Do It Yourself Bookbinding
diybookbinding.com
diybookbinding.com
1) Much easier to study and annotate 2) They open flat easily, so no clamps required on the music stand 3) Lighter to carry around (Nobody plays a whole book at the same time) 4) You can set up multiple pages in a row if the stand is wide enough.
1) I's easier to rest my hand on the stand and annotate if there is enough thickness to support the paper, especially if the stand is a hollow wireframe. If it's a lone sheet of paper, I tend to just lay it flat against my cello and annotate there (and I must be careful not to mark the wood underneath the paper).
2) Correct. But so do good bindings, to a lesser extent. Many bindings aren't easy to lay flat, though.
3) That depends. If you play the piano, a whole collection of studies sure will be heavy. But a melodic instrument playing a focused piece you will go through? No heavier than separate sheets: you'll use them all anyway.
4) That issue is mitigated by most good editions, where the bottom right corner of the right page is a pause long enough to let you turn. I've seen many poor editions that could be laid out properly, but weren't.
3. I play the violin and most of my music didn’t come in one piece one book. Each book has many pieces.
Only concertos sometimes occupy a whole book. Even then, they also contain the piano accompaniment scores.
4. I agree, some good editions are very considerate.
Aren't the piano score separate, so you can give them to the pianist? All concerto scores I have a separate, thin, staple bound score for me, and a thicker one for the pianist. (I don't know how they manage to turn their page with the audience hardly noticing.)
Ideally, there should be a page turner sitting next to the pianist.
I recommend https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wire_binding
The binding machine is heavy, but lives forever, and it's possible to get a used one at hobbyist prices.
It may look OK when new, but after having travelled a dozen times in your backpack it decomposes in the worst way. Pages start making a creaky sound when turning, they get stuck in the uneven wires, and inevitably start to separate, often from the middle of the page, which is extremely annoying and difficult to fix. When you try to re-fold the wires correctly with your fingers, it becomes worse. The only advantage with respect to spiral winding is that the actual binding act is faster to perform (but it requires a heavy equipment).
Spiral binding, on the other hand, is extremely elegant. It is the most robust shape ever, no matter how you compress it between hardcover books it always performs its job. The only way to separate the pages is by tearing the paper. You can bind them yourself with a simple multi-hole punch, and I actually find it a pleasing thing to do.
By the way, I don't understand your first comment. Spiral bound paper always lies open flat directly. On the other hand, for wire binding it may not (because the papers reach the fold of the wire).
Example images are on https://splashofcode.com.
Manual ones are relatively cheap, around $30, and they make it so easy to get a perfect result every time.
You might want to try something like this https://www.ebay.com/itm/114129565092
http://quantumelephant.co.uk/bookbinder/bookbinder.html
Works great for it's functions. I decided to craft my own saddle binding script (a mere 179 lines of code) in python by using the output of this program as a guide. The java program here works well enough for one book at a time. I needed fine control over margins and being able to print two books at a time from the same round of printing.
I make pocket sized books no larger than 72 pages. To achieve a professional result using an inkjet printer it requires about 17 minutes of work and waiting time to produce 2 of them. The paper stacks are cut in half, folded, stapled, crushed in a press, and then trimmed with a sharp paper cutter. It is possible to achieve a remarkable level of quality with these methods.
If working in batches of more books at a time the books printed per hour is increasing but the limit seems largest on the printer which can only print about 2 sides a minute.
I thought there could be no way that an inkjet could possibly compete with a laser printer for cost per page but I was pleasantly surprised when I found ink tank printers. The quality is fantastic at least.
Btw does anyone know where I could find high quality trapper-keeper style hardware in smaller factors (like a5)
lower pitch?
I usually print out technical documents (and sometimes even code). I bind them with either:
* Staples -- For when I don't care. Staples are the lowest quality by far and are only used if I'm disposing of the document very soon.
* 2-hole + prong fastener -- 2-hole binding is extremely cheap. Prong fasteners are not as cheap as staples, but still come in packs of ~100+ and solidly bind documents.
* Comb-binder -- The comb binding machine is on the order of ~$100+, but combs themselves are only a ~dime each. Not as cheap as staples or 2-hole prongs, but combs have the best quality (lays flat, strong binding, turns smoothly, etc. etc.)
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What's listed here is book-binding as an art. Stitched binding + glue will offer strong and beautiful books. Which is certainly useful for one-off projects, for weddings or something special like that.
Here is what the result looks like: https://youtu.be/Ik9a3MJunB8?t=27
http://reviews.shopwritersbloc.com/tag/disc-bound
https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Disc-binding
I'm a huge fan: invented in the first half of 20th century, the system basically blends the benefits of a ring binder (easy adding and removing of pages) and spiral binder (notebook can be opened flat, and you can write on both sides of page easily). Also, it's IMO just kinda crazy and counterintuitive how paper has enough strength to be able to stay bound hinged on unclosed holes... (!)
1. A plastic separate "binder" like thing, which can be attached to the glued together side of the book. Since the textbook are glued together in factory, this additional binder makes the book more solid. 2. A plastic protect wrap to cover the book back/front covers. I used to hand-make these wraps from a very large paper as well, since it looks more "personalized" and cheaper.
I used thread and sewed it together. It was an easy project. It's like making a metal toolbox in high school metal shop. Sure, you can just go buy one, but it's nice to have one made by hand.