The Setmaster series of collators has had a turbulent history. Launched in 1975 by UK-based finishing manufacturer Setmasters, by 2004 manufacturing had switched to India.

The manufacturer has been in administration three times since 2005 and was finally rescued by Col-Tec. Today the company is thriving. Not only is it still distributing the Setmaster but it's brought manufacturing back to the UK.

The machine has been greatly improved in recent years, but from 1975 to 2000 it was an electro-mechanical device. From 2000 up to Col-Tec's purchase the company changed management twice and its new owners introduced electronic drives, servo motors and motion controllers.

Although they're now built in the UK, Col-Tec managing director Paul Bailey says that for any models built between 2000 and 2009, it's worth checking with Col-Tec to see what electronic drive components it contains and if they're
serviceable.

Features on the machine include the T-bar air blow system, which blows air directly between the two top sheets rather than into the stack of paper. The collator also uses a spring-loaded suction feed system that allows it to pick very light or heavy paper by recognising the highs and lows of the edge of the paper.

"In 1985, the Duplex model was introduced," adds Bailey. "By building the collator in landscape format rather than portrait, an A3 feed station could be split to give the user two A4 pockets. As a result, since the early 1990s you could have custom-built machines."  

Refurbished machines
Part-exchanged machines will be refurbished and replaced with mechanisms and software that Setmasters can support. Both new and refurbished machines are available with a full 12-month warranty on parts and labour for the UK.

A new eight-station A3 collator costs £38,000. This includes miss and double sheet detectors and an inline jogger. A refurbished model of the same format will cost £16,000. Col-Tec has five service engineers for Setmaster-related call-outs. Spares are available but machines with custom-built parts and components may take longer to source. 

It's worth checking compressors, because a deep rumble from the compressor means the filters are badly worn. This is a high value item on the machine. Also, check the suction heads for worn bushes and split pipes. Heavily greased machines hide problems; the machine should be oiled and not greased.

"It's important to see it running at 1,500-2,000 cycles per hour (cph); if the conveyor and suction bar are smooth at that speed, it's in a good condition," says Bailey.