I am a textile artist. I have MANY sewing machines. I knew immediately that you’d have some challenges with the sewing. The quality of the machine is an enormous factor here. I’m a Janome girl - so have a lot of brand knowledge. The kind of machine that would be grunty enough to deliver an easy sew would be one beloved of bagmakers - for Janome that’s the HD9. Their top-of-the-line CM8 would also do a great job with the added advantages of 13” throat space AND a seam guide that would have helped the straight-line difficulties. Quilters have an enormous range of tools dedicated to perfecting straight sewing - some of these would have helped also. So all in all, you may have thought it was about bookbinding & I may think it about sewing but having appropriate tools applies to EVERYTHING!
Singer, once a great manufacturer, is now just a name, part of the SVP group (Singer, Viking, Pfaff). If i were to bind with the aid of a sewing machine, I'd opt for an old industrial machine with a modern servo motor which would allow you to make one complete stitch at a time. An alternative would a vintage manual machine. As @vickicrowther4116 says, the Janome HD9 is a great machine.
Most domestic sewing machines you'll find will be limited by the power of the motor, and almost all of them use basically the same ~100w unit, no matter if it says "heavy duty" or not. Industrial sewing machines use 550w or 750w motors, and many have the option to sew with a longer stitch length of anywhere from 6mm to 9mm (roughly 4 or 3 stitches per inch) which will greatly reduce the tear-away perforation factor. With the right set-up, you can sew through thin plywood with one. Some people have mentioned the Singer 201, which is a very fine machine. It's neither a domestic nor an industrial, as it essentially marks the divergence point between the two classes of machine. It has a very stout build and will last a lifetime (or two or three) but it'll usually still be limited by the ~100w domestic-style motor.
I've been watching for a while, but haven't commented. Thank you for all the wonderful information and tutorials. I love the tone of them and while I hope to do some bookbinding in the future, they provide me with a relaxing and charming video to watch until then. Again, thank you.
Since you opened the door to the nautical by saying you had veered off to port (watch the broach), then I would say, look to Sailrite machines for all your heavy-duty needs. But I agree on the pamphlet stitch. Keep up the great work.
I was excited to see this because I love sewing paper for my journals using this same machine. I found using a Teflon needle helps, especially if you're sewing something that's been glued, such as a mixed media project where there's collaging on the paper. I've never attempted to sew the signatures like this, but you bet I'll try now. I'm with you on the pamphlet stitch, I enjoy the process because not a lot of thought needs to go into it, and it's so versatile as well. Thank you for this, I quite enjoyed it!
I switched my Singer's needle from a heavy-duty needle to a microtex after trying several tension variations, including bobbin tensions, for a cleaner underside. The needle switch helped.
I used to use an old hand cranked singer to sew multiple layers of cloth or thin leather for reenactment clothing. Although it did result in a few snapped needles it could cope with very thick stuff and the hand cranked nature allowed long stitch length by moving the material and ensured as far as possible the needle went in without side movement (which tended to snap needles) and went in slowly rather like an awl. Motor driven home adjacent machines just could not cope as well with difficult material thicknesses.
Make a sewing shim and butt it up against the top of your text block. Begin sewing through the shim and continue down the center of your text block. Position another shim at the bottom of the text block and sew off onto the bottom shim. The shim may help to keep the text block steady and square as the needle and pressure foot won't move to adjust to height differences during sewing.
I also bind a book with the sewing machine. This works fine! Just don't want to sew too fast! I also use some thicker yarn (Serafil 20) or Aurifil yarn thickness 28 (needle topstitch) you can also use crochet yarn on the bobbin. Regular sewing machine yarn is very sharp!
Great tutorial. I just recently bought a commercial sewing machine and will try sewing some book signatures. I finally bought myself a guillotine cutter like yours and it is surely a game changer. My book press is homemade from solid oak. I also do woodworking so it was a fun project. Made several other book-binding tools as well.
You made a guillotine? That's impressive. Have you shared pics or video of it anywhere? I'd love to see it. (As a woodworker myself, I have a list of binding tools on my To be made list as well :P )
@@thecatofnineswords Sorry for the mistake. I meant to say I bought a guillotine. I only built the press. I used a screw assembly from Amazon and built the frame and press plates from 1 3/4 oak. I edited the original reply.
