[M. Mellott]

Falco Tech also uses the American Button Machines. We have two presses: a 2.25" and a bigger 3". BTW, I completely concur to also purchase the paper blank cutters--we made the investment to get lever-action punch cutters for the speed, ease of use, and easier to center the design on the blank.

We use the 2.25" for giveaways at regionals and events. These are great because you can make multiple designs or event-specific buttons, and it allows the students to show their creative sides coming up with new designs each year. We buy the blank pins, shells, and mylars in bulk at 1000 at a time...2.25" runs $80-90 for 1000 blanks, while the 3" runs $120-140. So to make 100, you're looking at $8-12 in materials after you have the machine. I know of teams that used to buy pre-made buttons for giveaways and would pay upwards of $400 for 1000 buttons.

Another reason to purchase your own button maker is for fundraising. We just bought the 3" press in order to make custom buttons to sell at our school sporting events--everything from general school support to support of specific sport teams or even special rivalry games. We sell them for $1 each, and they sell like hotcakes. You can make as many or as few as you want depending on the demand. Sell 1000 and you're looking at $800+ profit to pay off the expense of the button maker and start adding money for the team budget. We're also looking into setting up a photo button table at dances or senior nights--all you need is a camera, laptop, and a quality color printer to make instant photo button memories that would easily sell for $5 each. You can also replace the pin backs with others like magnet backs or keychain backs for a whole product line of potential...all with the same machine.