Highlights

The Art of Bookbinding

Drawing-In And Pressing

This entry is part 19 of 20 in the series The Art of Bookbinding (Joseph W. Zaehnsdorf, 3rd Edt, 1897)

The boards having been squared, they are to be attached to the book by lacing the ends of the cord through holes made in the board. The boards are to be laid on the book with their backs in the groove and level with the head; they must then be marked either with a lead pencil or the point of a bodkin exactly in a line with the slips, about half an inch down the board. On a piece of the wood the mill board is placed, and holes are pierced by hammering a short bodkin through on the line made, at a distance from the edge in accordance with the size of the book. About half an inch away from the back is the right distance for an octavo. The board is then to be turned over, and a second hole made about half an inch away from the first ones. The boards having been holed, the slips must be scraped, pasted slightly, and tapered or pointed. Draw them tightly through the hold first made and back through the second. Tap them slightly when the board is down to prevent them from slipping and getting loose. When the cords are drawn through, cut the ends close to the board with a knife, and make the board close on the slips and hold them tight. The slips should be well and carefully hammered, as any projection will be seen with great distinctness when the book is covered. The hammer must be held perfectly even, for the slips will be cut by the edge of it used carelessly. Continue reading →

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Rounding & Backing

This entry is part 17 of 20 in the series The Art of Bookbinding (Joseph W. Zaehnsdorf, 3rd Edt, 1897)

Rounding

The word “rounding” applies to the back of the book, and is preliminary to backing. In rounding the back, the book is to be laid on the press before the workman with the foredge towards him; the book is then to be held with the left hand by placing the thumb on the foredge and finders on the top of the book pointing towards the back, so that by drawing the fingers towards the thumb, or by pressing fingers and thumb together, the back is drawn towards the workman at an angle. In this position the back is struck with the face of the hammer, beginning in the center, still drawing the back over with the left hand. The book is ten to be turned over, and e other side treated in the same way, and continually changed or turned from one side to the other until it has its proper form, which should be a part of a circle. When sufficiently rounded, it should be examined to see if one side be perfectly level with the other, by holding the book up and glancing down its back, and gently tapping the places where uneven, until it is perfectly true or uniform. Continue reading →

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Putting on the End Papers

This entry is part 15 of 20 in the series The Art of Bookbinding (Joseph W. Zaehnsdorf, 3rd Edt, 1897)

Two single leaves of white paper, some what thicker than the paper used for making the ends, are to be cut, one for each side of the book. The end papers are to be laid down on a board, or on a piece of paper on the press to keep them clean, with the pasted or made side uppermost, the single leaves on the top. They should then be fanned out evenly to a proper width, about a quarter of an inch for an 8vo., a piece of waste paper put on the top, and their edges pasted. Continue reading →

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Paste Paper and Pasting UP

This entry is part 14 of 20 in the series The Art of Bookbinding (Joseph W. Zaehnsdorf, 3rd Edt, 1897)

Coloured Paste Paper

This kind the binder can easily make for himself. Some colour should be mixed with past and a little soap, until it is a little thicker than cream. It should then be spread upon two sheets of paper with a past brush. The sheets must then be laid together with their coloured surfaces facing each other, and when separated they will have a curious wavy pattern on them. The paper should then be hung up to dry on a string stretched across the room, and when dry glazed with a hot iron. A great deal of it is used in Germany for covering books. Green, reds, and blues have a very good effect. There are many other kinds of paper that may be used, but the above five different varieties will give a very good idea and serve as points to work from. The many bookbinders’ material dealers send out pattern books, and in them some hundreds of patterns are to be found. Continue reading →

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Cobb Paper, Surface Paper and Marbled Paper

This entry is part 13 of 20 in the series The Art of Bookbinding (Joseph W. Zaehnsdorf, 3rd Edt, 1897)

End Papers

The end papers should always be made, this is, the coloured paper pasted to a white one; the style of binding must decide what kind of ends are to be made, that is, the coloured paper pasted to a white one; the style of binding must decide what kind of ends are to be used. I give a slight idea of the kinds of papers used and the method of making them. Continue reading →

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Book Binding Wire Equipment

This entry is part 12 of 20 in the series The Art of Bookbinding (Joseph W. Zaehnsdorf, 3rd Edt, 1897)

However simple it may appear in description to sew a book, it requires great judgment to keep down the swelling of the book to the proper amount necessary to form a good backing groove and no more. In order to do this, the sheets must from time to time be gently tapped down with a piece of wood or a heavy folding-stick, and great care must be observed to avoid drawing the fastening of the kettle stitch too tight, or the head and tail of the book will be thinner than the middle; this fault once committed has no remedy. If the sections are very thin, or in half sheets, they may, if the book is very thick, be sewn “two sheets on.” The needle is passed from the kettle stitch to the first band of the first sheet and out, then another sheet is placed on the top, and the needle inserted at the first band and brought out at band No. 2, the needle is again inserted in the first sheet and in at the second band and out at No. 3, thus treating the two sections as one; in this way it is obvious that only half as much thread will be in the back. Continue reading →

