Thermal binding is a great way to quickly and elegantly bind your important documents. There are two very popular thermal binding machines currently on the market: the Powis Parker Fastback 9 and the Unibind XU138. Both of these machines produce great-looking books whenever they're used and, at first glance, they appear to be very similar. But there are some big differences between these two machines. This article will let you know how these machines differ so you can make a wise decision when purchasing a thermal binding machine.

The Unibind XU138 is a machine that can be used with a variety of binding supplies, including Unibind photobooks and Steelbook spines, so you have a lot of options when binding your documents. Unibind binding supplies contain a steel strip for maximum durability. These spines are U-shaped and contain an adhesive that is activated by heat. Booklets bound with Unibind spines cannot lay flat nor can the pages wrap around. However, you can only bind documents that are up to 340 pages in length.

Fastback spines are far more flexible. The spines, known as LX strips, are paper-based and they feature a thermally activated glue backing. Documents bound with a Fastback machine will lay flat, unlike those bound with a Unibind machine. Plus, with the Fastback 9 you will have the ability to use your own custom covers on the front and back of your document. You can even use a custom printed strip for binding the spine of your document. That is something that the Unibind simply can't compete with.

You undoubtedly want a machine that can bind the most documents in the least amount of time. The Unibind XU138 is capable of binding several documents not totaling more than 36 millimeter in thickness is under a minute. Thus, you can bind one 36 mm document or several smaller ones per minute. The Fastback 9, on the other hand, can only bind one document at once in about 40 seconds. So if binding several documents at once is important, the Unibind machine would be the better choice.

Price is definitely a factor when it comes to choosing binding equipment. The Unibind XU138 is a lot cheaper than the Fastback 9 and it can be purchased for less than $400.00, so it is great for people who need to keep a watchful eye on their budget. The Fastback 9 is a lot pricier and costs more than $2,000.00. This will obviously put it out of reach for some companies and organizations, although one needs to consider the cost of the supplies, as well. Fastback materials are much less expensive than Unibind ones. It costs about $1.00 per document to bind with Unibind supplies, whereas a document bound with a Fastback spine will only set you back about $0.30. Therefore, if you're going to be doing a lot of binding, a Fastback machine might eventually pay for itself, given how inexpensive the supplies are.

Many people are concerned about the environment. If you are one of them, you will probably want to go with Powis Parker over Unibind. Powis Parker is known in the binding industry for being an extremely green company. All of their binding supplies are eco-friendly (complete with non-toxic adhesive) and if you use the company's LX strips when binding, you will be able to fully recycle your item if you do not need it anymore. (You cannot do that at all with a booklet bound with a Unibind machine. The steel spine makes it impossible.) So, if saving the planet is an issue for you, Fastback is the way to go.

When it comes right down to it, you need to choose the binding machine that best suits your needs. The Unibind XU138 is easy to use and you can create great-looking documents with it. It is also inexpensive. However, you are very limited in the thickness of the documents you can produce, plus your booklets won't lay flat. Meanwhile, Fastback spines offer more flexibility and are environmentally friendly, but the machine is definitely pricy. (But keep in mind that the supplies are cheaper.) Whichever machine you choose, be sure to choose the machine that's right for both your budget and your binding needs.