Finally gave up rubber cement for wheat paste on my journals, and I'm mad I waited 2 years | Bookbinders - Freelance Forum - The Community for Independent Professionals
Finally gave up rubber cement for wheat paste on my journals, and I'm mad I waited 2 years
So I've been binding these little leather journals for the farmer's market in Ann Arbor for about two years and always used rubber cement on the spines because it was fast and I could get 20 done in an afternoon. Well the past winter every single one of them started cracking down the middle, customers kept messaging me about pages falling out, and I had to redo nine books out of a batch of thirty. A lady at the Michigan book arts guild meeting in February asked me what I used for adhesive and when I said rubber cement she just kind of winced and pulled a jar of wheat paste out of her bag. The difference is insane, it stays flexible when it dries so the spine can actually open flat, it's way cheaper, and it doesn't stink up my whole basement. Only downside is the drying time, you can't just clamp and go, but I've started prepping covers while the paste sets and it honestly evens out. So my question is for those of you doing paste, do you add anything to keep it from getting moldy in humid summers or is straight flour and water fine?