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Book Binding Sewing Bands

This entry is part 11 of 20 in the series The Art of Bookbinding (Joseph W. Zaehnsdorf, 3rd Edt, 1897)

Sewing Flexible Work

The “sewing press” consists of a bed, two screws, and a beam or cross bar, round which are fastened five or more cords, called lay cords. Five pieces of cord cut from the ball, in length, about four times the thickness of the book, are fastened to the lay cords by slip knots; the other ends being fastened to small pieces of metal called keys, by twisting the ends round twice and then a half hitch. The keys are then pressed through the slot in the bed of the “press,” and the beam screwed up rather tightly; but loose enough to allow the lay cords to move freely backwards or forwards. Having the book on the bed of the press with the back towards the sewer, a few sheets (better than only one) are laid against the cords, and they are arranged exactly to the marks made on the back of the sections. When quite true and perpendicular, they should be made tight by screwing the beam up. It will be better if the cords are a little to the right of the press, so that the sewer may get her or his left arm to rest better on the press. If when the press is tightened on of the cords is loose, as will sometimes happen, a pencil, folding-stick or other object slipped under the lay cord on the top of the beam will tighten the band sufficiently. Continue reading →

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Marking Up And Sawing In

This entry is part 10 of 20 in the series The Art of Bookbinding (Joseph W. Zaehnsdorf, 3rd Edt, 1897)

The books having been in the press a sufficient time, say for a night, they are taken out, and run through again (collated) to make sure that they are all correct. A book is then taken and knocked straight both head and back and put in the lying press between boards, projecting from them about 1/8 inch; some binders prefer cutting boards, I prefer pressing boards, and I should advise the use of them, as the whole can be knocked up together. They should be held between the fingers of each hand, and the back and head knocked alternately on the check of the press. The boards are then drawn back the required distance from the back of the book: the book and boards must now be held tightly with the left hand, and the whole carefully lowered into the press; the right hand regulating the screws, which should then be screwed up tightly. The book is now quite straight, and firmly fixed in the press, and we have to decide if it is to be sewn flexibly or not. If for flexible binding the book is not to be sewing in, but marked; the difference being, that with the latter the cord is outside the sheets; with the former the cord is embedded in the back, in the cut or groove made by the saw. We will take the flexible first, and suppose that the book before us in an ordinary 8vo volume, and that it is to cut all round.
The back should be divided into six equal portions, leaving the bottom, or tail, half an inch longer than the rest, simply because of a curious optical illusion, by which, if the spaces were all equal in width, the bottom one would appear to be the smallest, although accurately of the same width as the rest. This curious effect may be tested on any framed or mounted print. A square is now to be laid upon the back exactly to the marks, and marked pretty black with a lead pencil; the head and tail must now be sawn in to embed the chain of the kettle stitch, at a distance sufficient to prevent the thread being divided by accident in cutting. In flexible work great accuracy is absolutely necessary throughout the whole of the work, especially in the marking up, as the form of the bands will be visible when covered. It will be easily seen if the book has been knocked up straight by laying the square at the head when the book is in the press, and if it is not straight, it must be taken out and corrected. If the book is very small, as for instance a small prayer book, it is usually marked up for five bands, but only sewed on three; the other two being fastened on as false bands when the book is ready for covering. There would be no gain in strength by sewing a small book on fine bands. Continue reading →

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Collating, Book Plates, Maps and Interleaving

This entry is part 9 of 20 in the series The Art of Bookbinding (Joseph W. Zaehnsdorf, 3rd Edt, 1897)

In a great measure, the whole beauty of the inside work rests in properly collating the book, in guarding maps, and in placing the plates. When pasting in any single leaves or plates, a piece of waste paper should always be placed on the leaf or plate the required distance from the edge to be pasted, so that the leaf is pasted straight. It takes no longer to lay the plate down upon the edge of a board with paper on the plate, than it does to hold the plate in the left hand, and apply the paste with the right hand middle finder; by the former method a proper amount of paste is deposited evenly on the plate and it is pasted in straight line; by the latter method, it is pasted in some places thickly, and in some places none at all. I have often seen books with the plates fastened to the book nearly half way up to its foredge, and thus spoit, only through the slovenly way of pasting. After having placed th plates, the collator should go through them again when dry, to see if they adhere properly, and break or fold them over up to the pasting, with a folding stick, so that they will lie flat when the book is open. I must again call attention to colored plates. They should be looked to during the whole of binding, especially after pressing. The amount of gum that is put on the surface, which is very easily seen by the gloss, causes them to stick to the letter-press: should they so stick, do not try to tear them apart, but warm a polishing iron and pass it over the plate and letter-press, placing a piece of paper between the iron and the book to avoid dirt. The heat and moisture will soften the gum, and the surface can then be very easily separated. By rubbing a little powdered French chalk over the coloured plates before sticking them in, these ill effects will be avoided. Continue reading →

