1-6th Cut Copier Tabs

Choose according to printer handling, desired stiffness, and expected use. A 90 lb index sheet is lighter and may move through a bypass tray more reliably on equipment with a modest heavy-media rating. A 110 lb sheet feels more substantial and can separate sections more clearly in a heavily handled binder. Neither weight should be loaded until the printer specifications confirm support for that stock through the chosen feed path. Use the heavy or card-stock setting, adjust the tray guides carefully, and feed a small test group. For a thick binder containing many divider sets, the lighter option can reduce bulk. For long-term manuals opened daily, the firmer stock may justify the added thickness.

Either workflow can work, but prepunched stock reduces handling and avoids alignment differences between finished sets. It is suitable when the final document always uses the same standard hole pattern. Prepunched copier tabs can move from printing to assembly without a separate punching operation. Plain tabs are more flexible for comb, coil, wire, or custom ring patterns, provided the punch can handle index stock and the projecting tab does not interfere with the machine. Printing before punching often reduces the risk of punched holes catching in the feed path. Whichever order is chosen, test one complete divider through printing, punching, and insertion so the label, holes, and tab position remain correctly aligned.

Misalignment usually comes from using the wrong template, loading the sheet in the wrong direction, or allowing tray guides to leave too much side movement. Six positions require six separate label locations, so the file must match the exact cut and position sequence. Print on ordinary paper and place it beneath the tab sheet to see whether each label sits inside its intended area. Then run a marked feed test to determine which face prints and whether the tab edge should enter first or last. Select the correct stock size in the driver rather than relying on an automatic setting. Small corrections made before loading index stock can prevent an entire carton from being printed off center.

Straight collation groups identical tab positions together, allowing Position 1 sheets to be printed as one batch, followed by Position 2 and the remaining positions. Straight collated copier tabs can suit production equipment or job software that assembles these grouped outputs into complete document sets. The method is less convenient when every set is assembled entirely by hand, because operators must combine six separate position stacks accurately. Before selecting it, map the print job from tray loading through final assembly. Label every output stack, keep quantities equal, and use an approved sample as the sequence reference. This approach can be efficient for recurring manuals when the production process is already organized around grouped runs.