• The GBC Heatseal H435 pouch laminator is one of GBC's newest addition to the GBC Jam Free series of pouch laminators.
• The H435 is a full featured 12.5" throat pouch laminator that is designed for small and medium sized businesses.
• It offers lamination of all sizes of documents from business cards to menus.
• This review will take a look at the strengths, features, weaknesses and limitations of the GBC Heatseal H435 pouch laminator.

Strengths / Features:

• The H435 pouch laminator has a great set of controls. It has an adjustable dial that allows you to choose the right temperature that corresponds to the paper and laminating pouches that you are using. The H435 also has a small LCD screen that provides a countdown to show how long the laminator has until it is ready to laminate and a reverse button to assist in the case of a pouch jam.
• The H435 has a 12.5 inch throat that is designed for laminating almost any size of laminating pouch. Like most laminators the Heatseal 435 can be used to laminate small pouches to create name badges, luggage tags and note cards. However, the wide throat of the H435 can also be used to laminate large format documents using menu and large menu laminating pouches. It can even be used to laminate documents using long side sealed letter size laminating pouches.
• This laminator can accept 3mil, 5mil and 7mil laminating pouches. This provides a number of options for laminating documents. Items that are used infrequently or need to maintain their flexibility can be laminated with 3mil pouches. Or 7mil laminating pouches can be used when rigidity is required and materials need to be frequently handled.

Weaknesses / Limitations:

• Although the H435 pouch laminator can use 3mil, 5mil and 7mil pouches it cannot be used with 10mil laminating pouches. Ten mil laminating pouches offer extra rigidity and are popular for creating name badges and signs. If you think that you might need to use 10mil pouches it would be a good idea to upgrade to a model that is compatible with these thicker pouches.
• The H435 is designed for carrier free operation. This means that the laminator does not require the use of a laminating pouch carrier. Although this feature adds productivity to the H435 it also makes it can also cause problems. The H435 is part of the GBC Jam Free series of laminators. However, it is only Jam Free if the rollers are regularly cleaned to prevent the buildup of adhesive and if you use genuine GBC laminating pouches. If you allow adhesive to build up on the rollers it is possible that a laminating pouch will wrap inside the machine and ruin the laminator. The reverse feature will only help with this if you catch it quickly enough.

Recommendation:

• The GBC Heatseal H435 pouch laminator is ideal for small and medium sized businesses. It is capable of laminating small name tags, letter sized sheets and large menu sized documents.
• Provided that you can live without 10mil laminating pouches and remember to keep your laminating rollers clean, the H435 laminator is a great choice.
• However, for high volume users there are faster pouch laminators that can operate with or without carriers that might be a better fit.