Practical Bookbinding Part 3

Despite this levelling work, the pasted part will still be noticeable; the thoroughly dried sections are therefore taken in batches of four or five, knocked up at the back edge, and the thick part carefully hammered on a stone or iron bed.

Just as paper strips have been used in this work, linen can be used for guarding atlases and mounting large maps which are intended for long and constant use. To fill out the back, cardboard or thick drawing-paper the thickness of the plates (or, if anything, a little less) is used. Of this material strips are cut 1 cm. in width and same length as the height of the work, cutting a strip for each plate of course. Besides these strips, cut some soft white calico into strips 3 cm. in width.

These are pasted, laid quite straight upon a clean board, two strips of paper are placed in the centre side by side on top of the pasted strip, and at right and left of each a map is hinged on, the first face downwards, the second face upwards. When dry, the section so made is creased in the middle, knocked down with the hammer, and pressed for a time. By this method two plates are hinged on each guard; by the other each plate had its own guard.

Many books are issued with plates larger than the _format_ of the book itself; they must be brought to the right size by folding, but in such a way that the folded plate is secure from injury during any subsequent tr.i.m.m.i.n.g.

Before making a single fold in the plate, the worker should clearly see his way through his scheme for folding, so as to bring the plate to the size required with the smallest possible number of creases. Plates which are slightly wider and longer than the size of the book are easily made to fit if they are folded once or, if necessary, twice across the middle, pasting the edge of one fold on a guard and then fixing in its place in the book.

Figs. 9-13--Suggestions for folding plates and maps.

If this will not do, the plate must first be folded up from the bottom edge far enough to escape damage in tr.i.m.m.i.n.g, and then the long side must be similarly folded. Larger plates must take more folds, always working on the principle that the length of the book should first be obtained in the best possible way, and afterwards the width is taken as the guide in making the folds.

In doing this the plate must be folded now to the front, then to the back, so that on drawing it out it opens in a zigzag fas.h.i.+on. For the sake of clearness we give ill.u.s.trations showing the most general methods of folding. The part marked A is secured in its place in the book by mounting on a paper guard; but one may, by cutting out the map properly, leave a small margin which will serve as a guard as shown in Figs. 10, 12, and 13.

In all cases, however, it is essential that the thickness of the folded plates should be equalised by inserting guards in the back of the book.

Formerly, when several plates were inserted one after the other, it was customary to place them in such a way that they were trimmed at top and bottom alternately; now they are placed so that they are all trimmed at the top edge: this is much better, because it keeps the top edge smooth and close, thereby keeping out dust and insects. The accompanying sketches are based upon this principle.

The so-called two-page ill.u.s.trations in periodicals must be treated in the same way. These are only possible in the middle of a section, where they would be caught into the back and injured if the following precaution were not observed. Such ill.u.s.trations are taken out, the back edge pasted, and then placed in the back so as to adhere to the following sheets, projecting about 1/2 cm.

The printed sheets thus treated must now be collected by the same process--that is if they have not been gathered in open sheets in the printery--into volumes; this work is generally known as gathering after folding.

As in gathering open sheets, the piles of folded sheets are placed side by side; but as these take up so much less room than the open sheets, in most cases the whole work may be laid out at one time.

Clear the longest table procurable, which if not long enough must be extended by the addition of small tables, trestles, &c., upon which are laid the batches of sheets in fifties, and, beginning with the last sheet, work up the row until the t.i.tle page is reached and the gathering ended. Starting from the left, the gathered sheets are placed to the right; after the last sheet, _i.e._, the t.i.tle page, there should be sufficient room for placing the gathered sheets and also, if possible, for knocking up and collating, that is, checking the sequence of the sheets. The gatherer begins with the last sheet on the left, draws the top sheet with the right hand on to the left hand held flat to receive it, and so goes along the row, drawing from each pile one sheet, which drops into its place on top of the preceding one in the left hand. This work can be carried on simultaneously by several persons following each other, but there must be a sufficient number of persons stationed at the end ready to knock up and collate the gathered sheets. In order to simplify this work and to enable one to take up the completed gathering at the t.i.tle page, the pile containing the t.i.tle page sheet is plainly marked across the back with a blue or red pencil, so that one sees on the back of each single sheet a coloured mark easily seen in the gathered and knocked-up sheets.

Fig. 14--Collating.

To collate a book it is taken in both hands. Taking a good hold of it by the right hand at the top edge, it is lightly held by the left at the bottom towards the back. Now make a turn downwards with the right so that the whole pack of sheets springs upwards and spreads out at the back like a fan, and the controlling left hand lets them go one at a time, whilst checking the sequence of the signatures, that is to say, the sheets must be checked to see whether instead of the right signatures following in due order there is not a second signature or perhaps none at all. In such a case the sheet must be taken out and re-folded.

