I need to have 8 1/2" x 11" transparent binder sleeves segmented into two 4 1/4 " x 11" pockets. I can’t seem to find these commercially, so I thought that maybe I could use one of those Seal-a-Meal contraptions to stick the front and back of the sleeve together lengthwise. I don’t feel like plopping down the money until I know it will work. Anyone want to try it for me and see if it is possible?
Okay, I just happen to have one of these food sealers, an unused binder sleeve, and nothing better to do at the moment.
The sealer (mine’s a deni) bisects the sleeve into two seperate pieces, so if you’re looking to have two connected pockets, this isn’t going to do it for you. The edges had some wispy pieces of plastic hanging on, but those were easily removed.
What are you trying to store in these? You can buy ready-made binder pages for holding 4x12" panoramic photos here but they are oversized and won’t fit in a normal 3-ring binder that’s made to hold 8.5 x 11" pages, but you could cut an inch off the top and re-punch the holes. The larger snag is they might not be able to hold something 4.25" wide.
The company linked above also has these sleeves in some sort of European hole punching for half price - as long as you’re going to be punching new holes, you might as well get that variety.
Forgot to say - I’ve also got a Food Saver machine, and its temperature is pre-set for the heavy plastic that their freezer bags are made from with no ability to change the temp. If you know anyone at some place like a computer shop that has to re-shrinkwrap things now and then, their machine probably can be adjusted to suit your binder sleeves and not melt them.
Thanks for trying that. I thought some of those “sealers” allowed you to create pockets without cutting through them. Even having a single pocket might help however. Maybe it’s time to buy one used.
We are storing/displaying knitting patterns that are 8 1/2x11" pieces of paper folded lengthwise. Those 4x12" sleeves would be great if they were just a bit wider.
Different plastics melt at different temperatures, so that’s why the page melted. The machine is made for a certain melting range. You may find it works if your careful and or use a piece of paper between the melting wire and sheaves of plastic.
You may find a laminator sold at office stores to be of more use.
You can unfold them and store them back to back in a regular sleeve.
I wonder if a variac might help with that, or does the device come with a thermocouple that would work to defeat voltage controllers?
There’s more than just a hot wire in a Food Saver - there’s a bit of electronics to control the vacuum pump and I don’t know how well they’d cope with reduced voltage.
The right gizmo to try is a “bar sealer” or “impulse sealer” as used for product packaging.