Opinions Matter

c/bookbinders

10

lucaslee•2d ago

Changed my mind on that $80 corner rounding punch

I always thought hand trimming corners was fine and a punch was a waste. Then I got a big order for 50 leather journals. After the tenth one, my hand was cramping and the cuts were getting sloppy. I bought the punch out of pure frustration. It saved me hours and made every corner look the same. Anyone have a good source for replacement blades for these things?

8

amy_murphy85•9d ago

A chat with my niece about my 'old books' changed my view

My 12 year old niece came over yesterday and saw me working on a leather journal. She said, 'It's cool you make things people can actually touch, not just look at on a screen.' I'd never thought of my work as a break from digital stuff before, but she's right. Do you find people appreciate the physical side of bookbinding more now?

4

perry.phoenix•10d ago

Question about using a bone folder on synthetic leather

Tried it on a vegan leather cover project last week and it left a weird, shiny streak. Anyone know a better burnishing tool for that material?

24

amy_adams13•12d ago

Serious question, has anyone else had a book spine crack after using a specific glue?

I bound a small journal with PVA glue from a new brand, and the spine split cleanly after two days of normal use. I think the glue was too brittle for the paper weight. What's your go-to flexible adhesive for heavier stock?

7

grace_white•12d ago

A customer asked me to bind a book with pages from three different paper mills

This happened last month at my shop in Portland. A man brought in a stack of sheets from Crane, Hahnemuhle, and some handmade stuff from a local mill. He wanted them all in one hardcover journal. I told him the different expansion rates would likely cause warping. He just said, 'I like the feel of the fight.' Has anyone else bound a book with that much paper variety? How did you handle the tension?

18

lindamartin•13d ago

Bought a $400 guillotine cutter and it's the only reason my cat still has a tail.

The thing is so sharp and precise that when he jumped on the table mid-cut, the blade dropped and cleanly sliced through a stack of paper exactly where his tail had been a second before, so I guess the investment paid off, but does anyone else have workshop safety tips for overly curious pets?

3

anna_fox7•15d ago

I switched from a bone folder to a Teflon folder for my leather work last month

I was working on a custom journal with some thin goat skin and kept seeing tiny marks from my bone folder. My friend in Seattle said to try a Teflon one, so I ordered a basic one for about $15. Now I use it for all my smooth leather projects and the creases are clean with no shine or scratches. Has anyone found a different tool that works better for delicate leather?

31

julia_miller24•15d ago

That week I had to rebind a whole set of 1890s law books by hand

The owner wanted them done in three days and I worked until 2 AM every night. My fingers were raw from sewing the sections with linen thread. Has anyone else had a client give you a totally crazy deadline?

19

ruby_rivera76•15d ago

My mentor in Portland told me my headbands were too tight for a proper rounding job

I was using a 3mm leather strip for the backing, and she pointed out it was crushing the signatures instead of shaping them. Now I use a 1.5mm strip and pre-shape the spine for a full day before I even start rounding. Has anyone else had a specific tool or material thickness change their whole process?

27

park.abby•16d ago

My new bone folder snapped clean in half on a simple fold

It was a Teflon one I bought online, and it just gave out while I was creasing some 80gsm paper. I'm torn between blaming the tool or my own pressure. Has anyone else had a bone folder fail like this?

11

the_tessa•17d ago

I hit 50 books bound with only PVA glue and I'm not switching

Everyone says you need animal glue for a proper rounded spine, but I just finished my 50th book using only PVA. I started this project three years ago, and every single one of them still opens flat and feels solid. I see people online saying PVA is too stiff, but I think it's about how you apply it and let it set. I use a specific brand, Lineco Neutral pH Adhesive, and I work the spine carefully before it dries. Has anyone else stuck with PVA for a long run of books and had them hold up?

20

tessa_clark74•17d ago

Found a 1920s book of poems in a box of junk at a yard sale last weekend

I was driving through a small town in Vermont and saw a yard sale sign. The box was full of old paperbacks and cookbooks, but this one leather book was at the bottom. The spine was gone and the pages were loose, but the marbled endpapers were still bright. I paid two dollars for it. When I got home, I saw it was a book of love poems from 1923, printed by a small press that's not around anymore. The sewing was totally shot, but the paper is in good shape for its age. I'm thinking of doing a full rebind to save it. Has anyone here worked on a project like this from that time period? I'm not sure if I should try to match the old style or do something new.

11

haydenbutler•17d ago

Glue brush vs. roller for spine work... the roller wins for me every time

I know a lot of binders swear by a good glue brush for applying adhesive to spines, saying it gives more control. I used to be in that camp too, especially after a workshop in Austin where the teacher said brushes were 'the only proper way'. But after a project last month where I had to rebind a set of 12 old ledgers, I switched to a small foam roller on a whim. The difference was night and day. The roller put down a perfectly even, thin layer in half the time, with no brush hairs getting stuck or streaks forming. I used a 4-inch foam roller from the hardware store that cost about $3, and it made the whole process so much cleaner. I don't think I'll go back to a brush for spine glue unless it's a tiny, one-off repair. Has anyone else made this switch and found the same thing, or am I missing some downside to the roller method?

