Tried a 50/50 PVA mix for a repair and it went all wrong

I was fixing a 1902 poetry book from a local library here in Portland and used a half water, half PVA mix on the spine. The paper soaked it up way more than I thought and now the pages are wavy and stiff, almost like cardboard. Has anyone else had this happen with old paper, and what glue mix do you use instead?

3 comments

3 Comments

sam5302mo ago

Oh wow, a 1902 book... that paper is basically a sponge! A 50/50 mix is way too wet for something that old. I use a much thicker mix, like 70% PVA to 30% water, and even then I brush it on super thin.

cameron7242mo ago

Man, that reminds me of when I tried to fix the binding on my grandma's old cookbook. I used a mix that was way too thin and ended up with wavy, wrinkled pages that looked worse than before. I learned the hard way that old paper just drinks up moisture. What did you end up using for the spine on that one?

johnson.lee1mo ago

Actually, that thicker mix can be risky too. It dries so fast it might not soak in right on super old paper, leaving a plastic-y skin that cracks. Seen it happen on a 1910 ledger. Cameron724's wavy pages from too much water is the other extreme. For something from 1902, a tiny bit of methyl cellulose in the mix slows the drying way down, lets the paper take it in without warping.