Jeff McRitchie

GBC AP2 Ultra Automatic Binding Punch Review

The AP2 Ultra is a high quality heavy duty automatic binding punch that is designed for the highest volume punching environments.Although this machine comes with a fairly hefty price tag, most organizations that do a high volume of punching find that they are able to recoup their investment in less than two years.

• The AP2 Ultra is a high quality heavy duty automatic binding punch that is designed for the highest volume punching environments.
• This machine is designed for users who do a lot of punching and want the ability to set a stack of paper on their machine and walk away.
• The AP2 is designed to be fast, versatile and easy to use. It is a popular choice for larger print shops, binderies, in-plant printers and copy shops.
• Although this machine comes with a fairly hefty price tag, most organizations that do a high volume of punching find that they are able to recoup their investment in less than two years.

Strengths / Features:

• The AP2 Ultra is an incredibly fast punch. It is capable of punching up to 56,000 sheets of paper an hour and averages 40,000 sheets per hour for most applications. This means that the AP2 can punch as many as 80 reams of paper in one hour of operation. This means that even large punching jobs that would normally take hours on a desktop punch can be completed in minutes with the AP2.
• This punch is also really easy to use. All you need to do is load a large stack of paper into the top of the machine, press the button and a few minutes later the stack will be punched. The machine does it all and the operator is able to work on other tasks while the AP2 is punching. There is an LCD display panel on the front of the machine that tells you the status of the machine and there are a few different adjustments. However, this machine isn't really complicated.
• Another strength of the AP2ultra is its relatively small footprint. It is no secret that most print shops and production environments are short on floor space. The AP2 measures 25" x 53" x 34" which is significantly smaller than most other automatic punching solutions. Plus, it is mounted on wheels with castors to allow it to easily be pushed out of the way when it is not in use.
• The AP2 Ultra is an upgraded version of the old AP2. This version has been retrofitted with new components and feed mechanisms for handling heavier stocks and glossy papers. This is still not the ideal solution for extremely hard to run sheets. However, the new design allows it to run most common uncoated paper stocks that are part of a normal print environment.

Weaknesses / Limitations:

• The AP2 ultra does have some limitations on the type of sheets that it can punch. Although its ability to run heavy and glossy stocks has been improved it will still have difficulty feeding laminated or coated sheets. Additionally, it is not recommended to run clear covers or plastic covers through this machine. Plastic covers will stick together and have the potential to cause problems with the punching mechanism. If you were to try and run poly covers through the AP2-Ultra you would want to make sure that they are collated into your documents. Most print shops will need a desktop punching unit in addition to this machine so that they can handle small runs, odd sizes and sheets that will not run through this machine.
• There are a huge variety of die sets available for the AP2 Ultra. You can use this machine to punch holes for spiral coil binding, comb binding, twin loop wire, Velobind, Proclick and 3-Ring binders. However, the die sets can be a little bit tricky to change and the changeover can take a few minutes. This makes the AP2 Ultra a great solution for longer runs or short runs with the same punching pattern. However, if you have to constantly change the die on this machine for short run punching it is quite possible you will spend more time on the die changes than you will actually punching your documents.
• This machine is somewhat limited in the size of sheets that it can punch. The smallest sheet size that it can handle is 5.5" x 5.5" and the largest that it can handle is 12" x 13". This means that the AP2 cannot be used to punch documents for legal sized binding. A standard desktop binding machine will have to be used for this application.
• There are a lot of moving parts inside the AP2-Ultra. Although this is a reliable machine it is advisable to look into putting this type of equipment under a maintenance contract. That way you know that you are covered if something were to happen to the machine. This is especially true for organizations that use their automatic punch on a daily basis and can't afford to be down for extended periods of time.

Recommendation:

• If your organization has the volume to warrant the cost, the AP2 Ultra is an excellent automatic binding punch.
• This system is capable of punching a huge amount of paper per hour and can free up labor inside of your organization to focus on other highly profitable tasks.
• However, there are some paper types and document sizes that are not compatible with this machine. Most print shops, binderies and in-plant printers use this type of machine for their volume punching applications and still use a desktop interchangeable die punch for short runs, clear covers and laminated sheets.

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