Switched from PVA to wheat paste for my spine repairs and never looked back

I was using PVA for everything until I helped a guy restore a 1920s novel last month. He said PVA was too stiff for old paper and recommended trying wheat paste. I was skeptical at first because it sounds messy, but I gave it a shot on a $50 thrift store book. The flexibility is way better, and it dries slower so I can actually adjust my wraps. Only downside is it takes like 2 hours to prep a batch, but the result looks way more natural. Anyone else use wheat paste over PVA for vintage books?

3 comments

3 Comments

ryan_shah381mo ago

Whoa wait, you seriously left wheat paste in the fridge for a week and it was still good? That's wild to me. I've always heard you gotta use it right away or it turns into some kind of science experiment gone wrong. Maybe it's just me but I've had bad luck with homemade adhesives before, so I'm super cautious. Still, hearing that makes the two hour prep seem a little less annoying, maybe I'll give it another shot with a smaller batch first.

the_mary1mo ago

...and that 2 hour prep time is exactly why I've got a batch of wheat paste in my fridge that I'm terrified to open because I think it might've grown legs by now. I tried switching once but ended up with a glue disaster on a 1950s paperback that looked like a toddler had gotten into the arts and crafts cabinet. So yeah, I'll stick with my PVA and just pretend the old books don't mind being a little stiff.

daniel1401mo ago

Respectfully, wheat paste isn't that scary once you get the ratio down. I've left a batch in my fridge for a week and it was still fine, just needed a stir. PVA is easier but that stiffness will haunt you on older paperbacks, not worth it in my book.