Paper Tray Design is Inexcusably Poor

Buzz Gadflie

What the heck is wrong with our paper trays? Why can't they hold up to standard wear and tear? Friends, this isn't right. I demand more from the manufacturers. I demand it. Do it yourself. Return that bad tray. Tell them that their design is faulty.

Tell them you are not going to put up with their shoddy workmanship. And tell them that you are considering a class action lawsuit against them if they do not provide a replacement for their lousy product.

Do you want to know why they break? It's real simple. Plastic. It's strong. It's cheap. But it can't take continual flexing. It will eventually develop stress fractures. Get enough stress fractures and the plastic will snap like a twig. The hinges and the parts that hang the paper tray onto your machine should be made of metal.

This is not rocket science. Any of the guys down at Bubba Billy Bob's Hardware Store and Feedlot could tell you that. Any one of them.

So why do the manufacturers use plastic? It's cheap. The materials don't cost much, and the actual process is simple once you get set up. Not only that, it is light and easy to ship. Manufacturers think plastic is a wonder material. Look at how much of it we use in everyday life.

Heck, our automobiles are covered in plastic. It makes a great material for your door panels and your radio faceplate. These things sit in one position and don't move. It works great to hold things in one position. But once the plastic has to undergo flexing, it begins to break down. That's why they don't make axles out of plastic. They could. They could make them strong enough for the biggest truck on the road. It would work well, up until the point where it suddenly shatters from stress.

The manufacturers know this. They knew it at the time they designed their first plastic tray. They know that these trays will not last. In other words, they know that every year or so, a student or a very active reporter will need a replacement tray. This is planned. When they first inserted this design flaw into their products, they knew that they had just invented a new source of revenue. They charge an ungodly amount of money to replace their crap. This is obscene.

What can we do about it? The Don Quixote solution is the one that I proposed at the beginning of this article: Demand that they replace their product. If that doesn't work, threaten them. It probably won't work, but it feels good, and enough heated exchanges on the same subject might convince them to change their ways. For a short term solution, you can take your tray down to Bubba Billy Bob's Hardware. Explain your problem. Some of these trays can be reinforced with a metal plate. Others may benefit from one of the many products on the market for plastic repair.

Don't be shy about asking for help. These hardware store guys live to answer questions. They usually know their products inside and out. You might even get them to do it for you for a couple of bucks. Sometimes a completely unusable tray can be repaired for under $5.00.

The manufacturers should wake up. They money they make off of these replacement paper trays is negligible to the amount of goodwill that they are losing.