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.

The Paper slicer of your dreams. When I say it cuts thru a Reem like butter. 👍 im a book maker and the time this saved me. Was using a 13 page cutter. This is my fav tool

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.

I was skeptical after all the reviews on various models on here. I took a chance and don’t regret it…but it’s also day 1 and I’m not running a business. I received what I believe is a new unit based on packaging. Instructions were easy but I had to figure out the feet on my own. Not too complicated but they do snap in if you press down on the unit. Within a few minutes I grabbed some scrap cardstock and cut 5.5” wide pieces easily. It was a variety of brands so after I cut once, the other piece had some that were longer than 5.5” so I popped that stack in and it cut the slivers off easily. And they measure exactly 5.5”. So far, so good. The caveats are that the guide bar can move at the free end. South end if you’re looking at it like a map. So I made sure that when I added my stack of cardstock that I didn’t push too hard on that section. I have no intention of cutting an entire ream of paper so this shouldn’t be an issue. I’m mostly cutting heavyweight cardstock, and I am tired of doing 2 sheets at a time. Another thing to note is that it does make an impression on the top piece of cardstock. It didn’t go through to the second, so I’ll be sure I have a scrap piece on top each time. Not a deal breaker. I waste more than that trying to cut individual sheets. The last thing I noticed was when I clamped the paper down. The top sheets of paper wanted to shift out so I repositioned, reclamped, making sure it stayed against the guide. No issues so that’s just a learning curve. Second cut was fine, without the need to readjust. When I raised the clamp for the first time there was some paper and marks where they must have tested it once before packaging. Otherwise it looks brand new. I will be back to rate the blade durability once I’ve used it for awhile. I’ve heard they dull quickly so it was important that I have a blade easily available. One other notes about the weight. It’s heavy but not so heavy that my aging arms couldn’t manage it. I carried it in from the porch and brought it downstairs and set on a sturdy set of drawers. I up won’t be moving it much, but if I decide it’s taking up too much real estate for the usage, I can put it in another room and bring it out periodically.

The HFS(R) 17" Heavy Duty Guillotine Paper Cutter arrived with a minor packaging blemish—possibly from the Clamping Handle rubbing against the Blade Holder Hood. Setup Observations: - Step #1 suggests placing the cutter on a flat surface. Realistically, you’ll need to place it upside down or on its side to proceed. - Step #2: Insert the four plastic feet securely. I used a rubber mallet to ensure a snug fit - otherwise, the cutter will be unbalanced. - Step #3: Two Allen wrenches are included. I used the larger to reverse the Clamping Handle. The purpose of the smaller wrench remains unclear. - Step #5: It is unclear the appropriate amount of tightening for the Clamping Handle to prevent shifting – overtightening resulted in wrist pain. - Step #7: Pressing the cutting handle too firmly also strained my wrists. Additionally, with each cut, the blade shaved slithers off the red blade pad. Performance Issues: - The Guide Ruler Lock Wheel can detach if turned too far counterclockwise. Reattaching it requires creativity. - The Guide Ruler doesn’t align straight. You must manually hold it in place while tightening, and hope that it doesn’t shift. - Despite all adjustments, every test cut was angled - not suitable for precise 90° joins. - Cuts are rough and jagged. The cutter also leaves dirt marks on boards that won’t clean off. Positives: - Cuts medium weight cardboard just fine. - There was an extra plastic foot, and five screws in the box - though the purpose of the screws is unclear. I need a reliable cutter for my current project. This one doesn’t cut it. It will be returned, and my search will continue.

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.

Decent, but could be improved. I have now used it on about 100 books. Book clamp must be VERY firmly applied or pages may slip. Highly recommend cutting the covers off any hardcover books first, and separating thick ones into sections not more than 1/2" thick. After about 50 uses, the rotary knob came off, and out of it came two plastic components that hold the knob and a little bit of paper with Chinese writing on it... :) Anyway, using this requires a good bit of strength and a solid tabletop. The blade, while it has noticeably dulled with use, is really sharp initially - be careful!

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.