Where to buy thick acetate for BSP hardcovers (1 Viewer)

[Gunn]

I have a couple Bukowski hardcovers published by Black Sparrow Press that are missing their acetate dustjackets, and I'd like to find some material to make new dustjackets for these books. I've seen a few "replacement' jackets before, but they've always been made out of a thinner gauged material than what Black Sparrow used.

Does anyone know where I can find a sheet or roll of the thicker acetate material like BSP used for their hardcover books? I'm not even sure what thickness I should be looking for . . . . Any help you guys can provide would be greatly appreciated. Thanks!

 

[bospress.net]

Talasonline.com has them. They are mylar/polyester. I just mic'd what I have here and it came out to .007 - .0o9" depending on how hard I push the micrometer.

http://apps.webcreate.com/ecom/catalog/product_specific.cfm?ClientID=15&ProductID=17967

Best to call them. They used to sell this in sheets and I messed around with them for a while with some early releases. They also sell a swatch book for $6 that will let you really dial in what thickness you want...

http://apps.webcreate.com/ecom/catalog/product_specific.cfm?ClientID=15&ProductID=25374

Bill

 

[jordan]

BSP covers changed throughout the years. I have replaced a number of covers with 5ml dura-lar, which you can get at any art supply store. It's a little different than the cloudy plastic that they used on the later releases, although it's identical (to my eyes) to the earlier dustjackets. I used to get hung up about not having original dustjackets on some of my books, but unless you bought the book directly from the press, there's no way to authenticate the dustjacket anyway. The whole reason Martin designed the books like that was to avoid the whole issue of a chipped/torn dustjacket tanking the value of the book, so he wanted something that could easily be replaced.

 

[mjp]

I have a roll of .007 that feels close to what BSP used. But then theirs varied over time as well, so it's probably all the same in the end.

I have a .005 roll too, and frankly that's a lot easier to work with and convince to keep a fold. That thick stuff will fight you.

Don't remember where I bought it, but it was considerably less than those Talas prices.

---

I see fancy boy beat me to the punch. I think that's what I have here too, the Dura-Lar.

 

[Purple Stickpin]

The thickness and ply of these changed over time. Of course, it's tough to say which DJs I have that are actually original, but based on what I have, they went from "thinner, more brittle glassine, singly ply" in the late 60s-early 70s to a thicker glassine single ply through much of the 70s. In the 80s, things get more complicated. My Buk books from this time range from a clear single ply to a thicker, more "cloudy" single or perhaps double ply. My Fante books from the 80s all show delamination of a dual or multi-ply construction. None of the Buk books from this period have delaminated.

So, my conclusion is either that I have no idea what the hell is going on or, BSP used better-quality DJs for Buk books for a period of time.

Edit: Missed Jordan's and mjp's input.

 

[mjp]

I think we all missed each other's input.

But yes, I've found the earlier covers to be much thinner and more brittle. I was going to replace all of mine, but for some reason I made a few and stopped, and the two rolls of Dura-Lar sit in the drawer waiting for someone to take them to the prom. I guess I don't care enough about the covers to worry about it.

I just looked at them and the thinner roll is marked "03," so it's thinner than I thought. But the thicker one doesn't seem to keep a bend very well.

 

[jordan]

in making my replacements, i never fold along the spine - i just crease the end flaps and roll it around the spine, and then i put the book under weight for a couple days and everything sets into shape. the key is to make them fit pretty tight (not so tight that you're stressing the book) - it's the right fit if the dj wants to hold the front cover open a little bit once you first put it on.