July 2005: Perfect Binding Text Layouts

Many designers place heavy emphasis on cover layouts during the book planning stages. While the cover is the face of your product and deserves such attention, text layouts are equally important for both design and production purposes. Let's take a look at a few tips to help you plan proper signatures:

To ensure crossovers look their best, strip images 1/16" short of the grind-off for perfect-bound signature layouts.

Crossover copy - Text and images that span from page to page, or "crossovers", can be a problem for all binding styles if not planned properly. Crossovers should appear to meet at the spine without interrupting the copy or image. To accomplish this, strip the images to meet 1/16" short of the grind-off area. Whenever possible, it's best to avoid diagonal lines and small type crossovers.

Inks and coatings - Inks and press-applied coatings that bleed into the gutter can compromise the strength of the bond as these elements migrate with the binding adhesive. This is known as "solvent degradation", and is of particular concern on projects with heavy varnish or UV coating coverage. To minimize solvent degradation and ensure a strong bond, keep all coatings 1/4" away from the spine, which accounts for a 1/8" area for glue adhesion and a grind-off of 1/8". Note: aqueous coatings are generally not a problem, but check with the experts at Muscle Bound during the layout process.

Stock selection - For signatures printed on uncoated papers, a 50 to 60 lb offset stock is ideal. Products using coated papers should use a 70 to 80 lb. stock, especially if coatings or varnishes will be applied. For covers, a stock between eight and twelve point weight will run best.

If planning to use an unusual or custom stock, such as a synthetic or recycled paper, please consult Muscle Bound and build time into your schedule for a test run. Some of these unusual stocks require extra planning attention to ensure the results meet your expectations.

Layout tip: Remember to maintain consistent trim sizes on all signatures. A 1/8" trim margin at the head, foot and face of your signatures is ideal; if your layout includes margins greater than 1", call Muscle Bound to be sure they will work for your specific project. Keep in mind uneven head, foot and face trims will result in the image area "jumping" throughout the book due to jogging and trimming issues. And always remember to keep all paper grain parallel to the spine!

The Muscle Bound Advantage
At Muscle Bound Bindery, we're available to assist with all levels of layout planning. From tips on preparing book signatures to offering ready-to-use layout templates, rely on us to help you design the best books possible. In addition, our slate of perfect binding, patented Otabind layflat adhesive binding and side-sewn case binding styles ensure that your books have the strength and durability to withstand any usage environment. Give us a call to begin planning your next successful binding project.