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That time I used bookbinding glue on a repair job and regretted it

Last week I tried to fix a torn spine on a 1920s novel using my standard PVA mix, and the whole thing fell apart in 3 days. Everyone in my local group in Portland swears by PVA for everything, but I think it's overrated for old paper. Why do we keep acting like one glue works for all ages of books?

3 comments

3 Comments

max_schmidt774d ago

PVA wrecked my buddy's 1920s atlas too but idk @the_sage is it really that deep.

the_sage4d ago

PVA is definitely not for everything, especially older paper. The issue is that PVA stays flexible but doesn't penetrate like a reversible glue does, which can stress brittle paper fibers. A good starch paste or a mix with PVA at lower ratios works way better for anything before 1950.

oliviabutler4d ago

Had a friend who used straight PVA on a 1920s ledger and the paper crinkled up within a week, all the fibers went stiff and weird. She switched to a 70% starch paste mix for the rest of that job and it laid flat no problem, held up way better over time. Idk, I feel like the older stuff just needs that gentler touch or you're asking for trouble.