Cosco Automatic Numbering Machine, 6-Digits, 8 Modes, Black Ink (026138)

The best advice I can give you with this is to read the manual, carefully. It's quite a complex machine and it can do a lot of useful things, once you have experimented a little, it's sort of obvious, but it does need explaining.Inking the pad is clean and simple, I am not sure why some people are saying otherwise - Maybe they just haven't used pads that need inking before - In any case, just be sensible and maybe pop some kitchen roll down on the surface you are using or wear latex gloves.Anyway it's a fantastic stamp, well made, and works well - The learning curve may be short and steep, but it's worth it.Hopefully, you find this review helpful.

I was initially very skeptical about purchasing this item, as many previous reviews were not flattering. However, I have thus far been quite impressed with this little machine (granted, I've only been using it for a few minutes). It can number documents in versatile ways. I personally want to be able to number exams, as 1, 2, 3,... and am able to do that. By default (at least the way mine arrived) it numbers 0000001,0000002,..., but leading zeros can easily be turned off by rotating the dials using a provided tool so that they are between 0 and 1 (this is explained clearly in the directions). I do have a number of gripes, but they are pretty minor ones:* I don't really like how the 4's are engraved, but they are still essentially readable. They do not look like the 4's in the picture posted by the manufacturer.* The ink-pads are a little on the "hairy" side, and these little extraneous fibers seem to reduce the legibility of some of the numbers earlier in the print job* Thickness of numbers isn't always consistent from application to application, but if you push STRAIGHT DOWN quite hard, the numbers look much better. This can slow you down, though, and it makes it a bit noisier.* The pictures in the directions aren't fantastic, but they are adequateOn the plus side, I did not find setup to be at all messy. I got NO ink on my hands at all setting it up or using it. If you read the instructions thoroughly before you begin you won't have any problems. The ink is pretty viscous and needs a few minutes to completely apply. I can see how it could be messy if you over apply the ink, but the directions are very clear on how you should do it. The ink dried very quickly on my documents, and I did not have to resort to the tricks described in other reviews (maybe they put too much ink on the pad?) I didn't have any problems with the knob falling off, although it does arrive fairly loosely attached. I'd recommend turning it clockwise when you first get it to make sure that it's screwed in all the way.If you need your numbers to look perfect and professional quality, you probably ought to invest in a much more expensive machine than this. However, if you can settle with "very good", this is well worth the money.

It seems like it’s a good numbering machine at modest cost. I can’t imagine what the expensive machines offer that this one doesn't.

It's durable, well-made and works smoothly. The number wheels are made out of metal instead of rubber, which is nice although it means you have to make sure you're stamping on a flat surface and also means it makes a substantial "clunk" noise when you use it. The only downside is that the only way to adjust the number wheels is to manually turn them using a pen (or the little plastic stylus they give you), so your fingers will get some ink on them if you're not careful. Overall, a great product for a reasonable price.

Bought this to number my choir's octavos for cataloging. After stamping 40, it skipped to 51, 52, 53, and so on. The "4" on the second digit in kept wanting to skip ahead to "5" after one use, so I flipped the stamp over and noticed the black tine between the first and second digits (see pic) was ever so slightly bent to the right, not lining up in the gap perfectly like the others were. I used a small screw driver to bend it back to the left, slid the repetition selector (black clip) all the way to the 5 and back, and the issue was solved. Like the instructions say, a single sheet on a hard surface does not imprint well. A few sheets of paper or some low-nap felt under the target sheet gives clear, consistent results.