HFS(R) Heavy Duty Guillotine Paper Cutter 400 Sheet Capacity | Solid Steel Construction (A3-17'' paper cutter)

Pretty straightforward to set up, but could be confusing upfront. Ditch the blue safety guard, who needs safety anyway? The blade is hefty, and the pressure bar is great for aligning paper on the board. So far it looks like the measurement indicators are pretty spot-on. Only a mm or two difference between cuts, but it can easily slice through extra thick stacks. For anyone setting it up for the first time, DO NOT UNSCREW ANYTHING before reading the instructions thoroughly. I unscrewed the black alignment bar from its track like a doofus, and then I had to take a good portion of the cutter apart in order to get the alignment bar back into its mounting bracket, which is held together with tension. If you unscrew it, the bracket will fall to the bottom of its track, and you will NOT be able to reattach it without taking the track apart. The adjustable alignment bar is hit or miss. I don't use it too often, as it feels a bit loose once it's tightened down. I just use the printed measurements and it's treated me well. One thing to be aware of is that the grid on the cutting board is for cm measurements, NOT inches. You need to align your cuts to the two rulers on the board instead of the grid. That might be a little confusing for newcomers. Overall though, the guillotine is fantastically sharp and has held its edge for the month I've had it. Hopefully it holds that edge for a good long while.

Good cutter for the price -- even though I'm on my 2nd one. One problem is the packaging -- this cutter is heavy, and the winder on the paper compression bar sticks out. Though there is some styrofoam in the area, it's not enough for this sturdy part to survive rough handling -- my first cast iron handle was broken in half and the 8mm hardened steel shaft was bent -- not sure from what height this unit would have to be dropped to accomplish that, but FedEx managed it. Bottom line, this needs to be a user-installed part. To Amazon's credit, they picked up the broken cutter and I had a new one in less than a week. So save your packaging! until you check out your unit. Other users have complained that the handle on the winder comes off because an inner part breaks in half. It's not broken. Find the two pieces of plastic and put then together in the slot on the winder, then shove the handle back on. It's not the best design, but it works -- just don't pull on the handle, or it will come off. Finally to the cutter. The directions are almost non-existent, and those that are there are a laughable, unintelligible translation from Chinese. A real hoot. Basically follow these rules: 1) Only one set of hands on the cutter, period. 2) Use in good light. 3) Raise the compression bar enough to insert your sheaf, sheets, or book 4) Align the intended cut with the blade 5) Lower the compression bar enough to keep paper from moving. 6) Release the latch, pull on the handle, then re-raise the handle until it latches. Voila. I use this cutter to de-spine books and manuals for scanning. It chomps through anything I can get under the bar -- perhaps an inch-and-a-half -- like butter, and produces a clean cut. I have scanned a hundred thousand pages using this cutter. For the record, I use the cutter without the plastic safety shield -- it's much easier to see what I'm doing -- but reinstall the shield when the cutter isn't in use: the blade is sharp!. I can add that I took the first cutter apart trying to repair it on my own. I liked the engineering I saw. There's nothing "cheap" about this cutter for the price. Good luck with yours.

Overall a good paper cutter. But even though it sells as a 400 sheet capacity, I would not recommend cutting anything that thick. When cutting small length of paper it cuts with ease, but the thicker the stack and the longer it is, the more difficult it can be to cut and can be less accurate. Especially with card stock or index. Keep the stock height for card stock to .5 of inch or less. The movable cutting stop is challenging to set parallel to the blade. Even when the guide is parallel to the blade the fence is not at a 90% angle, it's slightly off. The movable guide is also not even. it's made of plastic and only claps at on end. And be careful when placing a stack of paper in, if one taps the guide too hard it will move. And recheck the guide after each cut, because it can move from the force of the cut, especially when cutting card stock or index. I've read complaints about the knob stripping out from over tightening, so it's a fine balance to apply enough pressure to hold it's position, especially when make multiply cuts the same size. I've used it long enough now that I needed to replace the cutting wick. That was interesting. You have to turn the cutter on it side. I can't image how difficult that would be on the larger size cutter (17'). It's very awkward to do. I have not needed to change the blade yet, I'll let you know how that goes later. The biggest disappointment is it's listed as a 12" cutter, that's only 12" in width not length. It should be 12" both ways. I purchased this cutter when my 18" 35 year old electric cuter, finally quit. A new one is several thousand dollars and I could not find a used one. My cutting needs were also less, but still needed to have something on hand. (self employed printer since 1997), so I opted for the 12" manual cutter rather than the 17" that they also sell. Given the price, I have to admit that over all it does the jobs I need for now, even though It requires many more cuts to get the job done. One more thing for safety, even though they have a plastic guide that covers the front of the blade, be carefully when removing paper from the cutter, the cutting edge of the blade is exposed and it is possible to nick your fingers, because that plastic guide moves up easily. So be mindful, the blade if very sharp.

It’s heavy duty indeed! I’m new to bookbinding, and this is exactly what I need for my projects. The size, ease of use, and built-in measurements are really helpful. I’ve had it for about two months now, and the blade still seems nice and sharp.

I bought this for my bookbinding hobby and if you have ever tried trimming a text block with a knife you will understand why. Bookbinding is a very low-cost craft but in my view this piece of kit is essential and it is the only pricey tool you need to get. It works beautifully and is so satisfying to use. My only caveat is that when you first use it you must cut some waste paper initially to remove the oil used for transit. I didn't do that and so ruined a lovely text block. However, that was a one-off. It's a magnificent machine. By the way there are useful YouTube videos on how to adjust and maintain the blade.

The guillotine cuts through approx 3cm. It requires some effort but has now done about 30 books of this size without loss of sharpness. Two minor issues I've had to work around: 1. Books tend to warp a little whilst being cut, so I tend to break them into 2 thinner sections to reduce the effect 2. The last few pages don't cut cleanly, hence the scissors in the attached photo. I've tried putting scrap paper underneath the books, but that makes so much mess! Overall, very pleased.

WORKS BEAUTFULLY, ONCE YOU HAVE EATEN YOUR BREAFAST PORRIDGE TO OPEN AND TRANSPORT THE WEIGHTY PRODUCT, TO YOUR DESK' CLEAN CUT REQUIRING LESS MUSCLE THAN I IMAGINED FOR TRIMMING A 360 PAGE BOOK THE CUTTER FOOLED ME. BEFORE EXECUTING ITS MISSION, THE LOCK BUTTON HAS TO BE PRESSED. THE DOWNSIDE - THE TOOL BOX. SEALED BEYOND MACHINE EXTRACTING PRESSURE. ANS REMAINS SO. THE MEASURING BAR, WONT'S LOCK. SUSPICION FALLS ON INCOMPLETE ASSEMBLY. CAN BE WORKED AROUND, BUT THE PRICE SUGGEST A MORE THOROUGH INSPECTION BE TAKEN BEFORE LEAVING FACTORY. PROVIDING THE BLADE HAS A SATISFACTORY LIFE SPAN, NO INDICATION TO THE SERVITUDE OF CHOPS - THEN I AM LOOKING FORWARD TO A SATISFACTORY RELATIONSHIP. IF NOT, NOTICE WILL BE SHARED ON THIS PLATFORM.

Me llegó el día indicado, hasta ahorita estoy encantada como funciona, permite que entregue al cliente un buen trabajo, como no sabía de este equipo una muy útil herramienta.

if you do a lot of paper trimming, especially book edges, treat yourself and your shoulders to this tool! I love it. I do a lot of book making and it has saved me so much time, energy and frustration. Straight edges every time with little effort.