Rosewood Boards

2009 April 1

Clasp Style II: Originally posted 2003 on bookclasp.com

The brass book clasp on the little book below is a variation on the one above, also made from 22 gauge brass sheet, using only files, round nose pliers, nibbler, flush cutters, ball-peen hammer and riveting hammer.

Rosewood with clasp. 2.5 X 2.5

Rosewood with clasp. 2.5" X 2.5"

Clasps are attached to boards with brass escutcheon pins, which are turned down into grooves allowing them to lie flush with the inside of the boards. Attaching in this manner helps to prevent the pins from loosening and slipping out over time due to drying out of the wood.

Although the pins in these examples have been filed flush with the boards, that is generally not advisable.

The suede spine cover has long flaps at the head and tail which wrap around to protect the text block. It’s just a little binding I devised. Neither clasp nor binding is historically accurate.

This book is sewn in the Ethiopian, or Coptic style with a link stitch. The rosewood was found. The pieces are scraps from a xylophone maker. The suede is from a thrift store garment.The paper is recycled from an earlier project.

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