Five Tips For Binding Documents With Plastic Combs

Plastic comb binding is one of the most popular binding styles used by companies around the world. The low supply cost, ease of use, professional look, and versatility make it an ideal choice for all types of companies. Producing documents using comb binding is actually very simple. However, this article will provide you with five tips for making it even easier.

1. Plastic binding spines are available in sizes as small as 3/16″ and as large as 2″. Spines that are 1-1/8″ or smaller are round in shape and combs that are 1-1/4″ or larger are oval. Oval combs have special locks to help keeping the weight of the book from causing the book to become unbound. Although 3/16″ spines are available, they are usually more hassle than they are worth. These ultra small elements are difficult to use and many machines are not even compatible with them. Do yourself a favor and stick with combs that are 1/4″ or larger.
2. If you want to bind a document with a binding length that is shorter than eleven inches you should be able to cut down the spines using a sharp pair of scissors. If you don’t want to take the time to cut down the combs, you can also buy them pre-cut to the correct length. However, for producing smaller sized books you will want to make sure that your comb binding machine has disengageable dies so that you can stop one of the punch pins from creating a half hole on the edge of your document.
3. If you are planning on using plastic covers with your documents, make sure that you don’t punch more than two covers at a time. Punching more than two sheets of plastic at a time can cause your punching pins to become dull or can even ruin your machine. If you are using standard flush cut covers you should consider punching the covers along with the pages from your documents. Punching the covers with paper will usually lead to a higher quality punch pattern and will help preserve your binding punch.
4. If you have a punch that has a depth of punch margin control make sure that you use it. If you are binding smaller documents set the depth control so that the holes are closer to the edge of the paper. This will help to ensure that your pages move freely. If you are binding thick documents set the holes so that they are further from the edge so that they will not easily tear out of the bind.
5. When using your comb opener to insert the pages onto the spine, split your document into smaller sections. Splitting your document into small sections will make it easier to line up the holes with the fingers. This will also allow you to open the spine part way to insert the first pages onto the document and then open the spine further to insert the rest of the pages onto the comb.

Keeping these five things in mind when using plastic comb binding will help to make comb binding easier and more enjoyable. Try these things for yourself and discover just how easy plastic comb binding can be.

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