Information on disc binding systems and manufacturers.
Disc Binding is a loose-leaf notebook binding that uses discs to hold the sheets of paper together.
History
- Invented by Andre Tomas and Andre Martin (from whom the Atoma brand name was derived)
- Patented in 1948
Manufacturers and their Systems
| Company | System Name | Availability |
|---|---|---|
| Aurora Productions | ADOC | Belgium |
| Atoma | Atoma | Belgium |
| Boxclever Press (formerly called “Organised Mum”) | Busy Days Planner | UK |
| Clairefontaine | Clairing | France |
| Levenger | Circa | US |
| Rollabind | US | |
| Me and My Big Ideas | Happy Planner | |
| Myndology | US | |
| Office Depot | TUL | |
| Staples | ARC | US |
| Wiltdam Hannah | UK |
Disc Sizes
According to Levenger:
| Disc Size | Number of Pages |
|---|---|
| 3″ | 450 |
| 2½″ | 400 |
| 2″ | 350 |
| 1½″ | 200 |
| 1″ | 150 |
| ¾″ | 120 |
| ½″ | 80 |
| ¼″ | 50 |
Exact numbers will depend on page thickness.
Page Sizes
European Systems
| A4 | A5 | A6 | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 210 ✕ 297 mm | 148 ✕ 210 mm | 105 ✕ 148 mm | |
| 8.3″ ✕ 11.7″ | 5.8″ ✕ 8.3″ | 4.1″ ✕ 5.8″ | |
| ADOC | 12-discs | 8-discs | 6-discs |
| Atoma | 11-discs | 8-discs | 6-discs |
| Clairfontaine* | 11-discs | ||
| Staples | 11-discs | 8-discs | |
| William Hannah | 8-discs | 6-discs |
*Clairfontaine also make notebooks containing 165 ✕ 210mm (a kind of wide-A5) paper, bound with 8-discs.
US Systems
| Common Name | EU | US | Number of Discs |
| Letter | 216 ✕ 279 mm | 8.5″ ✕ 11″ | 11 or 10 |
| Junior* (Half Letter / Memo) | 140 ✕ 216 mm | 5.5″ ✕ 8.5″ | 8 |
| Compact | 3.75″ ✕ 6.75″ | 7 | |
| PDA (index cards) | 3″ ✕ 5″ | ||
| Micro PDA (business-card size) | 2″ ✕ 3.5″ |
*Not to be confused with “Legal Junior”.
- Rollabind – Letter, possibly others
- Levenger (US) – Letter, Junior, Compact
- Myndology – Letter (10-discs), Journal (6.5″ ✕ 8.5″ 8-discs), Index (5-discs), Note (2-discs)
- Office Depot (US) – Letter, Junior
Other Systems
- Busy Days – Size Unknown (9-discs)
- Happy Planner (7″ ✕ 9.25″)
Acknowledgements
- Image Public Domain, by Ryan Rassmussen, via Wikipedia
