When you've got a piece of paper, or even a precious photograph, that needs to be protected from greasy fingers and, in the case of kitchen papers, food spillage, then there's nothing more useful than a gadget that can cover the said piece of paper in a protective casing, yet still leaving what ever is on the paper so that it can be seen.
So, to get that protective wrapping the boffins came up with something called a laminator, which is a machine that uses heat, together with a slow moving motion, to protect that precious piece of paper.

There are several types of laminators on the market these days, some costing so much money that you'd need a friendly chat with the bank manager in order to own one, whilst others are basic and affordable yet do the job that they are supposed to do.
And it's one of the 'less expensive' laminators that I have had the pleasure of using for a while now, with this particular one being called the Texet LMA4-V.

Firstly, I have to mention a bit about Texet just in case, like me before I bought this product, you've never heard of the company.
Apparently, "Texet bring art and science together to create cutting edge gadgets with an innovative twist". (this statement is taken from their website).


The company is based in Manchester, UK, and was established in 1970, being part of a group called Hira. They sell computer accessories at what they call, 'cheap prices', which to be honest, after checking their site and comparing some prices against other sites, their cheap price promise is not a total lie.
The goods they sell range from small micro-SD cards to larger things such as tablets and even digital photo frames, (one of which I am looking at buying quite soon).

But enough about the company itself, let me take you back to the product that opened my eyes to Texet, the laminator itself.

This one is made of a sturdy black plastic casing which encases the heated workings that are needed to 'melt' the plastic pouches.
It has a switch on the front which is the on/off button that you need to press in order to get the machine heating up. Then there's a little light on the top that tells you when the machine is on and at the right heat.

There are grooves on the top which let out a bit of heat, so don't be putting your hands on the tops of this when it's on. But these groves look more for show than anything else, but they do seem to give this one a bit of a stylish look to it, with the added curves that surround them.
It's a cracking little size as well, being about 330mm long by 118mm wide and 90mm in height, weighing in at a light 1.3kg, so that it can sit on a desk or table without taking up too much room. Then, when it's cooled down, it slots away in it's box and back into a cupboard.

The input slot, or entry, or even the mouth, is about 240mm wide, which is wide enough for an A4 sheet to go in. it can actually take several pouch sizes, from credit card size, being 54 x 86mm to the largest size, that being A4, which is 216 x 303mm.
The technical bits are that the minimum micron laminate thickness is 100 (2x50), with the maximum being 160 (2x80) microns.

The mains lead is about a metre long so that it's not too close to the mains socket when it's on, therefore there's no worries about this heating up the plug itself, which could lead to a very dangerous situation indeed.

As for actually using it, this is so simple, being a matter of placing your paper into the open pouch, with edge of the paper pushed up to the already sealed side of the pouch, trying the get the paper as close to the middle as you can.
Then, once the machine has hit the right temperature, with the indicator light letting you know when this has happened, you simply place the pouch, sealed side first, into the mouth of the machine, letting the movement of the mouth's 'wheels' slowly drag the pouch into it.
Once the laminator has the pouch firmly in its grip you can then let go of the pouch and allow the machine to send it right through, slowly excreting the firmly sealed paper at the rear.


My Opinion...

I have used this many many times indeed, laminating everything that I can get through the mouth without damaging anything. I've put protective covering around pictures, sheets of important notes and even recipes that I like to dabble at in the kitchen sometimes. Once this machine has done it's job, laminating the paper or pictures, then they are protected for ever against such things as oil, water, slops of food and what ever else you can through at it, simply wiping off anything without damaging the paper inside the melted plastic pouches.

It's a good speed, and it takes about four minutes to actually get to the required temperature to do the job properly, but once it's come to heat it can laminate an A4 piece in less than a minute, (although the instruction leaflet claims it runs at 25cm per minute),
It's as quiet as a mouse, (where ever that saying came from), making only a slight humming noise when the machine is working, dragging, nay, gently pulling the laminate covered paper through the slot in the front, gently rolling it out of the back slot, encasing the paper in a clear and protected wrapping.

So what does this little paper protector actually cost then..?
It sells in many good retailers, and some not so good ones as well, for around the £20.00 region; which, for what it offers and the way it easily protects your precious papers with a plastic sleeve, is good value for money in my eyes.

The pouches themselves, the plastic that you put you paper into and then send through this laminator, vary in price, ranging from a couple of quid to several quid, depending on where you get them from.
I tend to get mine from the local pound plus shop, buying a pack of ten for £1.50, as they work just as well as the more expensive ones.

In all; if you want to protect paper in a clear, tough plastic casing then a laminator it the way to go, and this one is well worth having on your desk as it's a good price and offers just as good a finish as any other, more expensive types.

© Blissman70 2012