this post was submitted on 30 Jun 2023
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fixing

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Celebrating/talking about repairing stuff, the right to repair stuff, and the intersection of tech and solarpunk ideals.

What does it mean to use what we have, including technology, to try to build a better, more environmentally just world?

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How to fix a book (slrpnk.net)
submitted 1 year ago by [email protected] to c/[email protected]
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Originally posted here.

Before I switched to Lemmy, I noticed a lot of questions on r/bookbinding about repairing books. So; I thought I'd create a list of repair guides that, to my knowledge, follow best practices.

Please note, if a book is particularly valuable or has historical significance, you should take it to a professional. Also, if your library book is damaged, you can return it as-is and the library will handle the repair. In either case, wet books should be frozen.

That said, here's how to repair:

Loose hinges:

Cracked hinge:

Detatched hinge:

Detatched text block (recase):

Warped hard cover:

Spine replacement:

Torn paper:

Torn out piece of a page:

Loose page:

Harcover corner repair:

Wet book:

Mold:

Warped paperback spine:

Detatched paperback case:

More damage than that? Here's some more extensive repairs:

Rebind:

Paperback rebind:

Paperback to hardcover recase:

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[–] [email protected] 3 points 1 year ago

These look great, thanks for sharing :)

[–] [email protected] 3 points 1 year ago

Thank you! I do want to fix at least 1 book and this might get me started.

[–] [email protected] 3 points 1 year ago

Oh I will look into all of these! just last week I "fixed" a pocket book my boss lent me and that unfortunately looked a little rugged after coming on vacation with me. Painted over all the little cracks in the cover and it actually looked quite decent again afterwards. It did have a Little water damage though that I didn't know what to do about. It was a cheap book and not even a good one so I kind of hoped he'd forget about it but nope lol. So far have not received a comment on the books state so I think I did an ok enough Job. Paperback to hardcover also seems interesting, so you can design a custom cover for your favorite book. Or as a gift? So many possibilities!