What is involved in Hardcover Book Binding?

Hardcover book binding, often called casebinding or casing in, is the process of (you guessed it) binding a hardcover book. In the print and finishing industries, hardcover binding involves a specially formulated glue that is applied to the spine of a book block (book pages) and a liner sheet (attached to the front and back hard covers). This process involves three general steps, which usually use three different machines:

1. Sewing – Sewing your book block together
2. Casemaking – to make the hardcover itself
3. Hardcover binding – to bind the hard cover to your book pages

The steps involved will vary a bit depending on the machine brand and model that you are working with, but these general overviews will give you a good idea of how the processes work.

Thread Sewing – Making your Book Block
Step one for hardcover book binding is called thread sewing and is the process where your book pages are sewn together with a needle and thread. Typically pages are folded together into booklets called “signatures” and then those signatures are sewn together. This can be accomplished by hand for those making their own hardcover books, or using an automated machine for print and finishing shops. After sewn together, the book blocks are trimmed to be flush.

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Book Sewing Machine (chinaprintech.com)

Thread sewing is not required for all hardcover books, and is primarily used for novels. Thinner books, such as for photo book binding, will often skip this step and simply glue the signatures together.

Casemaking – Making the Hard Cover Itself
Step two for case binding is to make the case (or the hardcover) itself. To do this, you can use any number of machines, or do it by hand with some patience and skill. It involves printing your wrap-around cover page and then adhering it to chipboards to create a hardcover. With a machine like the Casematic, lining up the 3 boards and your printed cover, and then wrapping the corners is fast and accurate.

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Multifunctional Automatic Hardcover Case Making Machine (chinaprintech.com)

Hard Cover Binding – Binding the Hard Cover & Book Block Together
Step three is to bind the two pieces together, finishing your hardcover book. This process involves a special binding glue that is heated up and applied to the book block spine and then pressing the spine into your cover. Sometimes a gauze/fabric strip is also applied. An end sheet is also used on the first and last pages of your book to attach the book block to the covers more thoroughly, as well as hide the inside of the boards from your case.

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HX360 Notebook Cover Casing In Machine (chinaprintech.com)

Semi Auto Hardcover Casing In Machine (chinaprintech.com)