How to Bind Documents with Plastic Comb Binding

Plastic comb binding has been around for years and it's still popular. This is partly because it's easy to do although it can take a bit of practice to master. Here's how you can bind documents with plastic combs:

• The first thing to do is prepare your document. Proofread it, print it out, and make sure all of the pages are flush. You also need to select your covers and make sure they make your book look great. Measure the thickness of your document and then choose a plastic comb that can accommodate it. You should choose a comb that's 1/8” thicker than your document to make sure the pages will turn freely.
• At this point, you need to set up your machine for punching. You should adjust the machine's paper guide setting to ensure that your document will be properly punched. Select the right paper size (i.e. letter-size) and then punch a few scrap sheets to see if the hole pattern looks right. If it does, move on to the next step.
• Now that your machine is set up, separate your document into several smaller sections before punching them. Working with smaller amounts of paper will prolong the life of your machine and reduce the possibility of a paper jam. You also need to punch your covers. If the covers are paper, they can be punched with the pages of your document. If they're plastic, they must be punched separately. Don't punch more than two at a time unless you want to damage your machine.
• After you punch holes in your document, you will be ready to bind it. Place the comb on your machine's comb opener and ensure that the tines are pointing up. Open up the comb slowly to prevent it from flying off the machine. You can then thread the comb's tines through the holes in your document. If your document is fairly thick, break it up into sections to make the binding process easier. When you're done, close the comb and take the document off the machine and bind the next one if applicable.

The plastic comb binding process is pretty easy but it can take a few tries before you can really master it. If that happens, just keep practicing and you'll get the hang of it. Good luck!

If you have any other questions or comments about this article please feel free to
email us at sales@mybinding.com or call us at 1-800-944-4573

Written by Jeff McRitchie
©2011 www.MyBinding.com