Spent $85 on a proper bone folder and it genuinely saved my wrists

I used to use one of those cheap plastic bone folders from the craft store, the kind that come in a three pack for like eight bucks. After about six months of binding five or six books a week, my right wrist started aching really bad. I figured it was just getting older or something. Then I went to a bookbinding meetup over in Portland and this old timer let me use his real cow bone folder. The weight and the smoothness were totally different. I came home and ordered a proper one from a leatherworking supplier for $85, and the pain in my wrist went away in like two weeks. The plastic ones just don't have the right heft to transfer pressure properly. Has anyone else noticed a big difference when they upgraded their basic tools or am I just getting picky in my old age?

2 comments

2 Comments

skylerg171mo ago

Yeah I used to think bone folders were all the same, but you changed my mind.

derek_dixon781mo ago

yeah i saw this thing online about how bone folder shape actually matters way more than people think. like the pointed ones are better for scoring paper and the rounded ones are for smoothing out book cloth. i never paid attention to that before but now i can actually tell the difference when i'm working on a project. a lot of people just grab whatever bone folder is lying around but there's a real reason the pros have a few different ones. kind of makes you wonder what else we're all just using wrong without realizing it lol.