It may be well to refer now to another more detailed branch of this work which is necessary for certain purposes. If books which have already been used or bound are sent for re-binding it would be very unsafe to rely upon the pages being in proper order, especially if they have been much torn and have to be mended. Very frequently the leaves of a section have been misplaced. In such cases the book is laid flat upon the table, the head lying to the top, and, beginning at the t.i.tle, leaf by leaf is lifted with the point of a knife after the way some ignorant persons have of using a moistened finger. The knife point is not inserted under the leaf lying uppermost but is lightly placed at the top of the leaf near the page number and the leaf pushed up from the side so that the left index finger takes it as it separates from the succeeding leaf whilst the eye scans the page numbers 1, 3, 5, 7, 9, &c. Also with other things that do not admit of any other method of collating, _e.g._, ledgers, doc.u.ments, &c., this is the only possible way of doing it.

Nowadays, paper received in the printery has been so well calendered beforehand--that is to say, polished between rollers--and after printing the sheets are once more so well rolled that the gathered sheets may at once be prepared for sewing. Old paper, however, must be beaten or rolled to make it firm and solid. The former work will be completely forgotten at no very distant date, as the younger generation of masters and men show less and less inclination to learn it. For beating, a stone about the height of a low table, and a surface about the size of a sheet may be used, or a cast-iron plate about 6 cm. in thickness embedded in a block of wood the same height as the stone. Upon this firm base--which, of course, must stand on the ground floor or in the cellar--the book, or section of it if too thick, is beaten with a short-handled iron hammer, the face of which measures about 100 sq. cm. All corners and edges are well rounded off, and the face is slightly convex. The handle must be short, not above 12 cm. long, cut oval, and just thick enough to be well grasped. The hole in the hammer is made so that the handle drops a little at the (outer) end.

In beating, the sections should be held by the left hand after being knocked up. In order to prevent injury to the paper, the sections are placed between pieces of waste paper of same size, also a mill-board or piece of waste paper to size is laid upon the beating stone. The right hand wields the hammer, which must strike the sections (or book) fairly and squarely with the full face. The beating is begun at the edge, and blow after blow is given in gradually lessening circles until the centre is reached, the left hand, of course, keeping up the necessary motion of the sections. It requires considerable practice to do this without s.h.i.+fting the sections, but if this happens they must again be knocked up.

The experienced workman knows by the touch where the book has been beaten much or little and works accordingly. The main thing in this, as in all other work, is that the book should be again pressed for some time--for a night at the least. The beaten volumes are divided into several lots or sections about a finger thick, and pressing-boards placed between them. If any sections show folds or creases even after pressing, they must be once more beaten and pressed.

Fig. 15--Rolling machine.

The work of beating, as already said, has been almost entirely superseded by the rolling machine. In treatises by theorists, one finds over and over again that books are not so well bound nowadays owing to the "practice of hand-beating being discontinued." This opinion is absurd, and arises from a very superficial technical knowledge and wholly imperfect acquaintance with the requirements of our craft. A machine-rolled or unbeaten book is always much better than one imperfectly beaten, for here nothing is demanded but sheer force, and that is always exercised with better results by a machine. As already pointed out, our modern printed books do not require any such work; besides, the so-called surface papers and printed ill.u.s.trations prohibit both beating and rolling, as such work would destroy the high surface of the paper. Old books, on the contrary, where the paper is unsized, spongy, and swollen, require some such work, as pressing alone, even for days, has not the required effect.

In beating, the work should be divided into sections or lots of 15 to 20 sheets; they need not be counted, they are measured by the eye. For rolling, however, the sheets must be counted off exactly, from 8 to 12; they are knocked up and placed between zinc plates of same size and pa.s.sed through the rollers obliquely, the upper back corner being first inserted. It is well to introduce the second lot before the first has quite pa.s.sed through the rollers; this not only saves the rollers but avoids the extra pressure on the lower corner when a section leaves the rollers. For this reason it is advisable to insert the lots right and left alternately. The first lot rolled should be examined to test the amount of pressure, and at first a lighter pressure should be applied to avoid risk of injury.

We have now come to the end of the processes through which a book has to pa.s.s before it is actually made up into book form. Before we take up this work there is incidental work to be mentioned which comes before the work of binding proper. This is the st.i.tching and treatment of st.i.tched or bound books for binding and the necessary repairs thereto.

The st.i.tched or brochured book is no true book form; it is nothing more than the gathered sheets of a work in a temporary form, handier and more convenient, and therefore more saleable.

To prevent leaves from falling out in the event of their being cut open, they are lightly st.i.tched together--_hollandert_.

How did the name originate? It is difficult to say. Perhaps books st.i.tched in this manner were first brought out in Holland.

