AKA the attack of the de-staplers.

As mentioned earlier this week in the comments of a quest for a stapler de-staplers are a problem, they are flimsy, annoying and either attack you or the paper. If you don’t feel confident enough to try Michael’s technique of using pliers (stay tuned for the YouTube Video) I have two potential solutions for you.

Our law firm buys stationery in bulk, everyone gets the cheapo staplers and de-staplers. However, due to repetitive strain injury from using these staplers we managed to get our team alternative staplers. Next on our list is the de-staplers.

The photocopying guy has a great selection, so my colleague stole what is known as a swingline stapler remover (aka Rexel Sampson Staple Extractor here in the UK) to use today. And here it is:

Now the paper has to be flat on that table, which depending on your method of working can be a good or bad thing. For example when we are dealing with a flurry of incoming post, it is quite slow, and not a great benefit, however, when we are dealing with bundles of documents from insurers which are a few hundred pages with a stupidly huge staple through them, it is well worth it. The same applies to trial bundles and some case files. It gets the staple out cleanly, giving you extra strength with it’s spring loaded lever handle. However, at £9.99 it is a bit pricy compared to the more traditional stapler removers for a couple of quid.

So if the heavy duty one is a bit out of your price range, or you never really deal with huge documents there is another great de-stapler in a more traditional style. The Sparco Stapler remover – more sturdy than the traditional bulk ones we have in work and takes the staplers out cleanly. In additional I have yet to have one break on me, so that’s good news.