Hi i've been working on very small parts lately (0.3-0.5 mm sections of micro-tubes, just to give you an idea) and i've been troubled by the pieces falling off during handling and ricocheting away from the cutting mat, never to be found again. What i found useful is handling the pieces over a container full of water (i use a tupperware, half the size of an A4 sheet-smaller containers also work perfectly-): the pieces fall into the water, which avoids their deflection. They usually float on the water surface or sit on the bottom of the container and are easy to spot and recover. This way i managed to reduce significantly the loss ratio of the small parts.
Also, to avoid the "catapult effect" while cutting what I commonly do is place the parts to be cut on a strip of bi-adhesive tape (better a low-tack one) previously applied on my cutting mat. The pieces stay put and don't take-off anymore.
Just my 2 cents to share.
Cheers!
SG
