and knobs

It seems that Akiles has looked to fill a
gap in the marketplace with the WireMac Duo. As the only machine
available to consumers that can bind documents with either a two to one
or three to one pitch hole pattern, the WireMac Duo offers users some
unprecedented flexibility. Here are some of the strengths and
weaknesses of this machine as we see them.

Strengths:

1. Of course one of the WireMac Duo's biggest strengths is
   its ability to punch in either a two to one or three to one pitch
   ratio. If you consider that you can use the three to one pitch punch
   with wire-o, spiral coil, or GBC Proclick, and that the two to one
   pitch punch can utilize double loop and spiral coil, you actually have
   the possibility of five separate binding styles with the WireMac Duo.
   That is a lot of flexibility for a machine at this price point, and
   perhaps one of the reasons the WireMac Duo seems to be growing in
   popularity.
2. This machine features a pair of
   punching throats, each of them 14 inches in length. What this gives you
   is the ability to punch any document that is legal sized or smaller.
   While this is a great capacity, it is important to note that the open
   throat design and the fully disengageable dies of the WireMac Duo mean
   that you can punch documents that are larger by using a two punch
   process.
3. The WireMac Duo has a nice little
   system in place for setting the depth at which you punch you holes. It
   is very easy to use, and will help you ensure the strength and
   usability of the books that you are producing.
4. 
   We really liked the inclusion of the wire closing mechanism on the
   WireMac Duo, and were especially impressed with the heavy duty
   construction that it features. It is clearly designed to last for
   years. Plus, the wire hanging hooks that are also on the front of the
   machine provide a very efficient system for adding pages onto your wire
   binding spines before you close them.

Weaknesses:

1. 
   Although this machine can be used to bind documents with both three to
   one and 0.400 pitch coils, these supplies can be a difficult to get a
   hold of. In fact, they can take a few days to produce so you will want
   to make sure you stay on top of your supply ordering process.
2. 
   The WireMac Duo has a ton of great features, but with that comes, of
   course, a little bit of a learning curve for inexperienced users. This
   is a machine has a lot of buttons, handles, and knobs, and if you have
   never operated and kind of binding machine before you may be a little
   bit confused. This is not something that should dissuade you from
   purchasing the WireMac Duo, just something that you should be aware of.
   Once you get the hang of this machine, you should have no problems at
   all.
3. This machine offers great flexibility but
   it is still a manual binding system. High volume users may want to
   consider purchasing an electric binding system or a modular binding
   punch to increase productivity.