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Grex > Books > #6: Book Care, Repair, Preservation, and Binding | |
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kentn
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Book Care, Repair, Preservation, and Binding
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May 6 19:00 UTC 1994 |
This is an item devoted to the care, keeping, preservation, and
repair of books. Bookbinding is also fair game, as it applies to
the average home library. Heck, let's even discuss the care
and preservation practices of the larger public and private
libraries!
Ask your care/repair/binding questions and let's see if anyone
has knowledge and experience to share in that regard.
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| 48 responses total. |
rcurl
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response 1 of 48:
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May 6 20:53 UTC 1994 |
Who does bookbinding in and around Ann Arbor besides the yellow-pages
listings? ? For a while I knew someone that was learning, and I let her
practice on some of my books, which helped us both. Now I've accumulated
moure journals I'd like bound.
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davel
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response 2 of 48:
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May 7 00:50 UTC 1994 |
As I always have books whose bindings are failing, I'm interested in *simple*
(but effective) repair techniques. I've re-glued some, only to have the
glues prove too stiff; but more flexible adhesives haven't held.
I'm quite interested, abstractly, in technique in the sense of what a
professional would do to repair the thing in an attractive way. But I really
do value books almost entirely for their content, so pretty much anything
that works is all right with me.
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danr
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response 3 of 48:
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May 7 12:20 UTC 1994 |
I also have a perfect-bound book that I'd like to reglue. I tried
rubber cement, but that didn't work. Anyone know what kind of glue
they use to bind paperbacks and where you can get it?
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rcurl
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response 4 of 48:
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May 7 19:16 UTC 1994 |
My Reader's Digest _Fix-It-Yourself-Manual_ has four pages on Bookbinding!
Here's what it says about glues:
"Two types of adhesives are used for book repair, quick-drying
while (polyvinyl acetate) glue, and slower drying flour paste.
White glue is used where permanent flexibility is desired.
Before using, thin with water until glue dripped from a brush
back into container blends into the surface smoothly. Flour
paste is used where flexibility is not required. To make it,
add 1/4 teaspoon flour to 1-1/2 teaspoon water, stir until
smooth, then cook to consistency of thin cream sauce. Use
enriched wheat flour of fine pasty grade. Commercial wallpaper
paste may be substituted."
(I wonder how wallpaper paste does for fine pastry.)
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kentn
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response 5 of 48:
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May 13 01:51 UTC 1994 |
Here's an excerpt from "The Craft of Bookbinding" by Manly Banister,
(1975), pages 16-17.
"ADHESIVES...Ground hide glue is the traditional book adhesive.
Ground animal glue, which is similar, can also be used. Also,
liquid hide glue. These glues are used in two forms: hard glue
and flexible glue...Polyvinyl acetate glue (white glue) is
also satisfactory for use on the back of a book, as it dries
flexible. It is available practically everywhere in the U.S.
under the trade-name Elmer's Glue-All."
"Such items as bookbinders' cake flexible glue, and some
foreign-made resin glues for single sheet binding are available
from professional bookbinding supply houses."
"Dried ground glue must be heated for use. This is the best
glue for covering with book cloth, paper, etc...."
"PASTE. Non-warping mounting pastes, made without water,
are available commerically. They are supplied to the book-
binding and picture-framing trades. Just as good, however, is
ordinary flour paste made according to the formula given on
page 157. Water paste warps, however, and special treatment
is needed when it is used."
Moving back to the end of the book, page 157 talks more about glues...
"GLUE. Hot glue is available in the form of beads or crystals
and it is called "ground glue." The best is hide glue...
Soak 4 oz. by weight...of dry glue in 4 fluid ounces...of
water for several hours until entirely soaked up by the glue.
Stir up the gelatinous cake and add a similar quantity more of
water." [the rest of the heating process, etc. is edited out
here; just wanted to give an idea of the quantities involved]
"...This glue is called hard glue, because it hardens on setting
and, if bent, will crack or break. You can make your own
flexible glue from the same ground glue as above. When cooked,
add 4 tablespoonfuls of glycerin to the given amount and stir
it in well..."
