Fixing book bindings

[Ghost2020]

I have some Sword & Sorcery books that need a little binding
touch up at the top. The glue has come away from the pages, would a super
glue, epoxy, regular Elmer's glue work to put these back?

The pages aren't falling out, but the binding isn't real super. Anyone tried to find a solution?

 

[Nightfall]

I'm simple but I go buy another copy.

But if you want to glue it back on, try what you think is best.

 

[Ranger REG]

I think Kinko's could help you out.

Alternatively, you could get some instructions and tips in a home fix-it-yourself book.

 

[Ghost2020]

Oh, people! You're killin' me here!
You should've saved your bandwidth for posting something worthwhile.



Here's some info from another location...

-Id avoid cyanoacrylates ("superglue"); it'll likely just crack,
and the pages will go rigid where it soaks in.
What you most likely want is a PVA (polyvinyl acetate) glue; one of
the "craft glues" like Sobo will probably give you the best quality.
I forget if Elmer's white is a PVA, though I'm pretty sure the yellow
("Carpenter's Wood Glue") is.

-There's a water-based carpet glue (here in NZ, anyway) that's like
PVA, but sets to a more flexible consistency that's really good for
book bindings. It's just a little less likely to crack than PVA, and
results in a more resilient spine.

-Carpenter's glue is "aliphetic resin." It's strong stuff -- I use it to hold fins on rockets with fairly whopping big motors -- but my gut feel is that it would be too brittle for a book.
Short of looking up the perfect adhesive via a Google search, I would
use rubber cement or contact cement, which aren't terrifically strong
but are somewhat flexible. Just the thing for a book binding.

 

[sirkillian]

I have some Sword & Sorcery books that need a little binding
touch up at the top. The glue has come away from the pages, would a super
glue, epoxy, regular Elmer's glue work to put these back?

The pages aren't falling out, but the binding isn't real super. Anyone tried to find a solution?

Use Ducttape. My first DMG is held together by Ducttape. Its a sign of love and you know Ducttape is the Forse. One side light and the other dark and it holds the whole universe together.

 

[Prothall]

Or you could knit the pages together. Drill some holes in the book (with a drill) and then basically run a string through them... Follow the instructions on the page linked below, though note that doubling the thread isn't necessary. Also ignore the starting bit, as you'll probably want to keep the original cover. You'll have to drill rather close to the edge if you want to be able to browse through the book as easily as with the current binding, and it won't lay perfectly flat, though you can always cut the binding if you're unhappy with it. This probably isn't the best solution practically, but it does have the advantage of perhaps making your book look better than it does now. And it will hold it together.

http://www.sff.net/people/Brook.West/bind/bindit.html

 

[Ghost2020]

The book looks fine, and all the pages are intact, the cover pages are still stuck to the covers, it's just the top part of the binding, with the glue, has come away from the top of the spine/pages. I want to just re-attach the spine to the pages.

No pages have fallen out, and this seems to be a common problem with Sword & Sorcery Studios books though.

 

[Sejs]

Go to your local library.

They'll fix you up good and proper.