* The DuoMac 541 is the only machine of its kind. It includes a unique design that allows users to punch both a 5:1 pitch hole pattern for spiral coil binding and a 4:1 pitch hole pattern for spiral coil binding.

* Normally, you would have to use two different binding machines to do the same tasks as the DuoMac 541. This means that the DuoMac 541 can save you space, time and money.

Strengths / Features:

* The DuoMac541 is capable of binding documents with both 4:1 and 5:1 pitch spiral coil. Although there are a large number of 4:1 pitch coil binding machines available on the market there are very few machines capable of binding documents with 5:1 pitch coil. With this machine, you can choose the pitch of coil that you want to use depending on the size of your document or the look that you prefer.

* Both punching throats on the 541 Duomac include five disengageable punching pins. Using these punching pins it is possible to use this machine with all of the most common sizes of paper. Each punch is capable of handling documents up to thirteen inches in length. However, the throats on both punching heads are open so that you can punch longer paper using a two step process.

* On the right hand side of the machine you will notice two small knobs. These knobs are used to adjust the punching margin on this machine. You can set the machine to punch the holes closer to the edge of your paper for smaller sized documents or further away for larger sized documents. Using this feature you can maximize the strength of your bound documents while ensuring that the pages turn freely on your coils.

* The DuoMac 541 also includes a high quality pair of spiral coil crimping pliers to help you finish your documents. These pliers are used to cut and crimp the ends of your bound document so that the spiral coil does not spin back off the edge of your book.

Weaknesses / Limitations:

* The DuoMac 541 is built on the same platform as all of the other machines in the Akiles Duo Mac line of binding machines. This means that it includes a wire closer. However, the wire closer is essentially useless on this machine. Wire is not available in either 4:1 or 5:1 spacing. This simply means that you will need to ignore the closer or use it with documents that are punched on another machine.

* Oddly enough, the DuoMac 541 includes a wire closer that you don't need and is missing a spiral coil inserter that would be really handy. Akiles suggests that you purchase this machine with a Roll @ Coil modular coil inserter. This is an excellent idea. Without a coil inserter you will end up having to spin all of the spines onto the edge of your document by hand.

* This machine can bind documents with both 4:1 pitch and 5:1 pitch spiral coil. However, you are still limited to the supplies that are available for each pitch. Four to one pitch coils are available in a huge variety of sizes and colors. However, five to one pitch coils are only available in sizes up to 25mm. Five to one pitch coils also tend to be slightly more expensive and a little bit harder to find than their four to one pitch counterparts.

* Although this machine is extremely well built, it is still a manual binding machine. Organizations who need to bind large numbers of documents or extremely large documents will most likely find the manual nature of this machine is fairly tedious. As a general rule, the DuoMac 541 is a good fit for companies that need to bind up to fifty documents per week. Companies that bind more than this may want to investigate a larger electric binding system.

Recommendation:

* The Duomac 541 is an excellent choice for a company who wants the flexibility to choose between four to one and five to one pitch spiral coil binding. No other desktop machine offers this flexibility.

* Like the entire line of Akiles equipment this machine is built with precision components and is known for its quality and durability.

* However, users who do decide to purchase this machine should really consider buying a coil inserter to increase productivity in assembling documents.