Best Practices

Spiral Book Minders―Variations on a Solution

Bill Minter

Archival Products NEWS published my article "Spiral Bindings in a Hard Cover: An Alternative to Rebinding" in the 1997 winter issue (volume 5, number 4) which discussed the problem of shelving books bound with plastic or metal spirals. "Since the cover is usually thin and limp, and the spiral is normally wider than the text block, the books tend to shift and stagger on the library shelf."

The article continues with the suggestion that many libraries usually have these books rebound by either double-fan adhesive binding or by over-sewing. Unfortunately, heavy paper or laminated papers are impossible to bind in this manner. There are also many books where the spiral is an ideal method of binding, such as with music scores.

My first encounter with this situation was resolved with a simple hard cover that wrapped around the text. Another item required something more, where the spiral was secured to the cover. The solution was to sew the spiral to the inner cloth hinge with a waxed thread or to lash the spiral to the cloth with an electrical-cable-tie.

Following that publication, a few libraries called me to make covers for them. In response, I recommended Archival Products, since they were obviously better equipped to produce the Spiral Binders more economically.

In 2003, Archival Products announced a product that was much simpler to use. The new "Spiral Book Binder" utilized a clear PETG cover with a .040 sandstone archival board for the back cover. The spiral is then secured to the cover by a strap of archival board that is riveted to the spine. The library simply inserts the spiral over the strap and secures the opposite end with a plastic rivet that is supplied --- a very simple process.

Over the past few years, the Spiral Book Binder has become quite successful. Unfortunately, it did not meet the needs of every book, especially the smaller diameter spirals, such as 1/4" and 1/2".
When hearing about this, I was intrigued by the challenge and looked for an appropriate fastener whenever I was in a hardware store. After examining various types of screws, rivets and other fasteners, there seemed to be no easy way to secure the smaller spirals. Continuing to think about the problem, I even investigated fishing line leaders at one point. Then I realized that a simple stainless steel wire with a loop at each end could be riveted to the cover and resolve the problem. My next step was to develop a special bending jig for the hard stainless steel wire that is used.

Archival Products makes a cover and secures the wire loop at one end with a rivet. Once the book is inserted, the opposite end can be secured with the standard plastic mechanism that they supply. There are other options, such as to rivet the opposite end in-house or to use another fastener that I found that does not require special tools.

One observation is that, sometimes, a sheet of acid-free corrugated board can be added to the inside of the cover to bulk-out the binder. This will give a nice, uniform, square appearance.

The Spiral Book Binder from Archival Products is now available in a variety of sizes to handle the many different books that are bound with a spiral.

Bill Minter is owner of William Minter Bookbinding & Conservation, Inc. in Woodbury, PA. He can be reached at 814-793-4020 or wminter@pennswoods.net.

Originally published Archival Products NEWS Volume 15, No. 2

Archival Products presents elegant solutions for preservation for colleges and universities, museums, historical societies, art and music libraries, medical schools and government offices as well as for the private conservator. www.archival.com