McHuston Booksellers

Rare, Collectible, & Otherwise

Tag: bookbinding (Page 9 of 99)

Held Together by Rust and Grime.

August 23, 2016 /

I’m not a banjo picker. But then, before this afternoon I wasn’t a banjo repairman. We all have to start somewhere.

In this case, it starts with a well-appreciated (by that I mean pretty beat-up) Kay five-string banjo – which according to several websites (so it has to be true, right?) – was manufactured in Chicago in the 1960s. It came into my hands from one of our lunch guests who was thinning out his collection of musical instruments.

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Over the years I’ve learned that some vintage things are held together by years of collected grease and grime. Apparently, this particular instrument was held intact by the old rusty strings. Before becoming the next Flatt & Scruggs banjo-picking sensation, I thought I’d just whip some new strings on the thing.

Tightening up the first new string, and…

POW!

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The string went all slack (and decidedly non-musical). Tried several times to get some tension on the string before I finally examined the gear and tuning peg.

Well. The tiny spot where over a half century ago some craftsman connected two pieces of metal together – was broken. Probably not beyond repair, but certainly out of my superglue range of skills.

After a little further investigation, I determined that the banjo is no Antiques Roadshow segment, and would not have been even in better shape than its current state. So I ordered some tuning gears and today they arrived.

Wouldn’t fit in the banjo.

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Plan B could have been:

A. “Return to the Internet” to find some other parts
B. Make the parts in hand work out.
C. Give up and just throw the darn thing away

Mostly because I love using my cordless drill, I chose B. That’s how I happen to have an image of a drill bit digging into a banjo.

Fun is where you can find it.

There is probably a special banjo hole-reaming tool out there. Probably expensive. The keep drilling with a larger-diameter drill bit method did the trick for me.

Unfortunately, the cordless drill has been in the cabinet for a time, and ran out juice shortly after taking the picture. So, I’m writing this as the battery recharges.

I hope to have the gears mounted and ready for stringing by this evening.

Then I can pop over to the music section and see if that Beginner’s Guide to Guitar Pickin’ is still on the shelf.

Come visit!

McHuston

Booksellers & Irish Bistro
Rose District
122 South Main St. Broken Arrow OK!

The Pickin’ and the Paper.

August 12, 2016 /

It’s always a surprise when it arrives. Random. Not like the every Saturday delivery of TIME magazine (which, by the way, USED to be a real magazine). Maybe a head-to-head comparison isn’t fair, but the arrival of FRETBOARD JOURNAL is almost cause for celebration.

My guitar-pickin’ acquaintances would certainly appreciate the chance to fawn over the pictures of exotic guitars, some of which are famous in their own right.

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If we carried magazines at the shop, I’d have this one on the shelf – but I’m guessing that it is distributed only by subscription. No barcodes that I can see, and no pre-printed price on the front cover. Glossy pictures on slick, quality paper.

Come to think of it, the term ‘magazine’ probably doesn’t even apply. It says ‘journal’ right there on the front.

Turns out, the publication has magical qualities:

It has a print-shop scent, and each issue reminds me immediately of the printing class I took at the Vo-Tech campus as a high school senior.

The interviews with guitar-makers allow me a new appreciation for the construction of musical instrument. I’ve had git-fiddles around me most of my life, but never stopped to think about what makes one instrument sound better than another.

My routine gets prompted and I’m anxious to pick up and practice or play.

And – when I open that finely-constructed cardboard packing box and realize that FRETBOARD has arrived – it makes me think of Linda and Dennis, whose thoughtful gift lets me enjoy each new issue.

Keep pickin’ – they said.

(I’ve got blisters on my fingers.)

A Fine Day for Fine Binding.

August 9, 2016 /

Sometimes it is the packaging as much as the beauty of the written word. Have several stacks of proof, as of this afternoon – an estate purchase of some of the best stories ever written bound in leather and embossed gilt bindings.

It’s a little bit like drizzling chocolate over that scoop of ice cream. A decorative binding makes a classic that much better, just to take it down from the shelf.

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Most of these are close to forty-year-old books, but they appear as though they came off the press just last week. Most are unread and the decorative ribbon place-markers have never been moved.

Beautiful books. A joy to have in the shop.

There are a couple of companies that have better reputations among the fine-binding publishers. Franklin Mint Library and Easton Press are both recognized as top-flight houses with an artistic craftsmanship.

Franklin Library ended its run in 2000, but published beautiful, yet affordable, editions for over thirty years. Some titles are a bit more expensive than others these days, but the Franklin editions are beautiful, high quality volumes that allow collectors of fine books to assemble a library without an extensive investment. Most of those added to inventory today are unread, gilt-edged, embossed, fine-binding books – under $20.

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Easton Press continues to create some of the most beautiful books in the world, and offers limited editions, signed copies, and unique illustrated editions. Their offering of the 100 greatest titles proved to be among the most popular of fine-binding books published.

And they aren’t cheap.

They currently offer a deluxe edition of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde – in a gorgeous leather binding – for $375 (in easy installments, of course.).

Although the books that arrived today aren’t the extra-fancy editions, they are all beautifully bound, and value-priced. (I’ve admitted to folks that I try to keep our retail prices in line with the lowest offerings anywhere in the US.)

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The titles range from Edgar Allan Poe to Charles Dickens to Geoffrey Chaucer – including some very desirable classic literature.

You can’t play Pokemon-Go on them, but they’ll still be in fashion for years to come and a wonderful addition to any booklover’s library.

Stop in soon!

McHuston

Booksellers & Irish Bistro
122 South Main St. Broken Arrow OK!

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