Our Printing
Our Printing for MTG Cubes: Crisp Cards, Smooth Shuffles, Consistent Cuts
A cube is a repeat experience. You draft it, shuffle it, stack it, and do it again next week. So when your cards aren’t consistent, you feel it immediately: text that’s a little muddy, a finish that scuffs, or a cut that makes one pile look “off.”
PrintACube exists for one simple goal: print proxy cubes that draft cleanly. That means sharp printing, a protective UV coat, and precise die cutting so every card plays like it belongs in the same environment.
TLDR
- Sharp, readable printing so your table can parse cards quickly.
- UV coating to protect the surface and keep the shuffle feeling smooth.
- High-precision die cutting for consistent size, corners, and edges across the entire cube.
- Process-first quality control so the whole 540 feels like one cohesive set.
What “good printing” means for a cube night
Most printing promises sound the same until you’re actually drafting. Here’s what we optimize for, specifically for cube play:
| What you notice in-hand | Why it matters in a draft |
|---|---|
| Crisp rules text and symbols | Less squinting, faster picks, fewer misreads |
| Consistent color and contrast | Board states read cleaner across the table |
| Durable surface | Less scuffing from repeated shuffles |
| Uniform card size and corners | Stacks sit flat, shuffles feel even, no “tall card” problem |
Step 1: Printing that prioritizes readability
Cube drafts are information-dense. Your cards need to be easy to parse at a glance, especially when people are reading across the table or picking through a pack quickly.
We focus on:
- Clean linework and sharp text so names, mana costs, and rules boxes stay legible.
- Consistent print output across the whole run so the cube feels uniform, not like a mixed bag of batches.
- Balanced darks and contrast because muddy blacks are the fastest way to make a cube feel “cheap” in play.
The goal is simple: your cube should feel like one cohesive product, not 540 individual print jobs.
Step 2: UV coating for durability and shuffle feel
Cube cards get handled a lot. UV coating is one of the best upgrades for that reality because it protects the surface and keeps the cards feeling smooth as they move through hands, sleeves, and decks.
What UV coating does for your cube:
- Helps resist scuffs and wear from repeated shuffling and stacking.
- Adds a consistent surface feel so the whole cube shuffles the same way.
- Improves longevity so your cube stays “nice” longer, even with frequent drafts.
It’s not about making cards flashy. It’s about making them draft-ready and repeatable.
Step 3: State-of-the-art die cutting for consistent size and edges
This is the part cube players notice faster than they expect.
If cards vary even slightly in size, you get uneven stacks, awkward riffles, and that subtle “something’s off” feeling when you’re pile shuffling or cutting decks. Our die cutting is built to avoid that by keeping cuts consistent from card one to card 540.
We use a high-precision die cutting process to deliver:
- Uniform dimensions across the entire cube
- Consistent corners so sleeves seat evenly and corners don’t feel mismatched
- Clean, repeatable edges so the cube looks and handles like a single set
Consistency is the win here. It makes the whole cube feel intentional.
Our QC checklist (the boring stuff that makes your cube feel great)
Before a cube ships, we’re checking for the things that actually change the play experience:
- Readability: text, symbols, and fine details stay crisp
- Consistency: the cube looks and feels uniform across the full run
- Coating: UV coverage is even and protects the surface
- Cut: size and corners are consistent card-to-card
- Finish: cards shuffle smoothly and stack cleanly
FAQs
Will these feel good in sleeves?
Yes. The whole process is tuned for a smooth, consistent shuffle in sleeves, because that’s how most cubes get played.
Does UV coating make the cards too slippery?
UV adds smoothness and durability, not chaos. The goal is a consistent feel across the cube so shuffling stays predictable.
How consistent are the cuts, really?
Consistent enough that stacks sit flat, corners match, and the cube handles as one uniform set. That “one card is taller” problem is exactly what we’re avoiding.
What if something arrives with an issue?
If something slipped through QC, we’ll make it right. Cube nights are supposed to be fun, not a troubleshooting session.