c/bookbinders

Pro tip: Stop using PVA glue for everything and try paste

I overheard a guy at a meetup in Columbus say he only uses PVA because it's faster and easier. But I've been binding on and off for 8 years and I think paste gives you way more control for rounding and backing. PVA dries too stiff and I've had spines crack on me after a few years. Has anyone else switched back to paste for certain steps or am I alone on this?

2 comments

ivancoleman•14d ago

Thread tension nearly ruined a fine binding today

I was in my workshop this afternoon working on a leather-bound restoration of a 1920s novel. About halfway through sewing the signatures, I noticed the thread was pulling too tight and starting to pucker the paper. It made me stop and check my tension settings on the sewing frame. Turns out I had the thread wrapped around the peg twice by accident. Has anyone else had a similar issue with tension throwing off their spine alignment during long runs?

2 comments

leebrown•17d ago

Hand sewing vs. machine sewing for headbands...

I learned bookbinding in the late 90s and always did my headbands by hand... took forever but felt right. A few years ago I got a job at a bindery in Cleveland and they used a machine for everything. Sure it's faster but those machine headbands just don't have the same shape or hold up as long in my experience. Anyone else find the hand sewn ones last longer on books that get read a lot?

2 comments

noah_black•18d ago

Tried that 'no paste' binding method I saw on YouTube and my book fell apart in 3 days

I figured I'd save some time on a quick paperback repair, you know, a little test run. Watched this guy who swore by just using glue on the spine directly, no paste for the endpapers or anything. Sounded too good to be true (and it was). By day three the text block just slid right out of the covers. I'm out a nice cover board and a weekend afternoon. Has anyone else fallen for one of those 'shortcut' binding tricks that just don't hold up?

2 comments

barbara429•18d ago

The customer who wanted his Bible rebound with duct tape

Had a guy come into my shop about 2 years ago with a family Bible that was falling apart. The spine was completely gone and pages were scattered everywhere. He said he wanted it fixed but insisted I use silver duct tape because that's what his grandpa used. Took me 20 minutes to talk him into proper bookbinding cloth instead. In the end he agreed to a basic cloth rebind for $85. He came back a month later to pick it up and admitted the cloth looked way better. Has anyone else had customers insist on using the wrong materials for a repair?

2 comments

adams82•18d ago

Can we talk about using PVA glue for every bind?

I used to reach for PVA on every single project, like it was the only option. Last month I switched to a wheat paste mix for a leather-bound journal and the flexibility is way better. Anyone else think PVA gets pushed too hard for everything?

2 comments

charles_henderson•19d ago

Dropped $120 on a vintage finishing press from an estate sale and it was a total win

I got it home, cleaned it up with some vinegar and steel wool, and it works perfectly for gluing up text blocks. Way smoother than my cheap new press that kept wobbling. Did I just get lucky or do you all prefer old gear too?

2 comments

amy302•19d ago

My bone folder split after 6 years and I spent 3 hours googling the best new one instead of just buying a cheap replacement at the craft store down the street

I was halfway through rounding the spine on a leather journal for a commission last Tuesday when my trusty Teflon bone folder just cracked right down the middle, and instead of driving 10 minutes to Michael's for a $8 plastic one, I wasted a whole evening reading reviews about Japanese vs. French bone folders and now I'm behind on my deadline, has anyone else gotten stuck in analysis paralysis over something this small?

2 comments

gonzalez.phoenix•20d ago

Had a perfect binding day on Saturday with zero mess ups

I finally got a whole stack of 5 books done in one day without any glue drips or crooked spines. Even the French grooves came out clean on every single one. Has anyone else had those days where everything just clicks?

3 comments

nora735•20d ago

Pro tip: Don't believe the hype about cheap book presses

I bought a $40 book press off Amazon last month and it looked fine at first, but after a few uses the wood started warping and the screws stripped out completely. Tried pressing a 400 page text block and the whole thing wobbled so bad I ruined the spine. Anyone else have luck with a budget option or do I just need to save up for a real one?

2 comments

eric359•22d ago

Accidentally used wax thread for a Coptic stitch...

Grabbed the wrong spool from my drawer last week and didn't realize until I was three sections in. That stuff just does not hold a knot. The whole spine came loose after I cut the tails. Learned my lesson - gotta keep my waxed and unwaxed thread in separate boxes now. Anyone else mix up their thread and ruin a project?

2 comments

the_gray•22d ago

PSA: That famous bookbinding museum in NYC is way overhyped

I finally went to the Morgan Library and Museum last month to see their bookbinding exhibits. Everyone online talks about it like it's the holy grail for binders. But honestly? I felt let down. Most of the displayed bindings are behind thick glass and you can't get close enough to see the sewing structures or the grain of the leather. The lighting is so dim you can barely make out the tooling details on the spines. They show a lot of rare books but the actual craft details that matter to us are hidden. I get that they need to protect the items but maybe a community like this should start sharing better resources for studying bindings up close. Has anyone else felt this way about a famous collection they visited?

2 comments

hugo37•22d ago

Took me 3 months to figure out grain direction on book cloth

I kept getting these weird puckers on my spines. Finally realized I was cutting the book cloth with the grain going the wrong way. Switched to running the grain parallel to the spine and all those wrinkles disappeared overnight. Anyone else fight with this longer than they'd like to admit?

