subject: Reviewing The Akiles Coilmac-er Binding Machine [print this page] Fairly new on the market, the Akiles CoilMac ER is a coil binding machine that is designed for small to medium offices who may not want to spend a whole lot of money on a binding system. Built along the same lines (and in fact using an identical platform) as the Akiles classic CoilMac-M, this system includes a small electric roller for inserting coil, a feature designed to further enhance productivity. Let's take a closer look now at this machine, its strengths and weaknesses.
Strengths:
1.) The Coilmac-ER punches a four to one pitch hole-pattern. This means that there are four holes per inch and forty-three round holes on a standard 11" binding edge. These parameters mean that this machine can be used with standard four-to one-pitch spiral coils, and in sizes that range from 6mm and 50mm. The small coil inserter that is included, however, will only work with spines that are up to seven eighths of an inch thick. Any larger, and you will need to spin the coils by hand.
2.) The ER's punch is capable of handling seventeen pages at a time, and is also rated for use with two plastic covers at a time. This rates the ER as among the best on the market for its price point.
3.) As stated above, the CoilMac-ER is essentially a carbon copy of one of the most popular, durable, and reliable coil binding machines on the market, the CoilMac M. The difference is that the ER comes with the added convenience of an electric coil inserter. This makes the ER likely one of the most feature-rich coil binders on the market for its price.
4.) The ER comes with a pair of high-quality crimping pliers. These pliers are an absolutely essential part of the binding process, and around a $30 value.
Weaknesses:
1.) The coil inserter included on the ER is fairly small, and is located on the back of the machine, which is perhaps not the most convenient placement. There is only one roller on the inserter (most have two), and it is only about six inches long, making it difficult to impossible to bind larger documents, or large numbers of documents. There are machines on the market that can do much heavier duty work, but if you are on a budget, and won't be using the ER much, it is still a good value.
2.) The thirteen inch punching throat is great for use with most common paper sizes, but is not the best for punching odd sized documents. Attempting to do so will likely result in incomplete holes at the end of your documents. The CoilMac-ER has a few disengageable dies to allow you to punch the most common sizes of paper. However, special sized documents will be difficult to bind with this machine.
3.) Again, for the price point, the ER would be a great choice for smaller businesses that won't be using the machine for huge jobs. Higher-volume users will want to look at machines that feature a larger manual punching capacity, or an electric punch.
Recommendation:
Considering that the ER costs only about 50 dollars more than the CoilMac M, the included inserter and crimping pliers make the ER the clear choice if you are considering both machines. However, higher volume users may want to consider stepping up to the Akiles CoilMac ECI or the larger electric CoilMac EPI.
by: Jeffrey McRitchie
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