Fig. 24. Putting on the leather back. a, cord.Book
Fig. 24. Putting on the leather back. a, cord.
Fig. 24. Putting on the leather back. a, cord.
Fig. 24. Putting on the leather back. a, cord.
Book
The book is now marked up as in the Case Binding except that there are only two punctures, one about three-quarters of an inch from the head, and the other about one and one-quarter inches from the foot, in an ordinary size of book.
Sewing on tapes requires a sewing frame, Fig. 21, which is prepared for sewing by tying five tapes to the horizontal bar. The book is then laid on the floor of the frame with the head toward the right and the back to the tapes. The head tape is placed one-fourth of an inch to the left of the head puncture, while the foot tape is placed one-fourth of an inch to the right of the foot puncture. The other tapes are distributed equally along the distance between those at the head and foot. All the tapes are fastened to the edge of the frame floor with thumb tacks. Of course, that is only one simple frame out of a great variety which may be made. There are numerous ways of improvising sewing frames. Temporary frames are often made by tacking small strips to the ends of drawing boards, and fastening a cross bar to them. In large classes, merely a board is sometimes used as in olden times, when stiff thongs or strips of vellum were used. This is not very satisfactory.
The book is laid to the left as in the previous binding, and the sections are turned in the same way, and laid upon the frame. The end section is laid with a, Fig. 20, on thefloor of the frame and the needle inserted at the head puncture of the fold between e and d through folio c, Fig. 20. Then with the left hand, the needle is drawn in and run back out just to the right of the head tape. Then the needle is run into the section immediately to the left of the head tape, making a stitch across the tape. This is repeated at each tape and finally the needle comes out at the foot puncture. Now the second section is put on, the needle inserted at the foot puncture and the sewing continued as in the first section, until the head puncture is reached, when the thread is tied with a double knot to the original end. The third section is now put on and treated exactly like the first section until the needle comes out at the right of the head tape, when a crow’s foot or catch stitch is made in the following way:—
As the needle comes out at the side of the tape, instead of sewing the thread straight across the tape as before, the needle is run from the bottom up behind the two previous threads in such a way as to make a loop knot around them, a and b, Fig 21. Then the needle is run into the section on the opposite side of the tape exactly as in previous stitches. This is repeated at every tape until the foot puncture is reached, where a kettlestitch is made. After the third section, a kettlestitch is made every time the needle comes out at an end puncture, and a crow’s foot or catch stitch every third or fourth section.
The remainder of the book is sewed by exact repetitions of the processes thus far described.
When the sewing is completed, the tapes are cut, leaving them about one and one-half inches long at each sideand a colored folio, b, Fig. 20, is tipped to the top of each zigzag as at e, and the book is then ready for gluing, rounding and backing.
Rounding, as the name implies, is the process of giving a convex shape to the back of a book to prevent its becoming sunken or concave. The book is laid upon the table, and the first few sections are pulled firmly forward, while with a hammer, the upper edge of the back is struck lightly, driving the upper sections forward. Then the book is turned over and the process is repeated on the other side.
A folded sheet of waste paper is tipped (pasted by a very narrow strip of paste) along the sides of the book at the back.
Marks are placed about one-eighth of an inch from the back, showing the places for the edges of the backing boards between which the book is put and all clamped into the lying press, Fig. 22. This done, the back is thoroughly covered with thin glue which is rubbed in with a stiff brush and wiped as in the previous book. Within fifteen or twenty minutes, when the glue has dried sufficiently to be rubbery, the back is pounded with a hammer, striking first along the center, then gradually toward the end sections, always with a gliding blow, until the edges have been forced over the tops of the backing boards, as a, Fig. 22. If this has been properly done, the back will be smooth and rounding, and the edges will project over about the thickness of the boards.
The tapes are now pasted down against the outside leaves of the endpapers, and the super glued on, reaching from puncture to puncture, and to the ends of the tapes oneach side. When dry, the endpapers, to which the tapes were pasted, are cut off around the edges of the super, a, Fig. 23. Material is now gotten ready for the cover. Since this book is to have a French joint, the boards are cut as much narrower than the book as will make the proper width of joint; and since it is to have double boards, four boards are cut, two thin and two medium. A thin board and a thicker one are glued together, all except about two inches along the back edge, to form one board. The boards, thus glued, are put into the press, and the leather cut, which is to be one and one-half inches longer than the board and wide enough to reach around the back and as far down the sides as desired—the general rule being “more than a fourth and less than a third.” This, however, is a statement of the most general kind, and proper widths for the leather are determined to meet specific conditions.
