a continuously operating machine is provided for wrapping articles with a heat shrinkable plastic film automatically and sequentially . articles are continuously , translated along a horizontal pathway . at a first station , articles are longitudinally circumferentially tubularly overwrapped and sealed . at a next succeeding station , the so overwrapped articles are cross sealed and separated . at a last succeeding station , the resulting wrapped articles are subjected to thermal film shrinking . the cross sealing and separating brings a continuously rotating heated knife and an opposed cross bar into a predetermined registration with the interspatial region between succeeding articles . the registration time duration can be regulated and increased to values substantially in excess of the momentary contact time existing in normal rotation and tangential point contact .