# Gluing book pages together? **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [May 28, 2004, 11:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/gluing-book-pages-together/247594 "2004-05-28T23:18:14Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 11\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Greek\_Santa](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/e47774/32.png) [@Greek\_Santa](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Greek_Santa)\ **Post date:** [May 28, 2004, 11:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/gluing-book-pages-together/247594/1 "2004-05-28T23:18:14Z")
In movies and tv shows they often show a book with all the pages glued together and a chunk of the book cut out to conceal a gun, whiskey bottle, etc. How do they glue all the pages together and what type of saw do they use to cut out the space? ---
**Author:** ![Eleusis](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/f4b2a3/32.png) [@Eleusis](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Eleusis)\ **Post date:** [May 28, 2004, 11:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/gluing-book-pages-together/247594/2 "2004-05-28T23:20:14Z")
Don’t know about gluing the pages together, that seems unncecessary to me. But a box cutter would be the tool of choice for cutting a hole in the pages. ---
**Author:** ![Squink](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/b5e925/32.png) [@Squink](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Squink)\ **Post date:** [May 28, 2004, 11:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/gluing-book-pages-together/247594/3 "2004-05-28T23:39:24Z")
[How to Make a Book Safe](http://www.allfreecrafts.com/homemade-gifts/book-safe.shtml) ---
**Author:** ![Dewey\_Finn](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dewey_finn/32/4222_2.png) [@Dewey\_Finn](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dewey_Finn)\ **Post date:** [May 28, 2004, 11:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/gluing-book-pages-together/247594/4 "2004-05-28T23:55:37Z")
You might be able to use a jigsaw or a bandsaw, but I’m not sure how smoothly the process would go. ---
**Author:** ![Chairman\_Pow](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/838e76/32.png) [@Chairman\_Pow](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chairman_Pow)\ **Post date:** [May 29, 2004, 1:14am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/gluing-book-pages-together/247594/5 "2004-05-29T01:14:42Z")
I had a friend who just used a normal razor/exacto. He didn’t bother to glue the pages together and it worked fine. Of course, he just hollowed out a rectangle, not anything funky like a gun shape. ---
**Author:** ![yabob](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/yabob/32/2821_2.png) [@yabob](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/yabob)\ **Post date:** [May 29, 2004, 1:25am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/gluing-book-pages-together/247594/6 "2004-05-29T01:25:27Z")
> [@Squink](#): > > [How to Make a Book Safe](http://www.allfreecrafts.com/homemade-gifts/book-safe.shtml) Black out all the naughty words? ---
**Author:** ![lufkincy](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/eb9ed0/32.png) [@lufkincy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/lufkincy)\ **Post date:** [October 15, 2010, 4:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/gluing-book-pages-together/247594/7 "2010-10-15T16:01:52Z")
Actually it is pretty easy. I do not use a box cutter. The way I make a book safe is to select a thick obscure book. Cut two pieces of Masonite the right size and use two “C” clamps to hold together about 1" of the pages. I then mark the area I want to cut out - about 3/4" to 1" inside the book’s margins. I drill a hole in each corner and then use a jeweler’s saw to cut out the cavity. I then mix some Elmer’s glue 50%/50% water and glue and paint a number of thin coats on the top, bottom, and foredge of the outside of the book (cover the covers with Saran so they don’t get glue on them). Put a weight on the book and let it thoroughly dry between coats. Next, coat the edges of bottom first uncut leaf of the book with your glue mixture and let it dry. Finally, paint several coats of your glue mixture on the four sides of your cavity. You can get an inexpensive jeweler’s saw by googling it or at a hobby shop like Hobby Lobby. Good Luck, Cy > [@Eleusis](#): > > Don’t know about gluing the pages together, that seems unncecessary to me. > > But a box cutter would be the tool of choice for cutting a hole in the pages. ---
**Author:** ![Chronos](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/chronos/32/134_2.png) [@Chronos](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chronos)\ **Post date:** [October 15, 2010, 5:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/gluing-book-pages-together/247594/8 "2010-10-15T17:32:53Z")
I did something like this once, but I used old newspapers stacked together instead of a real book. I used a band saw, and it presented no difficulty at all, and was a lot quicker than a razor blade or utility knife would have been. ---
**Author:** ![Jamicat](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/c67d28/32.png) [@Jamicat](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jamicat)\ **Post date:** [October 16, 2010, 1:31am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/gluing-book-pages-together/247594/9 "2010-10-16T01:31:02Z")
I did this once to smuggle a pack of smokes past a checkpoint…I deliberated for a while before choosing what book looked innocuous enough and uninteresting from my bookshelf…😉 the holy bible… ---
**Author:** ![Markxxx](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/5daacb/32.png) [@Markxxx](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Markxxx)\ **Post date:** [October 16, 2010, 4:24am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/gluing-book-pages-together/247594/10 "2010-10-16T04:24:52Z")
_[The Family Circus](http://img826.imageshack.us/img826/3329/275gu.jpg)_ has already covered this ---
**Author:** ![Lynn\_Bodoni](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/e47c2d/32.png) [@Lynn\_Bodoni](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lynn_Bodoni)\ **Post date:** [October 16, 2010, 10:12am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/gluing-book-pages-together/247594/11 "2010-10-16T10:12:07Z")
I did this as a child, using nothing more than Elmer’s glue (white all purpose glue) and a craft knife. I used a paperback book, and cut into the pages, a few at a time, and then glued the pages shut.