It might be a good way of making a notebook one wanted to tear sheets out of. And sewing on the cloth, as well as laminating the end sheets onto the cloth cover would be useful in many ways, so a worthwhile experiment on your part indeed
The vintage Singer 201 sewing machine was used by some book binders. Alex Askaroff, sewing machine expert, discusses it in one of his videos on the 201 on TH-cam. They can be picked up at a very reasonable price and are great all round sewing machines.
I have the J. Kay book but never looked at the binding. Another interesting tutorial. Thank you. I think I will stick to 5 hole sewing and not cause myself endless bother with the sewing machine though!
An interesting experiment Darryn but I don't think I'll be investing in a sewing machine just yet. For me the hand sewn version not only looks a lot nicer but is also easier and a lot less stress😉
As someone who doesn't have a sewing machine, it's interesting to see the result, because the sewing-machine-binding method is evidently the one used to bind US Passports (the threads down the middle of the book have the same pattern as the machine-bound pamphlets in the video). The U.S. Government Publishing Office must have advanced machines that apply the thread in the same manner as a regular sewing machine (along with standardized guides probably built into the machines, judging by how difficult it seems to keep the paper in place with normal sewing machines).
I am wondering which needle you had installed. Any cloth needle is relatively blunt for piercing between the threads of the material. Can you try it again with a leather needle. That needle cuts as it sews. I have seen tons of sewing videos and the problems are solved by using the correct needle and weight of thread.
Yes, I thought about ordering some leather needles since I sometimes sew leather. But it's thin soft leather and it's not often. It was a heavier needle I bought as I regularly sew canvas. I think the packet said it was for denim.
Very nice! I suppose the binding should last a while given that passports are bound in a similar way. Should you ever need to make even perforations in paper (like stamps used to have them) you can replace the needle in the sewing machine with a hollow one like an injection needle
But when you were printing? How did you deal with the pagination? I have tried a few times to print out pamphlets, but the pagination is just something neither my printer nor Word can deal with. Also I learned at a young age ...around first or second grade, how to sew booklets using a sewing machine. I think the old Singer 401 did a fair job, just had to set it up with a basting stitch.
Do you mean the page numbers or the order of the pages for the pamphlet? For the later I use a little app called BookletCreator. Not everyone likes it and it costs something (don't know how much - I paid for it years ago). For page numbers I use InDesign.
Several good advise in the comments: use shim so the machine foot is at the same level as the book; use a basting stitch - longer than a standard stitch and; slow the machine down. And, I will add, like everything else, practice makes perfect.
It's not automatically true that something _must_ be out of copyright because it's available on the internet archive, or anywhere else, only likely. It might be made available for fair use such as education, parody, personal (non-commercial) use, or criticism; or other fair uses protected by other countries' copyright laws.
While I don't think using the machine is worth it for section sewing (and you would rapidly dull your needles), I think it's a good option for perforating tear-out notebook pages.
@@DASBookbinding Thanks Darryn, that's much appreciated. I've only recently discovered your channel and very much enjoying your channel. Have been a graphic designer and printer for about 35 years, and am looking forward to starting to make my own books that don't just come off a digital machine or coil binder!
I love your work and watch pretty much every video. 😊 Can you tell me if after cloth printing you seal it? I've been doing some test on pronting, using my bulk ink epson e a ink smudges a little. Do you have some tips? Thank you very much. 🙏🏾
No, I don't. One of the things I like with this cloth is that it doesn't smudge. I just went and grab the one I put in the bin and rubber it like crazy - even put water on it - and it didn't;t smudge a bit. I thought Epson inks were all about the same. So I'm guessing it's the cloth? Sorry, no help.
It might be easier to sew a straight line with higher precision if you had a hard-material jig or clamp to hold it as it feeds through. Like wood or metal or plastic. I am also not a sewing expert.
My books do not open flat and always try to close themselves with hard cover binding. Is this a common mistake? Was it mentioned in some of your videos?
Are these square-back with a rigid spine piece? If so, this structure does not open well. I'll be doing a video on book mechanics later in the year where I'll explain why.
