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Showerthought: I tried to press a book with a stack of old encyclopedias and a space heater.
I was finishing a small leather journal last week and my press was full. I had the bright idea to pile my grandpa's old World Book set on top, then put a small space heater nearby to 'help the glue set'. After about three hours, I came back to a very warm, very warped cover. The heat made the leather shrink and pull away from the boards. Learned that weight and heat are not the same as even pressure. Has anyone else had a DIY pressing plan go sideways?
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jones.grace7mo ago
Yeah the "help the glue set" part is where it all went wrong lol. Heat dries things out way too fast, especially on leather. It's not like baking where a little warmth is good. That quick dry makes the material pull and shrink before the glue can even settle right. You basically forced it to change shape in the worst way. Next time just let the weight do its thing over a few days, patience is the only real trick.
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spencerw727mo ago
Nah, I've had way better luck with a little heat. Letting it sit for days just gives the glue time to get stiff and brittle before it fully bonds. A gentle warmth from a hairdryer on low keeps it flexible so it can seep into the material and actually cure stronger. The trick is to keep it moving and not cook it. That slow air dry method just feels like leaving it up to chance.
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nancy_owens6mo ago
My buddy tried to iron a paperback flat once, like with an actual clothes iron. It made this awful plastic smell and the cover just fused together. Totally what @jones.grace said about heat drying things out too fast. He had to peel the pages apart.
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