Hit 50 hand-sewn bindings last month and finally switched glues

I've been using PVA for years because that's what I learned on. But after finishing binding number 50, I realized over half of them had spine cracking issues. Talked to a guy at the bindery supply shop in Eugene who convinced me to try wheat paste on my last five books. The difference in flexibility is huge and I won't go back. Has anyone else had better luck with one glue over another for different cover materials?

3 comments

3 Comments

sam_murphy398d ago

Have you considered that your spine cracking might be more about how you're applying the glue rather than the glue itself? I worked with PVA for about 15 years before switching to wheat paste, and while the flexibility is definitely different, I found that the real trick was adjusting my glue temperature and the amount I was putting on the spine liner. A thin, even coat of PVA applied warm has held up much better for me than heavy applications.

the_tessa8d ago

A couple years ago I had the same issue with some leather-bound journals I was making, and switching to a warm glue pot changed everything for me. @sam_murphy39 is spot on about temperature - I was using room temp PVA and I think it was setting too fast and stiff. Once I started heating it to about 100 degrees and using a foam brush to spread it really thin, the cracking pretty much stopped on all my spine liners.

emery_lopez8d ago

Actually I've been wondering if maybe the problem isn't the glue itself but the moisture balance in the leather and paper together. I had a batch of calfskin from one supplier that kept cracking no matter what glue I used warm or cold, thin or thick. Then I realized the leather was way too dry compared to the paper I was using on the text block. The paper was pulling moisture out of the glue way faster than the leather could release it, creating this tension that just snapped the spine liner. Once I started lightly misting the leather and letting it sit for an hour before gluing up, the cracking basically disappeared. Might be worth checking your hygrometer readings next time you see that issue.