Books with worn cloth joints or loose, flapping spines can be repaired by replacing the original book cloth spine.
Before rebacking a book, check the condition of the original crash in the hinge area. If more than l/4 of the crash’s total height is broken, replace it before rebacking the book. That procedure is covered in a separate post.
Two methods of rebacking are covered on this website – each in a separate post. The first method, REBACKING WITH BOOK CLOTH ON THE OUTSIDE OF THE ORIGINAL BOOK CLOTH, puts the new book cloth on the outside of the old book cloth with the turn-ins glued on top of the original endpapers. This method can sometimes be faster but the new spine can be difficult to position well since it is constructed off the book. From a cosmetic point of view, more of the repair shows because the book cloth is on the outside of the original book cloth. This method is also described in “Books Their Care and Repair” by Jane Greenfield,
In the second method, REBACKING WITH THE NEW BOOK CLOTH UNDER THE ORIGINAL BOOK CLOTH AND THE TURN-INS UNDER THE END PAPERS, the new spine is constructed on the book with the turn-ins glued under the end papers. When the original spine is replaced, the new book cloth shows in only a small portion of the joint area.
Often different methods work for different books so practice each method, then decide which to use on a particular book.