With a sharp skiving or head knife, 5, Plate I, the edges of the leather are pared thin, and also a strip through the middle where the back of the book goes, is pared, if the leather is quite thick. For this operation, the leather should be laid on a stone or slate.
The book is now marked with pencil and trysquare where the head is to be cut, and is placed between two pressing boards with a heavy piece of cardboard, called the cut-against, between the back pressing board and the book. In this condition, the book is now put into the cutting press, Plate II, the front pressing board being pushed down on a level with the mark on the book and with the top of the press. The plow is run forward and backward, the blade meanwhile being graduallyscrewed toward the book, cutting only a very few leaves at a stroke. With this easy stroke and slow advance of the blade, if the blade is sharp, the head is left smooth and ready for coloring. The head is colored with India ink and when dry, is rubbed with beeswax and burnished with a burnisher made for that purpose.
PLATE II
PLATE II
PLATE II
Now the book is marked for the French joint, that is, for the location of the back edges of the boards, and a strip of tough paper large enough to cover the back is glued on.
Glue is put into the open places left between the layers of the double boards; then the slips—super, tapes, and pieces of endpapers which were previously pasted together—are inserted into these openings, Fig. 23, and the book put into press, where it remains until thoroughly dry.
In putting on the boards, great care is necessary to insure a straight cover and perfect squares.
It is now time to put on the leather, which is laid, flesh side up, on waste paper and thoroughly covered with paste. The waste paper is removed and the book is then placed in its proper position on the leather and the boards opened down against it with sufficient pressure to attach the leather to them. Then the ends of the leather are turned under the back of the book and over the boards, enclosing a cord at the head as shown at a, Fig. 24. This cord makes a roll instead of a headband. This done, the leather is thoroughly rubbed with the hands and forced closely down into the joints. Joint sticks, 10, Plate I, may be used for this purpose, but care must be used not to mar the leather with them. Now the book is placed with the foredge in the lying press, and a cord tied around it lengthwise through the joint to make sure than the leather holds its position at the joint. When dry, the leather is trimmed, since the work of getting it onto the book has probably stretched it, or the paring may have left the edges uneven.
Measurement is made from the foredge back to the points where it is desired to have the leather extend. With a sharp knife, the surplus leather is cut off. The book is now ready for the cover papers. Marks are made on the leather for the one-eighth inch lap of the paper.
Cover Paper.
The cover papers for the sides are cut one and one-half inches longer than the boards and seven-eighths of an inch wider than the distance from the leather to the foredge of the board. This allows three-fourths of an inch for turn-in and one-eighth of an inch for the lap over of the leather.
Then the book is placed on the paper, b, Fig. 24, in such manner as to have a straight edge of the paper come just to the marks on the leather and as nearly the same projection at the ends and foredge as possible. With a lead pencil, a line is drawn on the paper around the board. Corners for the mitres are cut, always cutting not closer to the pencil mark than the thickness of the board, as explained in the previous binding. This done, the paper is covered with paste, the book again laid on in position indicated by marks, and the turn-ins pasted.
The other board is now treated in the same manner. Great care is necessary to make sure that the paper fits firmly against the edge of the board. The bone folder is used here to force the paper against the edge of the board before the turn-in is pasted down on top.
The paper at the corners usually does not make a perfect mitre, but laps. This is remedied by taking a sharp knife and cutting through the lapping papers and removing the pieces cut off.
The book is now put under light pressure until dry. Nothing remains now but to paste the colored endpapers to the boards, the same as in the previous binding. It will be seen on opening the book how much flexibility the zigzag has lent to the cover.
IV.EXTRA BINDING.
The sewing frame is prepared exactly in the same way as in the Library Binding except that cords are here used instead of tapes, Fig. 25. Endpapers are cut and prepared zigzag, book marked up and punctures sawed the same as in the Library Binding.
These are the distinct differences between sewing on cords and on tapes. With cords, the needle goes in at the head puncture and out on the left of the cord and then doubles back and from therightof the cord, the needle is inserted at the same hole through which it came out, completely encircling the cord with the thread, a, Fig. 25. This is the whole story of sewing on cords. In the use of tapes, the thread simply goes back of the tapes, not around them. The kettlestitches are made just as in sewing on tapes, but there are no catch or crowfoot stitches as with tapes. When the book is taken from the sewing frame, the back is rounded. In this process, judgment must be used not to get the back too convex.