@@DASBookbinding yes, it was square-back, but I don't understand how rigid spine is different from others. I am trying to do a book with rounded spine today
@@DASBookbinding I compared my new book with rounded (not backed) spine to manufactured one and spine and cover behavior looks the same, but my book still does not want to be flat open, pages are just "spring" themselves back. I think this is because I used long grain A4 to make A5 book, but I can't confirm it, I can't buy short grain paper anywhere in my country and I can't even find a term for it in my language. And the closest paper I can find abroad costs $20 for 100 sheets 0_o.
Thanks for this wonderful video! I found your channel and website many years ago after watching this video :th-cam.com/video/rgUGNGA5jW4/w-d-xo.htmlsi=6TsiCfOBHEg5ATw5 and deciding that I wanted to learn more about bookbinding. Your video's have been truly inspiring over the years, and what I hadn't learned from Diresta about measuring and cutting, I have managed to pick up by following your techniques. Now, on to my ancient singer 29-4 to hybridize your video and Diresta's! Thanks!
I enjoyed your video. It is hard to sew a straight line on paper. 2 thoughts: I wouldn’t trust online sellers to care about copyright infringement, particularly if it’s a seller in China AND I kept cracking myself up thinking laminations must be a book in the Bible. Bye now! 💜💜💜🥥🌴
"Heavy Duty" means it will hem jeans without jamming, which is a boon to us home sewists. Other than that, no, it's not anything special. I may use this technique to spit out a bunch of small sketchbooks for traveling with.
![เป็นไปได้ไหม - WanMai [Performance Video]](http://i.ytimg.com/vi/Eh5hItD4Mr0/mqdefault.jpg)
I am a textile artist. I have MANY sewing machines. I knew immediately that you’d have some challenges with the sewing. The quality of the machine is an enormous factor here. I’m a Janome girl - so have a lot of brand knowledge. The kind of machine that would be grunty enough to deliver an easy sew would be one beloved of bagmakers - for Janome that’s the HD9. Their top-of-the-line CM8 would also do a great job with the added advantages of 13” throat space AND a seam guide that would have helped the straight-line difficulties. Quilters have an enormous range of tools dedicated to perfecting straight sewing - some of these would have helped also. So all in all, you may have thought it was about bookbinding & I may think it about sewing but having appropriate tools applies to EVERYTHING!
I use a janome skyline s5 and stitch through 12 sheets watercolour paper and a cardstock cover with no issues.
Singer, once a great manufacturer, is now just a name, part of the SVP group (Singer, Viking, Pfaff). If i were to bind with the aid of a sewing machine, I'd opt for an old industrial machine with a modern servo motor which would allow you to make one complete stitch at a time. An alternative would a vintage manual machine.
As @vickicrowther4116 says, the Janome HD9 is a great machine.
Most domestic sewing machines you'll find will be limited by the power of the motor, and almost all of them use basically the same ~100w unit, no matter if it says "heavy duty" or not. Industrial sewing machines use 550w or 750w motors, and many have the option to sew with a longer stitch length of anywhere from 6mm to 9mm (roughly 4 or 3 stitches per inch) which will greatly reduce the tear-away perforation factor. With the right set-up, you can sew through thin plywood with one.
Some people have mentioned the Singer 201, which is a very fine machine. It's neither a domestic nor an industrial, as it essentially marks the divergence point between the two classes of machine. It has a very stout build and will last a lifetime (or two or three) but it'll usually still be limited by the ~100w domestic-style motor.
I've been watching for a while, but haven't commented. Thank you for all the wonderful information and tutorials. I love the tone of them and while I hope to do some bookbinding in the future, they provide me with a relaxing and charming video to watch until then. Again, thank you.
Since you opened the door to the nautical by saying you had veered off to port (watch the broach), then I would say, look to Sailrite machines for all your heavy-duty needs. But I agree on the pamphlet stitch. Keep up the great work.
I was excited to see this because I love sewing paper for my journals using this same machine. I found using a Teflon needle helps, especially if you're sewing something that's been glued, such as a mixed media project where there's collaging on the paper. I've never attempted to sew the signatures like this, but you bet I'll try now. I'm with you on the pamphlet stitch, I enjoy the process because not a lot of thought needs to go into it, and it's so versatile as well. Thank you for this, I quite enjoyed it!
