What to look for in a comb-binding machine greatly depends on your budget, how many people are going to be using the machine, and how often the machine will be used. Some key things to consider include:

• Construction. How well-built is the machine? 
• Control. If you want a machine that can bind documents of different sizes, look for a machine with disengageable dies. If controlling the placement of the holes is important because you’ll be using combs of different thicknesses, a depth of punch margin control is a must-have. 
• Quantity. If you’re an individual or a small business owner who will only be binding once in a while, a personal-sized machine is ideal. However, for higher-volume outfits such as copy centers, a professional-grade machine is better. 

Plastic combs are available in a number of colors such as navy blue, black, maroon, and yellow. There are even clear ones that can make your documents look great. Also, combs range in diameter from 3/16" to 2". Thus, you can use this binding methods to create books that are up to 425 pages long. And while most combs are designed for use with letter-sized paper (8.5" x 11") you can get combs for other sizes of paper. That makes this binding method incredibly versatile.

Plastic binding combs use a nineteen hole pattern that features rectangular holes that measure 9/16" on center. Using your comb binding machine you will need to punch your sheets. However, in order to finish your documents, you will need to use a plastic comb opener. Many smaller comb binding systems include an opener on the top of the machine. Or, higher volume users will sometimes choose to use a stand-alone comb opening device. The comb opener will spread the combs so that you can insert the pages onto the fingers of the spine. The opener can also be used to edit bound documents if you ever need to add or remove pages from the book.