Akiles has earned a reputation as one of the best manufacturers of binding equipment out there, and there is good reason for that. Here we will take a look at Akiles' Megabind 1, a durable, all metal manual comb binding machine that includes both a punch and a comb opener. The Megabind 1 is intended to provide users with a complete comb binding solution. We took a closer look at the machine, and here are what we view as some of its pros and cons.

Pros: We liked how the machine featured a depth punch margin control that is designed to allow you to adjust how far from the edge of the paper the hole will be punched. This handy feature means that the Megabind 1 can handle spines from three sixteenths to two inches in diameter. All of the dies are disengageable on this machine. That means you can stop any of the holes from punching. This is a very handy feature if you are going to be bind documents that are longer or shorter than letter size. The comb opener can handle any size up to fourteen inches. We thought that the inclusion of two handles, one for punching and the other for the comb opener, was a great idea on the part of Akiles. This feature should prevent a lot of unnecessary wear and tear, as the opener won't be engaged when punching, and vice versa. The punching mechanism's twenty sheet capacity should be fine for most small to medium sized offices, and for relatively light use. The sizing guide is a great added feature, enabling you to select the right size comb for your project.

Cons: As we stated above, the Megabind 1 is an adequate machine for light to medium duty use. However, if you are in a situation where you are binding documents on a daily basis, you would likely benefit from a binding machine with an electric punching mechanism such as the Akiles Megabind 1E. For not much more cash, your office could have the Megabind 2. The Megabind 2 gives you the flexibility of binding documents with either plastic combs or with spiral-o binding spines. Unless your budget is squeaky tight, or you are absolutely sure that you will only want to bind in the comb binding style, it is hard to fathom not spending the extra money (around $75) on a much more flexible machine.

Recommendation:

A very solidly built machine, and one that contains a nice number of added features, The Megabind 1 appears to be a fine solution for small to medium office plastic comb binding duty. It is hard to imagine, though, that even the lightest duty user wouldn't want the added versatility of the (also manual) Magnabind 2, especially given that the prices are so close. That being said, if you are stuck on plastic comb binding, and you don't think you will use it enough to justify upgrading to a machine with an electric punch anytime soon, you could hardly go wrong by purchasing the Megabind 1.

If you are interested in more information about the Akiles Megabind 1 plastic comb binding machine you might want to visit MyBinding.com. They offer a great price on this machine and they even offer Free Shipping. MyBinding carries the full line of Akiles binding machines and also carries Comb Binding Supplies in more than a dozen different colors and in sizes from 3/16" up to 2" in diameter. Check it out today.