The Dolphin

I have recently purchased a $15 copy of The Dolphin Number 2. It arrived in a beat up original shipping box from the Printing-Office of the Yale University press (where it was printed) along with the four page advanced announcement and a leaflet called "Of interest to present subscribers", containing printing details. The insides were fine but the cover was almost completely detached from the text block. In addition some cloth sections were detached from the boards. The book was in need of restoration so I decided to take the challenge up. First, I completely detached the boards from the cloth cover. Then cleaned and reattached them. Next I strengthened the back/hinges with Lineco mousseline and reattached the boards. Finally I added the marbled end papers, which I have had in my possession for some time. This was the second time I took such a project. Therefore I was able to avoid some of my previous mistakes but of course made others. The trickiest part for me was thinning the glue enough and applying just the right amount. Especially when attaching the marbled end paper since it does not like moisture too much. Overall the project turned out satisfactory and I can finally hold the book in my hands and enjoy the informative articles.

Looks very nice! Did you just use PVA glue? How do you trim the marbled paper on the book side?

Great book with which to practice. My copy in VG+ shape cost $25 so your exercise wasn't really in cost savings but practice in saving a book. I'm thinking of giving that a go as well. In the mean time, I've just added slipcases to my Dolphin set.

Yep, just PVA glue thinned with water. I used paper knife to cut the marbled paper after being glued into place but not completely dried. Pressing with a ruler on the boards and using the text block instead of the ruler on the other side. Someone on this board once told me that cutting the end paper in place is the way to go and it is not that hard.

Nice job! So we now know whom to turn to to fix/improve our books :)

Very nice!