HFS(R) 17" Blade A3 Heavy Duty Guillotine Paper Cutter (A3-17'' Paper Cutter)

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.

This thing chops. We have trimmed a lot of books at this point. Several hundred, and it is still super sharp. It does take some trial and error getting the pressure correct on the presser bars that holds the stack in place. Too hard and it will leave a mark on one edge, and not hard enough and the stack can shift. But once you find that sweet spot this saved hour and hours of production time on our children’s books we print ourselves.

Pros: has no problem cutting through 24lb & 20lb paper, card stock, and varied thicknesses of chipboard. I'm not sure why people warned against card stock, but mine cuts through it with no problem. And I had no problem cutting through short stacks of paper, like 5-10 pieces. Helpful hint if you're having issues getting through a short stack of anything - put a few pieces of scrap paper on the bottom of your stack under the cut (I didn't have to), but it'll help if your red strip is wearing out. Speaking of short stacks, don't cut pancakes - not gonna happen (but now I'm hungry for pancakes).Cons: the black cheap plastic fence likes to move easily. Hard to keep square & accurate. I have to use a square to help while tightening it down. Gotta watch it after each cut to make sure it didn't move. And my biggest pet peeve that I didn't notice on day one, was that the press does not come down level!!! Paper gets "wrinkled" or pushed toward the fence while you are cutting - results in cut not being straight down or square! Frustrating!! Poor design or they did not adjust it properly. It has to come down level in order to grab all of the paper with the same force - which it doesn't. A lot of people complaining about their papers wrinkling & such. I imagine it's the same issue. My pic shows it's uneven/un-level. Left side in pics is where all of the 8-1/2 x 11" paper needs the evenness in particular. This thing is too big to send back (it's a heavy sucker). I'll try the manufacturer to see if it's adjustable or I'll try to fix it myself. Precise cuts are required or I have to buy a different brand.UPDATE: I stand corrected, their website does have instructions to adjust the press level. I didn't check there before my rant. I did find a the screw for the press handle was welded crooked, but that's another subject. SO, I was able to level the press and it holds the paper down way better. I still have to crank the thing down an incredible amount to hold the paper from moving - i have an idea to remedy that - I'll try it and post back. THIS ALL could have been avoided had they included some type - any type -of instructions or paper with my cutter, but nope, none, zilch! Please, HFS, include at least your web address instructions in your cutter box!!

I was super excited for this product until it arrived all my dreams crushed. This product would have been amazing if it didn’t keep staining my paper. The blade is super sharp and amazing. The only issue was when I got it, it had something stuck to the area where it holds the papers down and it kept staining my pages. On top of that I had to return the product and pay money to return it.

I already made a review on this. The cutter is amazing quality.However, it’s extremely sharp. Ironically I was making fun of a friend who cut his finger in a paper cutter. I thought how is that even possible. Well it’s so shape that I reached down to touch something and it merely snagged a hair of my finger nail but is so sharp that it caught and just kept going. I can’t believe it. Of course I keep my fingers away from the blade when cutting. But this thing is like a laser beam. And that’s coming from someone that can sharpen knives shape enough to wittle hair in half several times. So even touching it can cut you.Be careful!!Also note* this was my own fault. I took the blue safety guard off. The guard is a good feature and the locking blade handle is a good feature. When you’re done using it pull the handle all the way up so the blade is hidden up inside the machine