inch

Or the more expensive Titan2 which has a servo motor as opposed to a stepper, but is much more expensive- $695:
http://www.uscutter.com/TITAN-2-Viny...-28-53-68-inch

Or maybe the GCC Expert- $495:

http://www.imprintables.com/gcc-expe...yl-cutter-3016

And the much cheaper GCC Clipper- $295:

http://www.imprintables.com/the-clip...yl-cutter-2802

Thanks guys!

[Topflitegraphics]

Do yourself a favor and stay away from those Chinese POS vinyl cutters. Find a good used Graphtec, Roland or Summa. Even a 15-20 year old Graphtec will be less of a hassle than one of those. I have a sign shop and when I reopened my own business after working for someone else for a few years, I was able to get a used FC7000-100 41" Graphtec for $2500. The machine is now about 17 years old and is a work horse that never have to worry about.

I had one of those Chinese machines for about a year or so and it was so temperamental that I grew to hate it. I wasted 20-30% of the vinyl I ran through it due to tracking issues and no matter what I did, it did not get better. I replaced it with a 24" Roland that I got from a customer (who thought he would get into the sticker business until he realized that the plotter was the simplest part of the business) for about $300. That Roland served me well for about 2-3 years until I upgraded to the Graphtec.

If you have any questions, feel free to call or email me

[email protected]
561-740-9900 shop
561-302-8260 cell