"...If you are using cold, liquid hide glue, pour some into a
separate container and andd 1/2 to 1 teaspoonful of glycerin
for each fluid ounce...of glue and stir it in thoroughly. The
more glycerin you use, the more flexible the glue..."
from page 158...
"MENDING PASTE FOR BOOK REPAIR. Take 1 tablespoonful of rice
flour, 2 tablspoonfuls of corn starch, 1/2 teaspoonful of alum.
Stir 3 fluid ounces...of water into the mixture..."
"Warm the mixture in a pan over a slow heat with constant
stirring until it thickens into a pasty mass. It is not necessary
to cook the paste after it has thickened. Remove from the heat,
stir in a few drops of oil of cloves, and transfer to a clean,
scalded glass jar for future use. Cool before using."
That last paste is mentioned for use in repairing torn pages.
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kentn
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response 6 of 48:
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May 17 23:26 UTC 1994 |
BTW, most of the ellipses in :5 above indicate the remove of
parenthesized metric equivalent measurements. I was just too lazy to
type all those numbers...).
Does anyone know where the hide glue mentioned in :5 may be found in
Ann Arbor? Or via mail order? I recall, from my days as a printer,
that we used to order binding paste (similar I imagine to the "mending
paste" in :5) from the H.B. Fuller Co. Don't know what other adhesives
they might sell, or if they'd sell to individuals, though.
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rcurl
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response 7 of 48:
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May 18 05:36 UTC 1994 |
You can get "Liquid Hide Glue", cat # 942003 (8 oz, $5.25) from
Woodworking Unlimited, 3931 Image Drive, Dayton OH 45414-2591
(1-800-543-7586). That said - try any supply house for woodworkers.
Maybe even Fingerle's!
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kentn
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response 8 of 48:
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May 18 16:38 UTC 1994 |
Thanks!
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lori
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response 9 of 48:
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Jun 13 14:18 UTC 1994 |
What is the advantage of hide glue over the polyvinyl acetate? Is it
vulnerable to fungus the way rice starch is? I have always used PVA in my
repairs and wonder if all the cooking, etc. is worth the time and effort.
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rcurl
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response 10 of 48:
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Jun 13 18:33 UTC 1994 |
Authenticity! There was not always PVA. Before PVA, hides!
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kentn
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response 11 of 48:
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Jun 13 20:04 UTC 1994 |
From what I've read, there doesn't seem to be much preference either
way. Authenticity for hide glue, as Rane says, and convenience for
PVA I suppose are the determining factors. Both are supposed to turn
out a good binding.
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rcurl
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response 12 of 48:
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Jun 15 14:07 UTC 1994 |
On Monday the sanitary sewer backed up into my basement, 16 inches deep.
The low shelf of bookcases went under, and I have a pile of books soaked
in shit. Many are from a speciality collection and, if not rare, not
easily replaced. My extensive speciality postcard collection got it
too. What should I do? I have to act fast, as rot sets in today.
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gerund
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response 13 of 48:
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Jun 15 15:16 UTC 1994 |
Cry.
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kentn
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response 14 of 48:
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Jun 15 15:52 UTC 1994 |
Freeze them until you can figure out what to do? Spray them with
disinfectant to fend off rot until you can figure out what to do?
Call the special collections people at the UM library and ask them
what to do? I don't know. This sounds disastrous and probably more
than one person can handle...I'd cry, too.
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alfee
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response 15 of 48:
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Jun 15 21:17 UTC 1994 |
Call the special collections dept, and FAST. Something on a smaller scale
happened to me last summer; the main drain to the house backed up and
dishwater, shower water, and minimal sewage flooded the whole house (only
one story) about one and a half inches. I used a hairdryer to assist the
few books I had stacked on the floor waiting for shelf space. Please
call special collections, and try a rare bookseller too who specializes
in preservation and restoration. Let us know what happens! I weep on
your behalf.
