DOI issue:
The International Studio (March, 1908)
DOI article:Practical bookbinding, [6]
DOI Page / Citation link:https://doi.org/10.11588/diglit.28254#0405
Practical Bookbinding
leather and mar the tooling). Raise it up with one
hand and with the other smooth it firmly into the
joint and down on the cover. Cover the joint with
a tough piece of paper, and with thumb nail and
finger press and rub the joint firmly; then rub
down the rest of it (through paper) with a straight-
edge folder. Air bubbles and wrinkles in the paper
must be smoothed out as they appear. Great per-
sistency in rubbing the paper into the joint must
be used, so it will adhere at every point; else, when
it is finally dry and the back is shut, the dreaded
“pencil-case” will appear somewhere in the joint.
This is simply a part of the end-paper which has
not “stuck.” By careful preliminary rubbing of
paste into the joint and painstaking rubbing from
time to time after the paper is pasted down, this
accident will not happen. After one end-paper is
pasted down, I advise the amateur to let it dry at
least one-half day before doing the other. Should
the end-paper, after pasting down, still overlap the
leather too much at any point, it should be cut to
proper size immediately, using a straight-edge and
a very sharp knife, being careful not to cut through
the leather.
Polishing and crushing : After the book has been
tooled both inside and out and on the back, it must
be polished and crushed. Both of these operations
are rather lengthy ones.
Polishing Plates: The usual material from which
polishing plates are made is copper or brass about
one-fourth inch thick, and either nickeled or silver
plated. One pair of plates of good size, say 9 by 12,
will answer the purpose of the average worker. It
is, of course, more convenient to have plates of
various sizes, but they are somewhat expensive.
I am using a pair of plates made of aluminum.
These plates have the advantage of being very
much lighter in weight, but they also have the dis-
advantage of not retaining the heat as the more
dense metal does. For amateur use, however,
where only one book at a time is being crushed,
they do very well. Aluminum becomes easily tar-
nished, so it is necessary to have them plated. I
have succeeded in having a pair nickel-plated, but
it seems rather difficult to have this done. (Alumi-
num plates cost much less than of brass, copper,
etc.)
The polishing is done with either one of the two
polishing irons which are in stock, each portion of
the cover being gone over with a polisher which is
somewhat hotter than the finishing tools themselves,
not too much pressure being used during the
operation. The polish is produced with the polisher
and not with the polishing plates.
After the book has been given the gloss which
is desired, it goes through the operation of crush-
ing. In order to do this successfully and evenly, a
pair of metal plates are heated on the stove, the
degree of heat being about that used in the finish-
ing tools. Two thin polishing tins are also heated,
one being placed inside each cover, with perhaps
one thickness of clean blotting paper between the
tin and the sections. Great care must be taken
to have both the blotting paper and the tin go well
down into the joint of the book. The tins being
in place, the book is closed and laid on one of the
hot plates, the other being placed on top of it.
The book and plates are now put in the press. To
facilitate handling the hot plates and book, I find it
well to place a thin board (one-quarter inch thick)
outside each plate. Transfer the whole (holding
them firmly so no disarrangement may take place)
to the press, which is then screwed down securely
until a somewhat firm pressure is exerted on the
book. It is much better to have too little pressure
than too much, and it is well to remember that a
very moderate pressure, combined with the heat
of the plates, exerts a very great influence on the
soft leather. My own method is to have the plates
only moderately hot, bringing a reasonable amount
XLI
leather and mar the tooling). Raise it up with one
hand and with the other smooth it firmly into the
joint and down on the cover. Cover the joint with
a tough piece of paper, and with thumb nail and
finger press and rub the joint firmly; then rub
down the rest of it (through paper) with a straight-
edge folder. Air bubbles and wrinkles in the paper
must be smoothed out as they appear. Great per-
sistency in rubbing the paper into the joint must
be used, so it will adhere at every point; else, when
it is finally dry and the back is shut, the dreaded
“pencil-case” will appear somewhere in the joint.
This is simply a part of the end-paper which has
not “stuck.” By careful preliminary rubbing of
paste into the joint and painstaking rubbing from
time to time after the paper is pasted down, this
accident will not happen. After one end-paper is
pasted down, I advise the amateur to let it dry at
least one-half day before doing the other. Should
the end-paper, after pasting down, still overlap the
leather too much at any point, it should be cut to
proper size immediately, using a straight-edge and
a very sharp knife, being careful not to cut through
the leather.
Polishing and crushing : After the book has been
tooled both inside and out and on the back, it must
be polished and crushed. Both of these operations
are rather lengthy ones.
Polishing Plates: The usual material from which
polishing plates are made is copper or brass about
one-fourth inch thick, and either nickeled or silver
plated. One pair of plates of good size, say 9 by 12,
will answer the purpose of the average worker. It
is, of course, more convenient to have plates of
various sizes, but they are somewhat expensive.
I am using a pair of plates made of aluminum.
These plates have the advantage of being very
much lighter in weight, but they also have the dis-
advantage of not retaining the heat as the more
dense metal does. For amateur use, however,
where only one book at a time is being crushed,
they do very well. Aluminum becomes easily tar-
nished, so it is necessary to have them plated. I
have succeeded in having a pair nickel-plated, but
it seems rather difficult to have this done. (Alumi-
num plates cost much less than of brass, copper,
etc.)
The polishing is done with either one of the two
polishing irons which are in stock, each portion of
the cover being gone over with a polisher which is
somewhat hotter than the finishing tools themselves,
not too much pressure being used during the
operation. The polish is produced with the polisher
and not with the polishing plates.
After the book has been given the gloss which
is desired, it goes through the operation of crush-
ing. In order to do this successfully and evenly, a
pair of metal plates are heated on the stove, the
degree of heat being about that used in the finish-
ing tools. Two thin polishing tins are also heated,
one being placed inside each cover, with perhaps
one thickness of clean blotting paper between the
tin and the sections. Great care must be taken
to have both the blotting paper and the tin go well
down into the joint of the book. The tins being
in place, the book is closed and laid on one of the
hot plates, the other being placed on top of it.
The book and plates are now put in the press. To
facilitate handling the hot plates and book, I find it
well to place a thin board (one-quarter inch thick)
outside each plate. Transfer the whole (holding
them firmly so no disarrangement may take place)
to the press, which is then screwed down securely
until a somewhat firm pressure is exerted on the
book. It is much better to have too little pressure
than too much, and it is well to remember that a
very moderate pressure, combined with the heat
of the plates, exerts a very great influence on the
soft leather. My own method is to have the plates
only moderately hot, bringing a reasonable amount
XLI