“I can’t get my folding machine score (or perforation) to run straight." It’s a question we hear from operators of folding machines and scoring machines on a regular basis. We’ve seen the problem stump the experienced bindery pro as well as the novice.
It happens every year around this time with our customers in wintry climates, so we will review a handy tip that came to us in 2011:
A printer recently sent us four-color samples on 70# C2S litho text which were cracking horribly when folded. They couldn’t get rid of the problem with their own scoring devices and wondered if the EZ-Fit or Fast Fit Tri-Creaser would take care of the problem.
One of the unique Tri-Creaser design features is the ‘floating female’ component that comes with several of our popular folding machine models. What exactly is the floating female? No, it’s not the tooth fairy or the woman at the next table who’s had too much to drink.
These unsung folding machine accessories go by several names including pull out wheels, gripper rollers, transfer wheels, gripper bosses, register wheels, drive rollers, and probably more we aren't aware of. They serve a few important functions on folding machines and most other types of bindery equipment.
Maybe you’re thinking “Who cares about the shaft diameter on bindery equipment, just look it up in the manual if you need the info!” We can say that as a supplier of bindery products to fit hundreds of machines with all kinds of shafts, there is often a noticeable lack of information available. At the very least there is often some measure of confusion about actual dimensions, especially if no caliper is available to take a precise measurement.
Whether you or your folder operators are industry veterans or are setting up your first folding job, here’s a topic worth more than one look. We’ve discussed various aspects of slitter shaft maintenance a few times (see blog links at the end of the article) yet the type of questions that come up tell us it’s an item often overlooked when troubleshooting.
When you fold cover stocks on a buckle folding machine, you might encounter one problem you don’t get when running text-weight paper. As you adjust the fold on a light stock, you get instant feedback on whether it’s been adjusted correctly. In other words, as you move the plate’s paper stop you immediately see the result of your adjustment as the next folded piece exits the machine.
Whenever folding machine owners discuss the addition of Technifold’s creasing, micro perforating and cutting tools, we are often asked whether their folders have to be in top-notch shape for the tools to work properly.
In the course of a normal day, folding machine operators usually only concern themselves with one adjustment on the buckle plate. That, of course, is the fold stop which sets the length of the fold.
If you produce double gatefolds on your buckle folder, you might have struggled with the ‘boxed’ fold as shown in the photo (left). The problem is obvious in that the first fold is squared off and boxy rather than flat and sharp. Several readers recently emailed asking how to solve this problem, especially when folding text weight stocks.