Looking for a unique way to bind your document, manual, booklet, catalog, magazine, or book? Consider plastic coil binding (think of notebooks from school, except the binding is plastic rather than wire). Also called spiral binding, Publishing Xpress offers printing with plastic coil binding from 8 to over 500 pages.

With plastic coil binding, holes are placed in the left margin, and the document is bound with round, black plastic coil. This is a great choice for workbooks and other documents that you want to lay flat. You can also turn the pages 360 degrees so only one page is sitting open at a time. For more information on plastic coil binding, check out this Wikipedia article on coil binding.

The Plastic Coil Binding Process

We print your books on our digital presses on large sheets, printing 2 to 4 books at a time, depending on the final size of your plastic coil book. If you did not select lamination for your book, the entire book, including covers, are printed in complete sets. Covers are printed separate from the insides of the book if they will be laminated.

The book sets are then cut to the finished size of your book. Laminated covers will then be collated with the insides for the books.

The books are then punched on the left hand side with round holes. The size of the plastic coil binding will depend on the thickness of the book. A plastic coil machine spins the coil through the book. The coil is larger than the length of the book, so it is cut and the two ends are crimped so that the paper won’t unwind from the book.

Tips for Plastic Coil Binding for Books

When deciding on the binding that you want to use for your book (your options are perfect bound, plastic coil, saddle stitch, and wire-o), be aware that plastic coil and wire-o are very similar. Both are good options for books that need to lay flat when they are used (such as a cookbook) or that the user will write in (like a workbook or journal).

These binding options are also good choices for books that users will refer to again and again, like a product catalog or membership directory. While wire-o is often considered to have a more sophisticated look than plastic coil, the sharp edges with the wire-o binding makes it more appropriate for adult use than child use. Most school notebooks and journals are bound with plastic coil binding.

Consider these tips for your plastic coil books:

Uncoated text paper stock is a good option if the user will be writing in the book, since it won’t smear when markers or roller ball pens are used. We offer 60# and 70# uncoated text stock. Depending on the application, matte text stock can also be a good option. Not sure what paper you want to use for your plastic coil book?
Order our free sample package, which includes a plastic coil book that has samples of all of our paper choices. There are graphics and text on one side of the paper, but the back side is blank so you can write on it with different pen options. The book also has samples of gloss and soft touch lamination.
Since the book will probably be used often, consider a heavy cover stock to give it more durability. Our heaviest cover stocks are 120# and 16 pt. You can also add lamination to make it a little thicker and give the cover some protection.
Another option is to include a clear plastic cover on the front cover and a colored plastic cover on the back cover. We have many clients who laminate the front cover and put a colored plastic cover on the back.
Because the paper is going to be punched on the left hand side of the sheet, you should make sure that you have extra large margins on that side so that the holes that are punched in the paper do not punch into text on your page. You should make sure you have 1/2 inch margin on the three sides that are not bound and 3/4 inch margin on the bound side.
If your plastic coil book is going to be used for marketing purposes, don’t leave any of the four sides of your covers blank. The cover pages are great spots to put your contact information, ads for other products or services, upcoming events, or items of special interest on your website.

Inspiration for Plastic Coil Binding Projects

Check out some of our spotlights on clients who used plastic coil binding style for their projects:

Learn how to make your book look professional!

Publishing Xpress offers a wide range of printing options for your plastic coil book. You can select 5½ x 8½, 6 x 9, 8½ x 11, or 9 x 12 finished sizes. Need a slightly different size? No problem. Just select the next larger size.

For instance, if your book is 7 x 10, select the 8½ x 11 size. Plastic coil binding for books in all sizes can be printed in portrait or landscape orientation. We are also able to print plastic coil bound books at sizes up to 11 x 17. For pricing larger than 9 x 12, please contact us at help@publishingXpress.com.

We offer full-color printing. Your documents can be printed full color throughout, or you can use just black ink on the inside pages. We have a variety of paper options available as well. You can print the cover on the same paper as the rest of the booklet (called self cover) or the cover can be printed on different paper (called plus cover).

We can also laminate the covers, using gloss, soft touch, leather, or linen lamination. And we offer a minimum print quantity of only 25 copies. With our low minimums and low prices, there’s no reason for not printing your plastic coil projects right now!

Publishing Xpress can discuss how to give your self-published book a plastic coil bound finish. But before deciding on a binding style, you might want to take a look at our other three binding options.