That moment my glue joint failed 3 hours into a restoration

I was at my bench last Tuesday working on a 1920s poetry anthology for a client, the spine was completely detached and I thought I had it all figured out. I used my usual PH neutral PVA and clamped it tight, left it for about an hour before I took the clamps off to check. The moment I opened the cover the whole thing just popped loose like it was never glued at all, I was so frustrated I almost threw it across the room. Turned out I had forgotten to rough up the spine lining with some sandpaper first, the old glue residue was too smooth for the new bond to grab. I ended up scraping everything off, roughing it up good with 80 grit, and redoing the whole job the next morning. It held perfect after that and the client picked it up yesterday happy as can be. Has anyone else had a similar fail where the prep work was the real issue, not the glue itself?

3 comments

3 Comments

jenny_lane123d ago

Used to skip prep all the time. That mistake changed my whole process.

brookeellis2d ago

Hmm, that's interesting because I actually think skipping prep can work out okay sometimes. Maybe it depends on the specific project or batch, but I've found that jumping straight in forces me to adapt faster and learn the materials as I go. Prep work is helpful for sure, but it can also lead to overthinking and procrastination if you're not careful. There's a difference between necessary preparation and just spinning your wheels. Sometimes you've just got to get your hands dirty and figure things out on the fly.

the_jake1d ago

Did you use a tacky glue or was it the regular PVA? I've had that exact thing happen on an old leather binding where I got impatient and skipped sanding the old glue residue off the spine. Had to redo the whole thing the next morning too. Now I keep a little scrap of 80 grit in my tool box specifically for that step. It's annoying but it saves so much time in the long run.