I have a Cuttlebug and found that it didn't cut some of the die cuts I had, so I added a spacer; however, it then made it too hard to crank. So, I thought I'd try the Sizzix Big Shot. I did find it easier to crank on most dies - but my thicker dies do still take some effort to crank through. Also, one minor drawback is the long base platform that goes under the cutting plates - if you need to use it opened, it is a little long and sort of gets in the way a bit, but not a deal-breaker. Overall happy with my Sizzix.