With this method of sewing, the sheet only gets one short thread in the middle; but as the sewing of each sheet separately would entail a considerable loss of time, that old contrivance of the bookbinder for most kinds of sewing work, the sewing frame, is here made use of. A base or bed has on each front corner a perpendicular screw, upon which is placed a movable cross-bar with a slit. This bar is regulated by two screws; lay cords are fastened to hooks which are slipped through the slits, the other ends being knotted to metal keys fixed under the base.

A narrow movable bar, bevelled to the front of the bed, holds these keys when the lay cords are tightened.

Fig. 16--Sewing frame.

There are no lay cords on the sewing frame for the work of Hollandering as in other kinds of sewing, but two strips of zinc plate about 1 to 1-1/2 cm. in width are fastened so that at the top they are attached to the hooks and at the bottom are held with a pin. The lot to be sewn is placed rather slant-wise on the bed of the frame to the left, the back turned outwards, the head to the sewer, all sheets, therefore, facing away from the worker.

Fig. 17--Arrangement on the sewing frame.

The left hand takes the upper sheet with thumb and middle finger, so that the forefinger at once falls in the middle of the sheet, turning the sheet so that the head _A_ lies to the left and face upwards as shown in the ill.u.s.tration; zinc strips are stretched at the points _x_.

The left hand is introduced into the opened sheets from behind to take the needle when pushed in and then to draw it out again; the right hand inserts the needle from outside, and also draws out the needle inserted from inside by the left hand.

All kinds of sewing on the sewing frame are divided between both hands in the same way.

The threaded needle is now introduced into the sheets to the right of the right strip at the back fold and again brought out to the right of the left strip, the sheets being meanwhile held open by the left hand.

The thread is drawn out, except for a short end, the second sheet taken and laid open, and the needle is now introduced to the left of the left strip and brought out to the left of the right strip; and so on, each time introducing the needle from the right side to the right of the strip and from the left side to the left of the strip, drawing out accordingly. The thread is only to be seen on the outside of the strips.

The so-called English darning-needle--a long needle with a long eye--is used by the bookbinder. A special thread is made on purpose, the highest number being used for hollandering.

When the sewing frame is packed so full that the sheets can no longer be kept properly squared, a sharp knife is taken and the threads cut off along the metal strips, and the sheets are then removed from the sewing frame. Every sheet is now independent of the other, and has a thread in the middle, of which a little may be seen at each needle-hole. These ends are afterwards pasted up in the work to follow. It is clear from this method of sewing that it is not necessary to tie a second thread on to the first when finished, but simply to begin with a new thread, letting the ends always project a little.

This method is the more recent and practical. It admits of one kind of sheet being sewn immediately after folding: nay, more: whilst one folder is still busy folding, another may begin to hollander. It is not till afterwards that the sheets are gathered. Gathered sheets are sewn in the same way, and are more easily knocked up than when sewn on cords and the threads left uncut after the old style instead of on metal bands. In hollandert sheets the threads lie as shown in Fig. 18.

Fig. 18--Arrangement of threads in hollandering.

Fig. 19--Small stapling machine for single sheets.

Lately, in brochuring, the sheets are not hollandert, but sewn with wire on the machine. This is a very good method when the finest possible staple closing from the outside is used. For this work a small machine is used, similar to those used for wiring doc.u.ments, copy-books, and single sheets, which have an automatic wire-drawing action.

The batch of sheets is here arranged face upwards to the right of the worker. The right hand takes the sheet by the head, opening it at the same time with the forefinger, and inserts it in the groove of the machine, which is at the same moment set in motion. With each different sheet the position of the staple must be changed so that all do not stand the same height, as it would cause the paper to be cut through in pressing.

The accompanying sketch shows the arrangement of the collected brochures.

Fig. 20--Arrangement of staples in brochures.

It is barbarous to sew more tightly with wire, for in the necessary pulling to pieces to bring them to their former state for binding they are sure to be more or less damaged. Sewing with a large machine using strips of gauze cannot be recommended.

The further treatment of hollandert or wire-sewn sheets is dealt with towards the end of the chapter.

Most of the books given to the small binder do not come to him fresh from the printer, but sewn, used or unused, cut open, or as published.

The sheets for binding must, as far as possible, be restored to the condition they were in before they were sewn. It is absolutely necessary that they should be made into loose single sheets. This work is called "pulling to pieces." The outer cover is torn off, the thread or wire inside the sheet removed, and the sheets very carefully separated one by one. When they are all pulled to pieces they are pushed open a little at the back, first to one side, then to the other, and sc.r.a.ped with a knife from top to bottom so as to remove all dirt, glue, &c., adhering.

Where the sheets had been cut open and the inner leaves worked out of place, they must be well pushed into the back again. The sheet is lightly held half-open in the left hand, and the leaves are knocked into the back with a long folder or knife.