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i bind books as a hobby. i'll describe what i do; it's more practical than artistic, paperback rather than hardcover, and i think it's somewhat different from what you have in mind, but may give you ideas anyway.
Mostly i print out public domain references on programming, magick, whatever, that i find on the 'net and want to have a hard copy of to read in bed. Just ordinary all-purpose 8.5 x 11 paper and a cheap inkjet, better paper would work well though. Cardstock sheets for the covers. This is for what's called perfect binding, though my efforts are far from perfect! There are no signatures or sewing used.
i have a very simple book press consisting of :
* two sheets of wood, roughly cupboard-door sized, with holes at each corner
* 4 long 1/4 inch bolts with washers and wingnuts
* and springs for each bolt, not too heavy, enough to hold the press open during loading.
More elaborate press designs are possible, this is very much quick and dirty.
With this rig assembled, i load a double-side printed stack of paper in, with the card cover pages front and back (if you want to try a single sheet wrap-around cover, you'll have to tack it on at the end, i found it harder to do that way), and tighten the bolts as tight as i can. The spine should be sticking out the front of the press maybe 1/2 inch and be as neatly aligned as possible.
Then i go over the spine with a surform tool (something like a planer, with a blade that looks something like a cheese grater), grinding down the surface of the spine so it's smooth asd the backs of all the pages are even. If you want a little extra support, you can saw grooves into the spine and embed string in the grooves.
When it's smooth enough, i cover the spine with a few coats of rubber cement. It's kind of stinky, you need ventilation of course, but it's really the best for this purpose for the cost, though i've gotten excellent results with more expensive silicone glue. Rub it in deep.
When i'm satisfied that i've got enough coats of cement, i tack a strip of cardstock over the spine with the same glue, and leave it overnight to dry completely before i take the book out. If i've done a good job, the cement spine will hold all the pages in place.
Hope this helps. |
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