bookbinding tools – Page 19 – Peachey Conservation

September 25, 2018September 25, 2018

An Ornate 17th Century Bookbinding Press

Bookbinder’s Stretcher [sic]. Possibly French, Walnut, 1670-1700. © Victoria and Albert Museum, London

This is the most ornate finishing (?) press I’ve ever seen, as well as being one of the earliest dated ones. It is inaccurately described by the V&A as a book stretcher in the catalog, because in the early images (above and below) the tightening nuts were on the wrong side of the cheek. Usually tightening nuts like these are found on German or Netherlandish presses.

It would be nice to have a book stretcher on occasion, though. Need to turn an octavo into a quarto? No problem! But was this really a book press, or a press intended for some other purpose? The 29 inch long cheeks are very, very thin in profile, and I imagine would deflect quite a bit even with just hand tightening.

A later image shows the press assembled correctly, but it is still described as a book stretcher. Almost every non-functional inch of this remarkable press is covered with relief carvings. The tightening nuts are especially elegant. It is made from walnut, a wood traditionally used for press boards in 18th century France.

Bookbinder’s Stretcher [sic] assembled correctly. Possibly French, Walnut, 1670-1700. © Victoria and Albert Museum, London

Many 17th century and earlier European woodworking tools, like planes, are encrusted with carving. Hand tools have became minimally decorated since the 20th century, all form deriving from efficient manufacture and use. The decorative deep carving must have taken a lot of extra time. Did the maker or consumer provide the agency? Was this a presentation piece, not intended to be used? It seems to show very little wear, atypical of most presses. Or did the maker just want to make a beautiful tool? Do beautiful tools inspire binders to make beautiful books?

*****

Hats off to the V&A has a very progressive large image use policy. You can download them instantly, share them widely, and even use them for publication. There are almost 750,000 searchable images on the V&A site. Let’s hope all institutions free their images.

V&A large image use form. © Victoria and Albert Museum, London

May 15, 2018May 15, 2018

Using a Cigar Press for Bookbinding

Cigar presses are usually smaller than book presses, and often just half-arch, rather than full-arch. As such, they cannot generate as much pressure as a real book press. The one I purchased seems to have the compressional force of a typical copy press, which is adequate for the most common bookbinding tasks: firm adhesion of pastedowns, casing-in, and tray attachment when boxmaking. It wouldn’t be too difficult to modify a large C – clamp to make something similar.

Since they are lightweight, this one is about 30 lbs, they are great for teaching and travel. They usually have much more daylight than copy presses, again, useful when teaching, or for a secondary press. The main disadvantage is they only can be used for small format books.

Since cigar presses were originally used for pressing hand rolled cigars in long wooden molds, they often don’t have a top platen. I made a 7 x 9.5 inch aluminum one for this machine. Will I end up in conservation purgatory for drilling two holes in a historic machine?

Unmarked half-arch cigar press. I mounted a 7 x 9.5 inch aluminum platen on it.

May 8, 2018May 8, 2018

Japanese Burnishers, Part Two

Part One of my investigation into Japanese Burnishers concluded by mentioning the next step would be to make a larger version with a Delrin sole.

After testing this new iteration for a couple of weeks, I find the larger size much more useful for the way I work, perfect for high pressure/ low friction applications. Paper conservators may find the smaller, more precise tool desirable. Both sizes have a plum wood handle which is attractive and has a silky smooth feel. They are easy to make in five steps.

The sequence of making a Japanese style burnisher.

The basic premise is simple: all you have to do is remove everything that is not the final shape of your burnisher.

Rough out the wood with a bandsaw, a turning saw, or coping saw using the template below, or one of your own choosing. Fruitwood is ideal for this, at least 5/4 thick.
Refine the basic shape using a carving axe.
Smooth the axe work with a spokeshave and define the inner curve with a half-round rasp.
Sand everything smooth and add a Delrin (or material of your choice) sole. Screw into place. Tips on shaping Delrin.
Finally, apply a coat of your favorite wood finish. I like Watco Danish oil finish for this purpose, which in this case darkens the plum wood beautifully.

The template shape I like to begin with. Make it comfortable for your own hand!

I keep finding more uses for this tool, most recently while laminating museum board to make wooden board thickness boards for a rebinding. It is also great for smoothing linings on the inner trays of drop spine boxes, or other operations where a lot of pressure is necessary. The heel of the sold is rounded in order to apply extreme pressure. The raised handle makes it easy to pick up, and it looks quite attractive sitting on my work surface. Even a client has commented on it.