Bradel Following Denninger

A few years ago, the Stichting Handboekbinden posted the availability in sheets of Johann Denninger's De Bradelbinding (The Bradel Binding), also here. The New Bookbinder (1996) had published what I consider an abridged version with some history of the structure and something about this Bradel ... Like the article, this book started off with a lot of "according to" history, before going into the step-by-step instructions for what ends up as a hybrid historical/old school Pappband/Edelpappband, the latter so called because of the corner and head/tail reinforcements in parchment or leather, something that was first described in the literature around 1905. I describe the history of the Pappband structure, including a review of the literature and step-by-step instructions for the Ur-form in a 3-post series starting here.

But, back to Denninger ... I rarely follow instructions from a manual when binding it, but decided to in this case. The text is in Dutch, but I could get the gist of most from the illustration and my German/English Denglish. For those parts I couldn't figure out, I took screen grabs from the PDF available at the link above, then using Google Lens to translate the image. Then copy and paste into a Word ... document.

Making the endsheet section: this is a fairly standard historical
endsheet consisting of a double-folio text-like paper to which a
"decorative" folio is adhered resulting in a "made" endsheet(the schutblad). A 
single waste-sheet is hooked around this. You'll 
see why in later steps. 

The signatures were then rough cut. The top edge will get ploughed later

A template ensures that all the sewing holes line up ...

I sewed on three untwisted and frayed out cords, so like tapes, but ...

With the sewing done, the endsheet section was narrowly tipped-on
the adjacent signature, then the spine was glued up nice and square.

After rounding and backing to 45° at the shoulder with my "kashtoir",
I lined the spine with muslin between the sewing stations.

Then, I used my fray shield to clean up and untwist ... the strands
of the cords so that they were nice and clean ...

Next, I applied paste along the spine edge of the waste-sheet
and to the cord, neatly fanning them out and smoothing with a
folder so they weren't lumpy ... (Read image from right to left) 

When dry ..., I ploughed the top edge. Then, I applied a nice rolled
endband, I made mine of leather, and line the spine from end to end. 
 A simple one on, two off hollow was also suggested as an option,
but I went with just a simple paper lining as this is a very small volume.

Denninger then suggested a "gebrochener Rücken", scroll down here, the quintessential
hallmark of this style, or this little piece that was the width of the spine +
2x the slope of the shoulder. I had only seen this in connection with the
"Danish millimeter" binding, but gave it a try.

The edges were pared, then the over-long piece was adhered only
at the shoulder. Then, the boards were attached to the waste-sheet
adjacent to the shoulder. Glue should only go just beyond the fanned-out cords.

In keeping with the style, I made dainty little leather corners/tips.

Then I added the head and tail leather edging, when dry, I reduced
by paring the leather, and then sanded carefully so the transition
would be almost imperceptible.

Important, I also tore off the waste sheet so that it was nicely feathered 
out, and then sanded it so that it was all smooth. That way, the fanned-out
cords don't show through under the pastedown.

The same was done with the corners. They will be "invisible" 
when the cover is viewed board-on, and almost invisible on
the turn-ins.

Here, head [and tail] after covering.
After covering and making the turn-ins, I trimmed out the verso
of the board, so it was all neat and tidy.

And the corners from the inside showing the turn-in.

Finally, the overall. I made the oil-marbled paper in 2019. It was my
introduction to marbling in 1984, and 2019 was the first time in over
30 years ... The title is a laser printed recessed label with an edge,
something I learned from Bill Minter when I worked for him a
l.o.n.g. time ago. I describe how to here.

All-in-all, an interesting exercise and fun excuse to get back into binding after an extended absence.

This also ties in well with something I'm working on regarding the evolution of the Pappband/Bradel into the Edelppband, and now this thing called a Sandgren Binding. Nomenclature is important, but gets VERY messy with multiple languages and "creation myths".

Millimeter Binding (Edelpappband)

The German-style millimeter binding (Edelpappband) is the "ennobled" version of the paper-covered case binding and should not be confused with the equally elegant but fundamentally different Danish millimeter binding (link to John Hyltoft: Danish Millimeter Binding from GBW Standards 1995). I described the case-bound German version of the millimeter binding in The Bonefolder, Volume 1, No. 2, Spring 2005, and Renate Mesmer the "in boards" version at the GBW Standards in 2005.

Ernst Collin discussed aspects of this binding on "Wednesday" in his Pressbengel, link to the English Bone Folder at left.

See also the 2005 Bonefolder Edelpappband / “Millimeter” Binding Bind-O-Rama where readers explored this structure, many for the first time.

Below are some maquettes I made to illustrate the covering stages for the version with the narrow leather edge along top and bottom (or fore-edges) and the version with invisible corners.

Below a diagram showing some of the design variants possible.

Overall images of the three books above

The Enchiridon of Epictetus, Press Intermezzo, 1997.

Edelpappband / millimeter binding: Endpapers of red Roma paper; top edge gilt; endband of pastepaper around thread core, vellum trim along top and bottom edges; covered in hand-made pastepaper; title in gold on front cover. 16.5 x 12 x 1cm. Bound 2005.

 

Saturday Night, 1953 / The Elements, Angorfa Press, 1998.

Edelpappband / millimeter binding: Sewn on 3 ramie tapes; plain endsheets same as text; solid graphite edges; red eel-skin leather endbands; "millimeter / edelpappband" case covered in original pastepaper by binder with blue eel-skin leather trim at head, tail, and along foreedges; title stamped in black on spine. 18 x 13 x .7cm. Bound 2003. The book, in the "Cased Binding" category, was awarded the Harmatan Leather Award for Forwarding in the Society of Bookbinders' 2003 Bookbinding Competition.

 

Fritz and Trudi Eberhardt, Rules for Bookbinders, The Boss Dog Press, 2003.

Edelpappband / millimeter binding: Endpapers same as text; top edge in graphite and burnished; dark red leather endband around thread core; vellum trim at head/tail caps with invisible corners; covered in handmade pastepaper; title in graphite on front cover. Soft “Ascona-style” slipcase covered in paper to match book with title in graphite on spine. 18 x 12.5 x 1cm. Bound 2005.

Other examples can be seen among the bindings here.