8

olivia_allen•18d ago

Shoutout to the old book press at the library workshop in Springfield

I was using a cheap press from a craft store for a while, but then I tried the big cast iron one at the library. The weight and even pressure from the old press gave me a way flatter, tighter text block on my last project. Has anyone found a good modern press that works as well without costing a fortune?

10

blakem13•20d ago

Had to choose between a Japanese screw punch and an awl for punching signatures on a 300-page cookbook project.

I was binding a family cookbook, about 300 pages on decent paper. My old awl was getting dull and making rough holes. A friend who does a lot of leatherwork swore by his Japanese screw punch for clean, consistent holes, but it's a pricier tool. I went with the screw punch, and honestly, the difference was huge. The holes were so clean and even, it made sewing way smoother. But now I'm curious, for those of you who do a lot of text blocks, what's your go-to punching method for bigger projects? Is the awl good enough if you keep it sharp, or is an upgrade worth it?

7

simon113•20d ago

Warning: I had to pick between a full leather binding or a cloth spine for a 500 page art book

A client brought me a huge, heavy art book and wanted it rebound. The choice was a full leather cover, which looks classic but is pricey, or saving some cost with a cloth spine and leather corners. I went with the full leather because the book was so thick, I thought it needed the extra strength and the client wanted it to last. I used a 3 oz goat skin and sewed the signatures on linen tapes. It took me about two full days of work. The finished book feels solid and the leather molds to the shape nicely, but man, it was a lot of hand stitching. Has anyone else done a big book like this and found a better way to handle the spine weight?

2

umamartin•21d ago

Vent: My friend swore by using a hair straightener to fix warped book boards

I thought she was nuts, but after a warped board ruined a custom order last month, I gave it a shot on some scrap. Set it to low heat, pressed for about 10 seconds with parchment paper in between, and the board actually flattened out perfectly. Now I keep my old straightener in the workshop just for this. Anyone have other weird tools they use for book repair?

9

keithhall•21d ago

A simple headband repair turned into a two-day project

I was fixing a 1908 edition of 'The Wind in the Willows' for a client, and the headband was completely gone. I thought I could just stitch a new one on in an hour. The problem was matching the exact shade of faded green silk to the original cover. I must have mixed dyes six times before I got it close enough, and the whole thing took almost 16 hours over two days. Has anyone else had a simple color match eat up that much time?

16

leelewis•21d ago

Just realized I've cut over 2,000 sheets of book cloth by hand this year.

I was tallying up my project notes and that number hit me, making me wonder if anyone else has a favorite tool or trick for keeping those long cuts perfectly straight.

0

shaneb30•22d ago

Serious question, did you ever try to glue a paperback back together instead of rebinding it?

Had a 1970s sci-fi novel with a cracked spine, and I tried book glue from the craft store first. It held for about two weeks before it split again, right along the old fold. Anyone have a better fix for a quick repair that actually lasts?

11

the_ivan•25d ago

Finally caved and bought a proper lying press

I've been using a big woodworking vise with homemade boards for backing off books for years. Last month I dropped about $350 on a real cast iron lying press from a tool shop in Portland. The first time I used it on a thick leather binding, the difference was huge. The even pressure across the whole book made the spine so much cleaner. Anyone have tips for keeping the screw threads from rusting?

10

lilyr25•27d ago

Stopped by the old library in Springfield and saw something that got me thinking

I was in Springfield last week and went to the main library, the one that's been there since the 50s. I wandered into the repair room in the back, which they still have, and saw the librarian using a hot glue gun on a kid's board book. It just hit me how much has changed. When I first learned, we were taught to never use hot glue on anything you wanted to last more than a year, it gets brittle and yellow. But she said it's all they have time and money for now, and they just re-buy the popular books when they fall apart. It made me a little sad for the old ways of doing things right, with proper thread and glue. Made me appreciate taking the time on my own projects even more. Has anyone else seen this kind of shift in how places fix books now?

8

young.mia•28d ago

Shoutout to my old teacher who said to always use a bone folder on the first fold

I thought my steel ruler was fine for a decade, but my last project's signatures were a mess until I finally listened. Anyone have a favorite brand they swear by?

28

lee.kelly•1mo ago

Just realized fixing books with my dad was our bonding time

When I was a kid, my dad and I would repair old novels from the thrift store. I thought we were just saving money, but it was how we talked and connected. Now that I bind books for a living, I see those sessions taught me patience and care. It hits different knowing those moments built our relationship. Bookbinding isn't just a trade, it's a way to grow close with family.

8

irisjenkins•1mo ago

My Parrot Decided to Help Bind a Journal

I was finishing a leather cover for a friend's gift book. My bird cage was open, and my parrot loves to watch me work. He suddenly flew over and pecked at the wet glue on the spine. Before I could stop him, he had stuck several feathers into the adhesive. Now the book has a few blue feathers mixed into the binding. I had to explain this to my friend, and she thought it was hilarious. We agreed it makes the book one of a kind.