2 comments

burns.brooke•24d ago

Burned my fingers on a hot glue gun at the Boston Bindery meetup

I was at the Boston Bindery meetup last Saturday and watched someone demo a technique for spine rounding using a hammer. I got so into it I grabbed my glue gun without checking the stand and burned my index finger. Now I always keep a wet rag nearby when I'm working with hot materials. Anyone else had a workspace accident that made you change your setup?

2 comments

tyler822•24d ago

Found a 1980s bookbinding manual at a garage sale for $3

Went to this estate sale over on Maple Ave last Saturday morning, nothing special really. But buried under a pile of old cookbooks I found this beat up copy of "Hand Bookbinding Today" from 1985. The spine is totally gone and the cover's stained but the inside diagrams are gold. There's this whole section on making your own book cloth from scratch with specific measurements and glue ratios. I've been doing this for like 4 years now but never seen anyone break down the process that way. Has anyone else come across old manuals that taught you a technique you never would've found online?

2 comments

nathanking•25d ago

Wasted $90 on a cheap guillotine cutter last fall. Don't be me.

I needed a paper cutter for trimming text blocks and went with a $90 guillotine off Amazon. Thing couldn't even cut through 20 pages of 80gsm without pulling the paper sideways. The blade dulled after maybe 30 cuts and started leaving ragged edges. I fought with it for two months before tossing it in the trash. Finally broke down and got a used Dahle 548 from an office supply place for $250. Works perfect every time. Anybody else get burned on a cheap cutter that just made work harder?

2 comments

patricia_wright•25d ago

I used to think PVA glue was always worse than wheat paste. Switched on a rebind job last month and now I'm not so sure.

Been doing this 6 years now and always swore by wheat paste for any repair work. Felt like PVA was just for cheap projects or beginners. Then I had to rebind a 1920s poetry collection for a library in Columbus and the pages were just too brittle. Wheat paste kept causing the paper to ripple. Gave up and used PVA on a test page and it laid flat as a board. No distortion at all. Guy at the library said they use PVA for fragile paper all the time. Now I'm wondering how many books I've made worse over the years by sticking to 'the right way'. Anyone else changed their glue habits after a bad experience?

2 comments

schmidt.blake•26d ago

Spent 3 hours hunting for a grain direction I marked wrong on a stack of 50 pages

I was trying to figure out why my fore-edge was curling after sewing, and it turned out I had mixed up the grain on a whole signature from last week. Has anyone else wasted a full afternoon over one little marking mistake?

2 comments

seth_nguyen•27d ago

Bought a $40 grain mill for bookbinding glue and thought it was overpriced nonsense

Last month I saw folks online talking about using a grain mill to cook wheat paste for bookbinding. I figured it was just another fancy tool people waste cash on. But after ruining 3 batches of paste on my stove, I grabbed one from a kitchen supply shop in Denver for 40 bucks. The temperature control is way more steady and my paste comes out smooth every single time now. No more lumps or burning on the bottom of the pot. I'm still not sure it's worth it for small batches though. Has anyone else tried this or found a better way to get even heat?.

2 comments

hart.zara•29d ago

PSA: Cheap PVA glue cracked my spine after 6 months

I used Elmer's on my first three journals. The hinges started cracking around month 4. Switched to lineco PVA and the difference is huge - way more flexible. Anyone else deal with glue failures down the road?

2 comments

phoenixp30•1mo ago

Took me 3 hours to fix a warped spine on an old encyclopedia set

I was rebacking a set of 1950s encyclopedias for a library in Portland and the spine cloth kept bubbling up no matter what I did. Thought it was my glue mix but it turned out the book board itself had a slight curve I missed. Has anyone else run into hidden warping like that and found a quick way to check for it before starting?

2 comments

avery721•1mo ago

I switched from using a bone folder to a Teflon folder for my leather covers last year

I used to think the bone gave a better crease, but the Teflon one doesn't leave any marks on the leather. Has anyone else made a switch like this and stuck with it?

2 comments

miller.paul•1mo ago

Just finished my 100th book repair, and the number feels weird

I started a log when I opened my shop three years ago. This morning, I glued the spine on a 1950s cookbook, and that was number 100. On one hand, it's a solid milestone that shows I'm building something real. On the other, it feels like I should have done way more by now. Has anyone else hit a round number that made you question your pace?

2 comments

mark_fisher48•1mo ago

A customer in Portland once handed me a book and said, 'The spine is broken, but the story is still good.'

It made me think about how we're really just fixing the vessel, not the words inside, and I've approached every repair with a bit more care since that rainy Tuesday afternoon.

2 comments

bailey.sandra•1mo ago

PSA: The local library's book sale in Portland showed me something about modern covers

Three years ago, I bought a stack of old hardbacks there for rebinding practice. Last month, I went back and saw a clear change. The newer donated books had covers that felt thin and flimsy, almost like thick paper. I tried to fix a split spine on one last week, and the cover material just tore. Has anyone else had trouble working with these newer, cheaper cover stocks?

3 comments