Old Tools

Sometimes it's nice to get new tools, something shiny and sharp that you get to break in your own self... a new paring knife perhaps.

But sometimes old tools are even better.

I've got a project due around August, it isn't a conservation treatment, but rather a request for a facsimile of a book in our collection.

This project is going to present some fun challenges, and I have started my research already, but the one that is currently at the top of my brain is finding the right tool to represent the blind tooling on the original cover. The tooling on the original is kind of smudgy, as if the tool itself had seen better days. So I can't order something shiny and new, but rather have to look around to see if there is something in my personal collection, or perhaps the collection of another binder that will fit the bill.

This wheel is one of my own and one of my favorites. I love the design but also the signs of the handwork that created it. The stamps on it say "Morris & Co", "Ludgates" and "London". I've glued some test leather to a board and am warming up the stove, stay tuned to see how it turns out!

Building a Better Book Cradle- pt 2

So this is the second prototype of the new reading room book cradle. We made the front lip a little deeper even though some people were worried that it might catch the bottom edges as you turn the pages of bound material. That is a possibility, but in general, the square at the bottom of a book's cover should help create enough clearance.

We also made the back edge a little shorter so that the slope of the cradle is about 25 degrees, just enough to help the reader view the book, but not enough to cause a significant amount of text block drag.















The next step is to take this cradle to the reading room for people to use and evaluate, if there's more feedback we'll have a third prototype made, if not, we'll have a bunch of these made for the reading room. Stay tuned!

Linotype

Someone left the Linotype out in the rain...

Jones Falls Bridge plans

The plans take a bath...

Building a Better Book Cradle

All rare book reading rooms need book cradles of some sort. The cradles hold fragile books open at a moderate angle while the researcher takes notes or types on their computer. Ideally, the cradles prevent wear and tear while facilitating use.

There are many different types of book cradles: gray foam wedges; black foam wedges; custom, pose-able cradles made of wood and brass; an ultra-suede "hammock" with a metal frame to name a few. They all work to a certain degree, but the staff at my library were not completely satisfied. The foam wedges come in sets of differing sizes that allow a number of different configurations, however, it is hard to keep track of all the pieces, and they do take up quite a bit of storage space when not in use. Also, if you prop the wedges from the back so the book is tilted toward you while you read or take notes, the book can slide off the cradle or out of its dust jacket or a heavy text-block can sag and stress the joints of the cover. Wooden cradles are not always adaptable to the variety of books that are used in our reading room, and again, they take up a lot of storage space when not in use.

So, how to build a better book cradle that can: support a fragile book at a gentle angle of opening; safely tilt it up a little to make reading and note taking easier for researchers; be flexible enough to accommodate a variety of book sizes; not take up too much storage space; be easily used by staff and researchers?

Well, here's my prototype- a simple Plexi "Z" that tilts the book up at a moderate angle, but has a lip on the bottom to support the text block and cover, and can be used in combination with foam wedges that we already have on hand to support different sized books at varying angles of opening.








The "Z's" by themselves would easily stack on a table in the reading room when not in use. They could also be used for manuscript or any flat documents, again the moderate tilt would facilitate reading and note taking.











I've left the prototype in Special Collections so that the staff can test drive it on a number of books and collect feedback












So far, we think the lip on the bottom needs to be a little deeper
...but what else????