After a good helping of chocolate I reconsidered my response.  My problem is that I still miss the hands-on work of my old job, now that I’m mostly hitting the keyboard. I love my current job, but 4 years later I still dream about doing book repair, and I miss seeing the students happily “getting crafty” with the pamphlets.

 

I still think you can get cheap student labor to sew pamphlets.  But I can see that sewing vs. stapling probably depends on how preservation-focused your library is. And I’m sure our use of PVA glue in pamphlet binding would be considered anathema to many.

 

Sorry for overreacting,

 

Diane Westerfield, Electronic Resources & Serials Librarian

Tutt Library, Colorado College

diane.westerfield@coloradocollege.edu

(719) 389-6661

(719) 389-6082 (fax)

 

 

 

 

I apologize, Diane. We had always stapled, so the request struck us that way. No other music librarian had ever asked for it.

 

Jack

 

 

 

Putting on my (former) Bindery hat:

 

I’m baffled at your derision.

 

Sewing with acid-free linen thread is better for the materials than stapling, and it’s quite easy if you’re just doing the “B” stitch.  I don’t know why a librarian asking for sewing on pamphlets would be considered an extreme request. It’s not that expensive and work/study students can do it, so where’s the problem?

 

From a preservation standpoint, sewing with linen thread makes sense. Staples rust, discolor paper and fall apart over time.

 

From an equipment standpoint, staplers break. As they break, they warp staples (sharp ends can protrude out of the spine and cut shelvers’ palms). Big staplers are expensive to repair or replace. Linen thread, bought in bulk, is not that expensive. Needles are very cheap, and awls are reusable.

 

From a management standpoint, students with just average dexterity can do the work. It’s a nice break from stamping periodicals and can give students a task in the downtime between bindery shipments.

 

--

 

Diane Westerfield, Electronic Resources & Serials Librarian (previously held 3 different positions in a bindery unit, for 10 years)

Tutt Library, Colorado College

diane.westerfield@coloradocollege.edu

(719) 389-6661

(719) 389-6082 (fax)

 

 

 

 

Thanks so much for those astute tips, Buddy. We have always stapled, not sewn. Several years ago a new music librarian that shall remain nameless, and was short-lived, requested sewing. The head of binding and I joked about new supplies of needle, thimbles, and thread, sewing lessons, quilting bees, etc. So far, there has been no discussion here about reducing score binding (with the head of acquisitions, who is over binding, and with the music librarian). I’m only the cataloger and have not brought up the issue with them. Was your music librarian perfectly ok with reducing some of the procedures? My intuition is that a large percentage of the scores I catalog get some form of binding, everything that doesn’t already come in hard bound and it strikes me that it must be costly.

 

Jack

 

 

 

Hi Jack,

 

We have downsized our preservation work for scores by utilizing the following:

 

1)      If the score (w/o parts) can stand on its own don’t bind it… only the very thinnest scores or scores with thin paper covers need protection.

2)      If you are sewing in scores, switch to staples …. Much faster and no skill required

3)      Save your efforts for scores with parts

 

 

 

 

Please excuse if this is inappropriate for the list; my binding question is about music scores, not serials, but I figure most of you handle scores as well in your binding units.

 

I don’t know if my library is thinking about cutting the binding budget, but the binding position that handles the pam binding has been cut. I’m the music cataloger and my intuition is that we spend a lot on binding music (pam binding and commercial binding, including pockets for parts, binding with stubbing, etc.). Is there a cheaper and easier way to handle scores physically to make them easy to use for playing and to preserve them, beyond the usual pam and commercial hard binding? These methods need to satisfy the music librarians, of course.

 

 

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