My issue is not with the operation of the machine but rather with the warranty, service and parts availability. I do service work for a large corporation and got in a unit that was purchased about one month ago. As will happen, the operator put in too many cover sheets and it bound up. The overload bent the stripper plate which, in turn, was binding against the punch plate. Overloading voids the warranty so I went ahead and worked on it. I got it working by bending the stripper plate back but decided the fix should be temporary and tried to order a replacement part. This review is the result of my conversations with four different GBC and ACCO representatives.
This binding machine costs $500+ and comes with a one year limited warranty. If a defective unit is in warranty then it is simply exchanged. THERE IS *NO* SERVICE AND THERE ARE NO PARTS AVAILABLE FOR THESE UNITS. My understanding is that this policy applies to all of the current GBC office binding products. Again, OVERLOADING THE PUNCH VOIDS THE WARRANTY.
As far as GBC is concerned, this one month old, $500+ comb binding machine is now damaged beyond repair and the owners should purchase another one. Note that the stripper plate is nothing more than a thick piece of sheet metal with holes punched in it. I would expect it to cost no more than $1.00 to manufacture and no more than $30 as a replacement part. It's lack of availability makes makes no sense in light of the fact that just two months ago I was able to purchase parts for a discontinued five year old GBC C400e CombBind machine.
I could see purchasing this machine if you are the sole user. I can not recommend this unit for an office where there's no control over who uses it. You can assume that at some point within the expected 3-5 year life, someone is going to be in a hurry, overload it, and leave you with an expensive recyclable.