StitchFree™ binding technology is an innovative new method to bind glossy and coated stock using a thermal adhesive strip. You don't have to sew, stitch or glue books anymore.

In the bad old days, making hardcover books with coated papers required heavy and expensive wire stitching or sewing machinery. In addtition, coated papers did not take well to any variation of perfect binding because the coating prevented adhesive from penetrating the paper fibers.

Notching and milling increase the edge area but they don't solve the basic problem of the adhesive’s inability to bind with the paper along anything other than the very edge. This became even more of a problem with the advent of color laser printers, which often use fuser oil to prevent toner from sticking to the heating element. These printers leave a fine layer of fuser oil on the paper after printing, effectively turning ordinary paper into coated stock.

How does Fastback^® StitchFree™ binding technology solve this problem?

In two ways: First, by splitting open the edge of each page to create channels for the glue to attach to the interior fibers of the paper. And, second, by using new more absorbent and stronger adhesives on the binding strips. The result is stronger paperback and hardcover binding.

The Fastback Splitter™ is the first component in the StitchFree system. Inside the Splitter, microknives actually split open the entire binding edge of each sheet of paper. These open grooves act as channels, allowing the adhesives to wick up into the paper fibers. Now it doesn't matter what type of coating the paper has, because the bind is no longer dependent on the outside surface to create a strong bond.

Two new binding strips are the second element of the system. The PhotoPro™ Strip is designed to work with the Fastback Splitter and the Fastback 25 Photobook Binder. It is an ideal solution for anyone who wants to make custom photography books, yearbooks, memory books and the like.