An apparatus for making a roll of tri-fold bottom seamed bags, comprising:
- a supply of either of plastic and other extrudable film material;
- an extruder, said extruder forming a seamless continuous tube of thin film from said material;
- a tubing flattener, said flattener flattening said continuous tube into a flattened tube, said flattened tube having first and second side edges and upper and lower interior surfaces disposed adjacent one another;
- a sealer, said sealer forming a series of seals in said flattened tube perpendicular to a long axis of said tube said seals forming bottom seams for bags of said roll of tri-fold bottom seamed bags;
- a folder, said folder comprising:
- first and second curved guide bars, said curved guide bars guiding said first and second side edges of said flattened tube under and over each other to form a continuous, compact Z-folded flattened tube;
- each of said curved guide bars having an outer side and an inner side, an end closer to said extruder and an end further from said extruder, said first curved guide bar having a wide horizontal platen at said closer end and a first curved portion at said outer side, said first curved portion extending under said platen;
- said second curved guide bar having a second curved portion at said closer end and a narrow supporting ledge;
- said second curved guide bar being spaced from a first side edge of said first curved guide bar with said narrow supporting ledge disposed below said first side edge of said first curved guide bar;
- said second curved guide bar transitioning to a wider, upper C-shape between said closer end and said further end, said upper C-shape having an upper portion and a lower portion;
- said first curved guide bar transitioning to a narrower, lower C-shape between said closer end and said further end, said narrower, lower C-shape having an upper portion and a lower portion;
- said first and second side edges of said flattened tube being disposed between said wider, upper C-shape of said second curved guide bar and said narrower, lower C-shape of said first curved guide bar;
- said first and second curved guide bars forming a Z-shaped configuration at said further ends;
- said upper portion of said second curved guide bar disposed above said upper portion of said first curved guide bar;
- said upper portion of said first curved guide bar disposed above said lower portion of said second curved guide bar;
- said lower portion of said second curved guide bar disposed above said lower portion of said first curved guide bar;
- said flattened tube disposed below a lower surface of said platen and above said narrow supporting ledge at said closer ends of said first and second curved guide bars and formed into a Z-folded flattened tube at said further ends of said first and second curved guide bars;
- a perforator, said perforator perforating said compact, Z-folded flattened tube through six film layers and forming a perforation line;
- and
- a bag roller, said bag roller rolling said perforated compact flattened tube into a compact roll.