Signode BXT4-16 

The new BXT4-16 strapping tool will work with 1/2" and 5/8".  The BXT4-16 is a battery-powered strapping tool that maintains several features of its predecessor, the BXT3-16. It has an improved display screen for easy adjustment of tension and weld settings, and it can switch between manual and automatic modes. The tension range is 90-560 pounds, and it's compatible with 1/2" or 5/8" polyester or polypropylene strapping. Weighing 8.8 pounds, it uses the new slim pack Bosch battery. The BXT4-16 has been designed for easier maintenance and includes a protective cover for the battery.

The BXT4-16 has a new guide mechanism that opens when you pull the trigger. A motor now lifts the guides, and drops them when you release. The power of a motor on the BXT4 vs a spring on the BXT3 makes the guides close with more power. The red guides are easy to see, and capture the strapping on this Signode gun strongly. During our in house testing, we put a pencil under the guide. When the guide dropped, it was strong enough to take a chunk of wood out of the pencil. This powered guide will help with slight misalignment of the straps. When the operator accidentally does not line up the strap, the powerful guide forces them back to the correct alignment.  This new guide will save you time.  Instead of have to pull the strap out and put it back in (or worse, having a weld that is only on the overlapping section of the two bands), the power guide will do that for you.

The Signode BXT4-16 has a new base that is solid, like the P328 or GT-Smart. The rocker that swung the base of the BXT-16, BXT2-16, and BXT3-16 is gone. The advantage of a single base on the BXT4-16 is that you can now use in on smaller (or round) bunks and get the strapping tool out after completing the cycle. The original BXT tool base would swing away from the wheel. On rounds, this could be impossible. Now the solid BXT4 base is almost as small as the Siat GT-smart tool.

Allstrap opinion:

This Signode BXT4-16 tool is one of the easiest to use on the market.  The weakest two parts on the very good BXT3 were upgraded.  The rocker arm and blocking pawls (responsible for swinging the arm away from the feedwheel) was replaced with a solid base.  The single base will make this BXT4 easier to use on round bunks like pipe, and makes it easier to pull the tool off after the cycle.  The power guide system makes it easier to get the straps aligned, which causes fewer bad welds and feeding problems.  With these improvements, the Signode BXT4-16 will be tied as our top recommended tool (P328, and Xtreme) are the other top tools)!  We recommend the Signode BXT4-16 strapping tool.