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Collating, Book Plates & Maps

This entry is part 8 of 20 in the series The Art of Bookbinding (Joseph W. Zaehnsdorf, 3rd Edt, 1897)

In a great measure, the whole beauty of the inside work rests in properly collating the book, in guarding maps, and in placing the plates. When pasting in any single leaves or plates, a piece of waste paper should always be placed on the leaf or plate the required distance from the edge to be pasted, so that the leaf is pasted straight. It takes no longer to lay the plate down upon the edge of a board with paper on the plate, than it does to hold the plate in the left hand, and apply the paste with the right hand middle finder; by the former method a proper amount of paste is deposited evenly on the plate and it is pasted in straight line; by the latter method, it is pasted in some places thickly, and in some places none at all. I have often seen books with the plates fastened to the book nearly half way up to its foredge, and thus spoit, only through the slovenly way of pasting. After having placed th plates, the collater should go through them again when dry, to see if they adhere properly, and break or fold them over up to the pasting, with a folding stick, so that they will lie flat when the book is open. I must again call attention to colored plates. They should be looked to during the whole of binding, especially after pressing. The amount of gum that is put on the surface, which is very easily seen by the gloss, causes them to stick to the letter-press: should they so stick, do not try to tear them apart, but warm a polishing iron and pass it over the plate and letter-press, placing a piece of paper between the iron and the book to avoid dirt. The heat and moisture will soften the gum, and the surface can then be very easily separated. By rubbing a little powdered French chalk over the coloured plates before sticking them in, these ill effects will be avoided. Continue reading →

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Book Plates & Maps

This entry is part 7 of 20 in the series The Art of Bookbinding (Joseph W. Zaehnsdorf, 3rd Edt, 1897)

Presuming that we have a book with half a dozen plates, the first thing after ascertaining that the letter-press is perfect, is to see that all the plates are there, by looking to the “List of Plates,” printed generally after the contents. The plates should then be squared or cut truly, using a sharp knife and straight edge. When the plates are printed on paper larger than the book, they must be cut down to the proper size, leaving a somewhat less margin at the back than there will be at the foreedge when the book is cut. Continue reading →

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Book Binding Machine for Rolling, Collating and Maps

This entry is part 6 of 20 in the series The Art of Bookbinding (Joseph W. Zaehnsdorf, 3rd Edt, 1897)

…himself, or of the individual who has the pleasure of applying his strength to turning the handle. I never pass or hear a rolling machine revolving very rapidly without having vividly brought to my mind a very serious accident that happened to my father. He was feeling for a flaw on one of the rollers, and whilst his hands were at the edge of the rollers the man turned the handle, drawing the whole hand between the cylinders. The accident cost him many months in the hospital, and he never regained complete use of his right hand. Great care must be used not to pass too many sheets through the machine at one time; the same applies to the regulating screw. The amount of damage that can be done to the paper by too heavy a pressure is astonishing, as the paper becomes quite brittle, and many perhaps even be cut as with a knife. Continue reading →

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Book Binding Machine, Gathering, Beating & Rolling

This entry is part 5 of 20 in the series The Art of Bookbinding (Joseph W. Zaehnsdorf, 3rd Edt, 1897)

The back may be damped with a sponge lightly charged with water, or perhaps a better method is to place the book or books in a press, screw up tightly, and soak the backs with thin paste, leaving them soaking for an hour or two; they will want repasting two or three times during the period; the whole of the paper, glue, and leather can then be easily scraped away with a blunt knife; a handful of shavings rubbed over the back will make it quite clean, and no difficulty will be met with if the sections are taken apart while damp. He sections must, as pulled, as pulled, be placed evenly one on the other, as the paper at back retains sufficient glue to cause them to stick together if laid across one another. The whole must then be left to dry. When dry the groove should be knocked down on a flat surface and for this the knocking-down iron screwed up in the lying press is perhaps the best thing to use. The groove is the projecting part of the book close to the back, caused by the backing, and is the groove for the back edge of the mill-board to work in by a hinge; this hinge is technically called the “joint.” Continue reading →

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