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mwarner
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response 16 of 48:
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Jun 15 21:56 UTC 1994 |
Rane, the book restoration specialist at the Bentley Library (can't recall
his name) does field calls from the public on occasions. He is Mr. Wizard.
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carl
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response 17 of 48:
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Jun 16 00:08 UTC 1994 |
You might want to try the Ann Arbor Public Library too. I think
they have an information line, and if not, they probably have at
least one "book rescuer."
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rcurl
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response 18 of 48:
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Jun 16 05:02 UTC 1994 |
I started with the AAPL, who directed me to Shannon Zachery, a
book conservator at the UM. She said set the books fanned on their
heads in a cool dry place with a fan. The only cool place we have
is the basement (now at least cleaned up), but it isn't dry yet.
Our tiny dehumidifier isn't enough, and we can't start the central
air until the system is checked out. I think I will freeze some.
I was told to not use disinfectant, so I'm working with these
"contaminated books" barehanded (as you can't fan wet books in gloves).
Progress is being made, but we had to cancel a two week trip that
we had planned to leave on tomorrow. We have cried.
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kentn
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response 19 of 48:
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Jun 16 05:47 UTC 1994 |
I hope your tetanus shot is up to date...good luck. Did they give
any advice about removing the smell?
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rcurl
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response 20 of 48:
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Jun 17 15:07 UTC 1994 |
No, no advice on removing the smell. Got the central air running, and
it is taking out a couple of gallons of water an hour. Things are drying.
One gets used to the smell 8={. Some books are unrecoverable - those
printed on highly sized paper. These just glue themselves into a solid
block, and even soaking for a couple of days doesn't separate the pages.
This is also a problem with pictures printed on glossy stock - had to
separate those, and interleave paper towel. Even then, those I go to
late had glued themselves to the facing page, so there was some damage.
I would not do this for a living.
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kentn
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response 21 of 48:
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Jun 17 20:27 UTC 1994 |
In hand papermaking (tray-processed), wet sheets of paper are placed
between pieces of felt. Don't know if that's of use to you given all
the pieces of paper you need to keep separated, though. You'd not
want a felt that was dyed...and I suppose for this case, it shouldn't
be very thick or it might distort the binding. If you had any
particularly valuable books that you wanted to invest the time and
effort in rescuing you could break the binding and separate all the
sections into individual pages. For papermaking, a stack of wet
paper separated by felt pieces is pressed down to keep the paper
flat and to help remove excess water. Your concern would not be with
excess water (unless the page has turned to pulp) but with warping
and wrinkling the page. It wouldn't be fun, and if any book was
extremely valuable, I imagine you'd want to take it to a professional
restorer, anyway.
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rcurl
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response 22 of 48:
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Jun 18 05:30 UTC 1994 |
Papermaking practices are not entirely appropriate here, as some of this
"paper" is a far cry from just paper. It has pigments and fillers and
especially, sizing, to make it glossy. That's, like, *glue*. I'd be
inclined to do as suggested - just take the books apart, and rebind later
- if I had an army of assistants. I must, however, do what is most
expedient, to do an acceptable job in the time available. I haven't
mentioned my specialty postcard collection yet - more wet paper, but they
were in plastic card holder pages, so I can't pull wet cards out. I'm
slicing them apart with a paper shear, washing the cards, and drying them
in a photo-dryer. I wonder why I'm doing it. The cards don't even come out
close to "new" - and they lose all their stamps. But I couldn't just chuck
them, in part because I'm on summer break (and, just what I wanted to
do....not).
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kentn
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response 23 of 48:
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Jun 18 18:14 UTC 1994 |
It's a disaster, to be sure...
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alfee
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response 24 of 48:
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Jun 18 20:21 UTC 1994 |
Rane, please be careful about freezing the books. Water expands when it
freezes, and freezing water within paper will destroy the delicate fiber
bonds, especially in old paper. Coated papers, however, will not be as
unreceptive to freezing--it may help prevent the breakdown until you can
manually separate the pages. To unfreeze, DO NOT MICROWAVE--the rapidity
of thawing will ruin the paper. Put the books pn blotters (paper towels)
and thaw at room temp.
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