With their compact size, ease of use, and extremely affordable price point, screw posts are quickly becoming one of the most popular alternative binding methods. Though the majority of binding posts are metal (usually aluminum or stainless steel), plastic screw posts are a unique post style that offers special features that aren’t available with their metal counterparts. In this post, we’ll take a closer look at plastic binding posts and discover what sets them apart from the rest.
The Basics
A plastic screw post is made up of two separate pieces – a threaded post attached to a head and a cylinder attached to a matching head. To create a bound item, a hole is first punched through the documents to be bound. The post is inserted into the hole, and then the threaded screw is inserted into the post and tightened. Because the heads are of a larger diameter than the hole, the documents remain securely bound between them. To make changes within the bound document, simply unscrew the threaded post from the cylinder, insert your revised documents, and reassemble the screw post.
What makes plastic Chicago screws unique is that they can be snapped together for a more permanent bind in addition to the editable bind that is created when the posts are screwed together. Because of this feature, plastic screw posts are also frequently referred to as “snap posts.” This permanent binding process takes advantage of the malleable properties of plastic, using small barbs on the inside of the post to gouge the threads on the screw portion and make it very difficult to remove.
Uses
Like aluminum screw posts, plastic snap posts can be used for a wide variety of binding projects. From booklets to menus to swatch books to oversized blueprints, they can secure and organize documents of practically any shape and size without the use of a specialized binding machine. Since they offer the user the option to choose between a bind that can be edited or a more permanent closure, they can even be used for documents that require a more tamper-resistant binding style.
In Review
Screw posts are a small-scale binding solution packed with big benefits. Like metal screw posts, plastic binding posts can be screwed together for a non-permanent bind, but they can also be snapped together for a bind that is tamper-resistant and permanent. If you have a need for a basic binding method with practically limitless applications, then be sure to take a closer look at plastic Chicago screws.