The Offibind 21D is the smallest plastic combbinding machine manufactured by beer can filling machine Akiles Products. This is a feature that isnormally only available on much more expensive machines. However, for thicker documents it can becomevery tedious to separate your book into such small sections. Realistically this means that youwill need to keep your punching to about 8 sheets of 20lb paper at atime (or less if you are punching thicker sheets). Limitations: Althoughthe Akiles Offibind is a great machine for the price it does have somelimitations. This means that you can use 3/16" plastic combs withthis machine (something that is not recommended with other smallbinding machines that don't have a depth of punch control). This allows it to work with letter sized paper,oversized covers and A4 paper for European formats. The first such feature is the adjustabledepth of punch margin control on the 21D. The housing over thepunching mechanism is plastic and so are the knobs. Plus, Akilesoffers a 1 year warranty in case you should have any problems. If you ever think that youmay need to bind larger sized books you might consider purchasing alittle bit larger machine that can use the bigger combs. Features: For the pricetag, theOffibind actually has several features that other similarly pricedbinding machines don't offer. In fact, the Offibind isa great example of the fact that you don't have to pay a lot of moneyfor a decent quality plastic comb binding machine. However, with this machine you can adjust thedistance of the holes from the edge of your document in increments ofjust millimeters. The Offibind is includes a binding punch that is capable of punching upto 10 sheets of 20lb paper per lift.The design of the machine does allow for punching of half letter sizeddocuments (8. Many other machines with this feature provide between2-4 preset settings. The relatively small punch capacity combinedwith the inability to bind thicker documents doesn't make it a greatcandidate for higher volume environments. Severalof the other binding machines in this price range are not capable ofhandling combs that are that large. Construction: For such an inexpensive machine the Akiles Offi-Bind is actually verywell built.5" x 5. Unlike other machines in its price range the Offibind has asolid metal base and all metal components inside. It has rubberfeet that will keep it from slipping on your work surface and uses astrong steel handle that should be more than adequate. While plastic comb binding spines areavailable in sizes as large as 2" in diameter this machine is notcapable of finishing the larger sized books. However, thisshould not affect the performance of the machine at all. It also has a plastic comb openerthat is rated for use with combs that are up to 1" in diameter. First, the punch on the OffiBind is only rated for usewith ten sheets of paper per lift. The adjustabledepth of punch control is located on the back of the Offibind and isfully adjustable. Recommendation: This machine is ideal for a small office or home office that binds afew documents per week. For most users this is not a problem but it issomething that is worth noting especially if you are planning onpunching longer documents..However, when punching longer documents or oversized covers withrounded corners the ability to engage these pins is important. For small proposalsthis is not a problem. The Offibind also includes three disengageable punching pins at the endof the machine. The other limitation that is ofnote is that the comb opener on this machine is only rated to handlecombs up to 1" in diameter. It is designed for usein the small office / home office space and with a pricetag of around$100 it is definitely worth taking a look at. Still, the excellentconstruction and small footprint of this machine make it a great choicefor many organizations. This article willtake a quick look at the features, limitations and construction of thismachine

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