Bookcases

[Zooey]

Another theatre teacher recommended to me to run old books through a table saw to about 1 1/2" from the spine and glue them together to be able to keep stocked bookcases light weight.

So, now, three years later, I have a reason to do that, but I haven't thought of a practical way to ensure that all those books stay upright when the bookcase is moved on stage in a scene change.

Any ideas?

 

[lieperjp]

Glue the spines to the shelves? Or, glue the spines together in groups of 3-5 and they will be less likely to fall over/off. Put a small finishing nail through one of the spines in the group to tack it in place.

Also, don't know where you're coming from, but if you have access to a large-scale paper cutter (think paper cutter that can cut through an entire ream of paper in one cut) use that instead. That's much safer than a table saw. Large print shops in school districts should have one, that is, if you have a print shop, or check with a local copy center who should have one as well. You'll probably get charged by the cut but for many books you probably can work out a deal. Note: Some copy centers may not want to dull their blade on hardcover books. I've done a few books to test it out at my workplace and it works ok but you need to use some muscle to get it to slice through the first cover.

Something like this:
Full Ream, Manual:

 

[derekleffew]

A false back on each shelf, or perhaps something from this thread: http://www.controlbooth.com/forums/scenery/6326-fake-books.html.

 

[scenerymaker]

Don't use a table saw. A bandsaw will be MUCH safer. A better idea would be to remove the paper from inside the covers and hot glue some thin foam strips around the edges of the covers holding them closed. Then hot glue most of the hollow books together on the shelf. You could even leave 1 or 2 alone so an actor could take a book down and open it. That is, if you can trust an actor to pick the right book!

 

[coldnorth57]

After the spinds are off glue them tp cardboard boxes of the right size and now you have an easy way of holding them up and moving them

 

[Dionysus]

The cheapest lightest solution is to carve the spines from foam and glue them onto the bookcase. You have to treat them so they look real (not like foam), but that's not very hard, and there are lots of ways to do it.
Really cheap, especially if you don't have a lot of different looking books around that you care to cut into bits.

 

[icewolf08]

The easiest solution is vacuform books. Now I realize that not everyone has a vacuform table, but you can buy them as well. We make our own, we have a couple different molds and then we paint and garnish as needed. They can be cut to any depth and weigh mere ounces.

 

[derekleffew]

I thought about that Alex, but couldn't find an online source for the pre-made ones. Do you know of a vendor?

 

[icewolf08]

I thought about that Alex, but couldn't find an online source for the pre-made ones. Do you know of a vendor?

I would have to do some searching, I used to know as I researched it once, but alas, it was a while ago.