Are old fashioned saddle stitchers any good?

[crossroads]

I am looking for way to saddle stitch booklets that are too thick to get stitched in line on our digital printer. That is 20-30 sheets to make booklets from 80 pages up. We generally send these jobs out, but it would be better if we can make proofs or finish very short runs in house. Does anyone know if the older isp or bostitch stitchers would do this right. There seems to be one gathering dust in any print shop i have entered.

 

[chad.trent]

We had a Bostitch two head stitcher that I believe was probably older than me (and I'm not young). That thing ran like a top all day every day.

 

[dabob]

I've done thousand of saddle stitched books by hand using a foot actuated stitcher - great for short runs and the added bonus they usually convert to butt/corner stitching also

 

[Fatboysmart]

These 'old fashion' machines are very reliable... you couldn't brake them with a sledgehammer probably. So if you look around you can probably find a used one that will last you for another 20 years,

 

[davidspiel]

I am looking for way to saddle stitch booklets that are too thick to get stitched in line on our digital printer. That is 20-30 sheets to make booklets from 80 pages up. We generally send these jobs out, but it would be better if we can make proofs or finish very short runs in house. Does anyone know if the older isp or bostitch stitchers would do this right. There seems to be one gathering dust in any print shop i have entered.

Saddle Stitchers are machines that stitch signatures. You are looking for a Booklet Maker. If you use the Bostitch you will need to fold the sheets prior to stitching, correct? Your best option is a Booklet Maker that can stitch, fold, and if you so choose-- face trim.

You can see a Booklet Maker here: Wire Fed Bookletmakers, Semi-Automatic Stitchers

Otherwise, feel free to call me.

David Spiel
877-BINDERY

 

[JimBob53]

I work in a small shop that does a lot of short run saddle stitch books that run from 80 to 120 pages. We use a very, very old single head stitcher and it does great... made in the 40s.