What are Die Cut Case Bound Covers? The following pictures show case bound/hard back books that are Die Cut completely through the front covers. Until recently, this was extremely RARE, but now I’m seeing the Die Cut Cover concept somewhat often.
The Die Cut Cover addition to a case bound/hard back book certainly makes it distinctive! You’ll notice circles, ovals, and rounded shapes.
The Die Cutting portion of the project is done after the book is completely bound. Since the most common board thickness is 100pt, plus glue on two side, plus the end-paper, and the cover wrap, the Die Cutting portion is through a cover thickness of 120pt. Since Die Cutting the Cover is done on such a thick piece, there are some limitations to the complexity of the Die Cut shape. For instance, a star shape or shape with fine points are not suitable. Shapes that are square, triangle, oval, rounded, 5, 6 or 7 sided and maybe certain letters such a B, M or W are suitable.
I have said before that a genius is someone who knows the difference between a fad or a trend. I’m not a genius so I don’t know if Die Cut Covers are a fad or a trend. Most binderies that make case bound books cannot Die Cut the Covers. We have special machinery to do the Die Cut Covers that most case bound/hard back book manufacturers don’t have!
Features
• Smooth edges
• Book Cover is still perfectly flat
• Exposes first page
Benefits
• Possible to have a printed logo or picture show through the Die Cut hole
• Greatly differentiates the book from countless others!
Factors to Consider
• Die Cutting Covers adds 2 or 3 days to all production time for the book production
• Die Cutting Covers adds to the total cost of book production
