Re: [BKARTS] 1948 Plastic Comb Binding

[Carol Pratt <jcpratt@xxxxxxx>]

Some years ago I had a request to repair a plastic spiral-bound  
address book from the early 60s.  I ran into the same problem... the  
number of teeth was different.  I sent the owner herself to local  
print shops  did comb-binding, and one suggested buying a new spiral  
to accommodate the thickness  of the book and to cut it into shorter  
lengths.  After doing this, she told me that the book worked pretty  
nearly as it needed to.  I didn't see it again, so I don't know how  
presentable it was or how it functioned.  Seems to me, however, that  
it probably was okay.  It certainly wasn't a valuable book, but she  
especially like the way it worked (had pockets, etc.) and so wanted  
to keep using it.

The only other suggestion I can make is to explore the possibility of  
making a narrow, sewn concertina and tipping the loose pages to it.   
Some mending would obviously be required, but the textblock would  
function more or less normally, and the original covers could be  
utilized as well.  I did this once with a children's picture book in  
order to replace the completely destroyed plastic spiral and yet  
preserve the full pages.  The pages were (oddly) in folios, so could  
be sewn to the concertina.  When it was finished, the book was still  
fragile and obviously not something a child would play with, but it  
did allow the grandparent (owner) to read it with the child.  It was,  
however, not a particularly budget-wise solution.

Carol
Eugene, OR
-------



On Nov 14, 2008, at 1:15 PM, William Minter wrote:

> I have a binding challenge and I do not have a solution. Anyone  
> with an idea?
> A 1948 High School Yearbook was brought in for a quick (cheap)  
> treatment as the plastic spiral is broken and some pages are loose  
> and torn. The problem is that there are 21 plastic combs (teeth or  
> fingers) on the spiral, whereas modern spirals have only 19. One  
> might suggest cutting off the wrong size and damaged holes.  
> However, the gutter margin is very narrow and some handwritten  
> signatures are written between the perforations.
> In the past, I have developed special binders for similar  
> challenges, but this one is unique.
> I guess one question is:   Are all modern spirals of the same 19  
> combs, or do different manufacturers use different configurations?  
> Are there any alternative bindings to save the handwriting in the  
> gutter?
> Thanks,
> Bill Minter
>
> ******************************
>
> William Minter Bookbinding & Conservation, Inc.
> 4364 Woodbury Pike
> Woodbury, PA  16695
> 814-793-4020
> Fax:   814-793-4045
> Email:    wminter@xxxxxxxxxxxxxx
>
>
>
>
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