I switched my Singer's needle from a heavy-duty needle to a microtex after trying several tension variations, including bobbin tensions, for a cleaner underside. The needle switch helped.
I used to use an old hand cranked singer to sew multiple layers of cloth or thin leather for reenactment clothing. Although it did result in a few snapped needles it could cope with very thick stuff and the hand cranked nature allowed long stitch length by moving the material and ensured as far as possible the needle went in without side movement (which tended to snap needles) and went in slowly rather like an awl. Motor driven home adjacent machines just could not cope as well with difficult material thicknesses.
Make a sewing shim and butt it up against the top of your text block. Begin sewing through the shim and continue down the center of your text block. Position another shim at the bottom of the text block and sew off onto the bottom shim. The shim may help to keep the text block steady and square as the needle and pressure foot won't move to adjust to height differences during sewing.
I also bind a book with the sewing machine. This works fine! Just don't want to sew too fast! I also use some thicker yarn (Serafil 20) or Aurifil yarn thickness 28 (needle topstitch) you can also use crochet yarn on the bobbin. Regular sewing machine yarn is very sharp!
Great tutorial. I just recently bought a commercial sewing machine and will try sewing some book signatures.
I finally bought myself a guillotine cutter like yours and it is surely a game changer. My book press is homemade from solid oak. I also do woodworking so it was a fun project. Made several other book-binding tools as well.
You made a guillotine? That's impressive. Have you shared pics or video of it anywhere? I'd love to see it.
(As a woodworker myself, I have a list of binding tools on my To be made list as well :P )
@@thecatofnineswords Sorry for the mistake. I meant to say I bought a guillotine. I only built the press. I used a screw assembly from Amazon and built the frame and press plates from 1 3/4 oak.
I edited the original reply.
Very interesting indeed, and lovely to hear 'Fairest Isle'.
We have the same machine! 🎉
... I don't know why that makes me so happy, but here we are. I do this every time I recognize my machine in a YT video.
It might be a good way of making a notebook one wanted to tear sheets out of. And sewing on the cloth, as well as laminating the end sheets onto the cloth cover would be useful in many ways, so a worthwhile experiment on your part indeed
Except that when you tear out a sheet the other half will fall out too. And the more you tear out, the looser the stitching.
The vintage Singer 201 sewing machine was used by some book binders. Alex Askaroff, sewing machine expert, discusses it in one of his videos on the 201 on TH-cam. They can be picked up at a very reasonable price and are great all round sewing machines.
I don’t need another toy:). I think my mother’s is a 201.
I have a vintage Consew walking foot sewing machine which I use for leatherwork and that eats through upto 8mm of paper without breaking a sweat :)
I have the J. Kay book but never looked at the binding. Another interesting tutorial. Thank you. I think I will stick to 5 hole sewing and not cause myself endless bother with the sewing machine though!
An interesting experiment Darryn but I don't think I'll be investing in a sewing machine just yet. For me the hand sewn version not only looks a lot nicer but is also easier and a lot less stress😉
Thank you very much.
Super work in book 📖
Good and good
As someone who doesn't have a sewing machine, it's interesting to see the result, because the sewing-machine-binding method is evidently the one used to bind US Passports (the threads down the middle of the book have the same pattern as the machine-bound pamphlets in the video). The U.S. Government Publishing Office must have advanced machines that apply the thread in the same manner as a regular sewing machine (along with standardized guides probably built into the machines, judging by how difficult it seems to keep the paper in place with normal sewing machines).
I believe they also use an indestructible synthetic paper.
Love this!
I am wondering which needle you had installed. Any cloth needle is relatively blunt for piercing between the threads of the material. Can you try it again with a leather needle. That needle cuts as it sews. I have seen tons of sewing videos and the problems are solved by using the correct needle and weight of thread.
Yes, I thought about ordering some leather needles since I sometimes sew leather. But it's thin soft leather and it's not often. It was a heavier needle I bought as I regularly sew canvas. I think the packet said it was for denim.
I will try a leather needle.
Very nice! I suppose the binding should last a while given that passports are bound in a similar way.
