Shoutout to the old binder who told me to stop using PVA for everything

I spent 2 years using PVA glue on every single project because it was cheap and dried fast, then a retired binder at a shop in Portland showed me how wheat paste handles leather better and my last two restoration jobs actually hold up now. He had me do a test with an old library book and the PVA joint cracked in 3 days while the wheat paste one is still solid after 6 months. Has anyone else had a glue routine that they thought was gospel until someone proved them wrong?

4 comments

4 Comments

the_tessa1mo ago

Wait, are you seriously telling me wheat paste is better than PVA for book binding? I've been using PVA for over a decade and I've never had a joint crack like that. Maybe your mix was off or you didn't let it dry right. PVA is literally the industry standard for a reason - it's waterproof, it doesn't attract bugs, and it sets in minutes. If I had to wait for wheat paste to cure on every job, I'd be broke and falling behind schedule.

murray.cora1mo ago

it's literally waterproof" - actually that part isn't totally right. PVA is water resistant once it dries but it's not truly waterproof. leave a book with PVA joints in a damp basement and it'll still get wrecked. not saying wheat paste is better or anything, just wanted to mention that.

dixon.james1mo ago

Funny you mention bugs, @the_tessa. Reminds me of a buddy of mine who runs a small print shop. He swears by wheat paste for certain old ledger books because he says the PVA eventually gets brittle after a few years and that's when the joints crack. I don't know much about book binding myself but I've seen him use a mix of wheat paste and a little bit of honey to keep it flexible. Apparently the bugs don't care about the honey if the paste is cooked right. He's also the type of guy who'll spend an hour making glue just to save fifty cents so take that for what it's worth.

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the_piper2d ago

Wait, honey in the glue to stop bugs? Like, the bugs don't want to eat the honey if it's boiled or something? That sounds insane but I kinda want to try it now.