MyBinding Knowledge Base
Can I use Your Perforated Copy Paper to make Church Bulletins?
Are you looking to produce and print your own church bulletins but need a way to provide your congregation with a tear off section for sermon notes or to allow them to respond? You are not alone. More and more churches are choosing to use their own color copiers or color laser printers to print customized high quality church bulletins. The power to add your own graphics and present the image that you want is now in your hands. You no longer have to buy those expensive pre-printed bulletins that may or may not represent your congregation or your message. Pre-perforated copy paper will now make your life so much easier.
However, if you are looking to have a perforated flap on your bulletins for a tear off response card or for sermon notes, you might have run into a bit of problem. The equipment to perforate your own paper is not really realistic for most churches to own and operate (unless of course, your church has its own print shop). However, buying pre-perforated paper is a great option for churches who want to print their own bulletins.
The most common size used by churches for this application is 24lb Legal Sized Paper which is perforated at 3” from the bottom of the sheet. This allows you to have a half fold or tri-fold bulletin with a 3” wide tear off strip. However, some churches prefer a slightly larger tear off and use 24lb legal sized paper with a 3.5” wide tear off strip. The 24lb paper helps to reduce bleed through and provides a high quality finished product with an easy to tear off flap.
At this point you might be willing to purchase some to give it a try but you are probably wondering whether this paper will run through your copier or laser printer. Actually, the best thing about this paper is that it is guaranteed to be 100% photocopier compatible. This perforated paper is run through special rollers to ensure that it is completely flat and then is packaged in moisture resistant reams to eliminate curl. This means that you can easily duplex this perforated paper using your copier or laser printer. Some of the other perforated papers available on the market don’t run well through photocopiers causing no end of headaches.
If you have questions about using this type of paper to create your own Church Bulletins or have any other questions about the perforated paper or binding supplies that we carry please feel free to contact us and we will be glad to help.
< Over the years, a number of customers have asked me whether they can use twin loop wire with their plastic comb binding machine. These customers often don’t want to have to buy a brand new machine but like the look and feel of twin loop wire binding. However, the answer to their question isn’t as simple as it seems. You see, they actually do make twin loop wire that is designed to work with the plastic comb binding hole pattern. With that said, if you want to use these wires you are going to need a way to close the wires. What is Spiral-O Wire? Let me explain a little bit more…There is a product that we carry called Spiral-O Wire. This wire has 19 loops and is designed to work with the hole pattern from a plastic comb binding machine. Spiral-O Wire is sometimes called Wire Combs or Ibico Wire and was originally designed for use with some of the older Ibico binding machines. A number of the older Ibico plastic comb binding machines also included a twin loop wire closer on the front of them to allow users to use both plastic combs and wire. This 19 loop wire was designed for this purpose. What Equipment is Needed? As the Ibico brand has been phased out by GBC and all of the older Ibico plastic binding machines have been replaced with new models, they no longer have the twin loop wire closer on the front of them. This presents a problem in trying to use these spiral-o wires since you can’t use the wires without a way to close them. One of the only options left is to purchase a Twin Loop wire closer. However, since twin loop wire closers are not incredibly cheap this option usually only appeals to users who have larger electric plastic comb binding machines. Otherwise, it is often advisable to simply buy a low end 3:1 pitch twin loop wire binding machine (the supplies are cheaper). This being said, if you have one of the older Ibico binding machines that has a wire closer included you are in luck. The Spiral-O binding supplies that we carry will work perfectly with your machine and you will be able to use both plastic combs and wire depending on your needs. These Spiral-O binding supplies are available in Black, Silver, White, Blue and Red and in sizes up to 1″ in diameter. If you aren’t sure what type of wire binding supplies that you need to work with your machine simply give us a call. Our trained sales representatives will be glad to help you find the correct supplies for use with your machine.(Read More)