Should you ever need to make even perforations in paper (like stamps used to have them) you can replace the needle in the sewing machine with a hollow one like an injection needle
But when you were printing? How did you deal with the pagination? I have tried a few times to print out pamphlets, but the pagination is just something neither my printer nor Word can deal with. Also I learned at a young age ...around first or second grade, how to sew booklets using a sewing machine. I think the old Singer 401 did a fair job, just had to set it up with a basting stitch.
Do you mean the page numbers or the order of the pages for the pamphlet? For the later I use a little app called BookletCreator. Not everyone likes it and it costs something (don't know how much - I paid for it years ago). For page numbers I use InDesign.
Several good advise in the comments: use shim so the machine foot is at the same level as the book; use a basting stitch - longer than a standard stitch and; slow the machine down. And, I will add, like everything else, practice makes perfect.
Set your machine to slower sewing speed if you have a model that's permits it. It should help with keeping the stitch straight.
It's not automatically true that something _must_ be out of copyright because it's available on the internet archive, or anywhere else, only likely. It might be made available for fair use such as education, parody, personal (non-commercial) use, or criticism; or other fair uses protected by other countries' copyright laws.
While I don't think using the machine is worth it for section sewing (and you would rapidly dull your needles), I think it's a good option for perforating tear-out notebook pages.
Very interesting thanks. The sewing TH-cam channel you mentioned -- is that Glory Allan, or another channel?
Yes, it is. I forgot to add the link. Done now. Thanks, darryn
@@DASBookbinding Thanks Darryn, that's much appreciated. I've only recently discovered your channel and very much enjoying your channel. Have been a graphic designer and printer for about 35 years, and am looking forward to starting to make my own books that don't just come off a digital machine or coil binder!
I love your work and watch pretty much every video. 😊 Can you tell me if after cloth printing you seal it? I've been doing some test on pronting, using my bulk ink epson e a ink smudges a little. Do you have some tips? Thank you very much. 🙏🏾
No, I don't. One of the things I like with this cloth is that it doesn't smudge. I just went and grab the one I put in the bin and rubber it like crazy - even put water on it - and it didn't;t smudge a bit. I thought Epson inks were all about the same. So I'm guessing it's the cloth? Sorry, no help.
Thank you for quick respond. It must be it. I'll make some more test with another cloth.😊
Can you post postage album binding
It might be easier to sew a straight line with higher precision if you had a hard-material jig or clamp to hold it as it feeds through. Like wood or metal or plastic. I am also not a sewing expert.
🙂👏☺
I love adding ornaments to my fake leather (cloth) books but rather sew the signatures by hand
The sewing machine certainly looks very rugged!
My books do not open flat and always try to close themselves with hard cover binding. Is this a common mistake? Was it mentioned in some of your videos?
Are these square-back with a rigid spine piece? If so, this structure does not open well. I'll be doing a video on book mechanics later in the year where I'll explain why.
@@DASBookbinding yes, it was square-back, but I don't understand how rigid spine is different from others. I am trying to do a book with rounded spine today
@@DASBookbinding I compared my new book with rounded (not backed) spine to manufactured one and spine and cover behavior looks the same, but my book still does not want to be flat open, pages are just "spring" themselves back.
I think this is because I used long grain A4 to make A5 book, but I can't confirm it, I can't buy short grain paper anywhere in my country and I can't even find a term for it in my language. And the closest paper I can find abroad costs $20 for 100 sheets 0_o.
Thanks for this wonderful video! I found your channel and website many years ago after watching this video :th-cam.com/video/rgUGNGA5jW4/w-d-xo.htmlsi=6TsiCfOBHEg5ATw5 and deciding that I wanted to learn more about bookbinding. Your video's have been truly inspiring over the years, and what I hadn't learned from Diresta about measuring and cutting, I have managed to pick up by following your techniques. Now, on to my ancient singer 29-4 to hybridize your video and Diresta's! Thanks!
Thanks for sharing! DAS
I enjoyed your video. It is hard to sew a straight line on paper. 2 thoughts: I wouldn’t trust online sellers to care about copyright infringement, particularly if it’s a seller in China AND I kept cracking myself up thinking laminations must be a book in the Bible. Bye now! 💜💜💜🥥🌴
"Heavy Duty" means it will hem jeans without jamming, which is a boon to us home sewists. Other than that, no, it's not anything special.
I may use this technique to spit out a bunch of small sketchbooks for traveling with.