Case Bound and Hardback Book Printing

• Material type: Hardback case bound book with printed cover and inner pages
• Standard sizes: A5, A4 and 210mm x 210mm square
• Custom sizing: Available on request
• Orientation: Portrait, landscape or square
• Cover material: 150gsm silk
• Inner pages: Silk, gloss, uncoated or recycled paper options
• Print options: Full colour or black only
• Cover finish: Matt, gloss or soft-touch lamination
• Special finishes: Gold foil, silver foil or Spot UV available
• Page count: 32 to 500 pages including cover
• Suitability: Premium indoor use for books, reports and presentation copies
• Spine: We will calculate your spine width and let you know the dimension on your quotation.

What is a case bound book?
A case bound book is a hardback book with a sturdy rigid cover, typically made using grey board. The inner pages are bound together and secured into the hard cover using endpapers, giving the book a professional finish and added durability.

What are case bound books best used for?
They are ideal for novels, textbooks, yearbooks, portfolios, coffee table books, cookbooks, journals, premium reports and limited-edition publications.

What paper stocks can I choose from?
Inner pages are available on a range of paper stocks, including silk, gloss, uncoated and recycled options. Silk has a smooth finish with a subtle sheen, gloss gives a brighter reflective finish, uncoated has a natural matt feel, and recycled stock offers a more textured, environmentally conscious option.

What cover finishes are available?
Covers can be laminated in matt, gloss or soft-touch finishes. You can also add Spot UV, gold foil or silver foil to selected areas of the cover for a more premium result.

What is Spot UV?
Spot UV is a clear glossy coating applied to specific areas of the cover, such as titles, logos or design details. It creates contrast against the laminated background and helps key elements stand out.

What are gold and silver foil finishes?
Foil adds a metallic finish to selected areas of your cover design. It works best on clear, simple elements such as titles, logos, lines or patterns.

How do I calculate the spine width?
The spine width depends on the number of pages and the paper stock selected. Once your book specification is confirmed, we can advise the correct spine width for your cover artwork.

How do I avoid losing content in the spine?
Case bound books have a pronounced spine and gutter, so some artwork can be hidden where the pages fold into the binding. Keep important text, logos, faces and fine detail at least 15mm away from the spine edge. Full image spreads can work, but some detail may be lost in the fold.

What are endpapers?
Endpapers are the sheets fixed to the inside front and back covers. They help secure the printed pages into the hard cover and give the book a clean, finished look.

Do I need to include endpapers in my artwork?
No. Standard hardback books include plain endpapers, so you do not need to include them in your supplied artwork unless printed endpapers have been specifically requested.

Can I print the inner pages in black and white?
Yes. Inner pages can be printed in full colour or black only, depending on your artwork and budget.

What resolution should my images be?
Images should ideally be 300dpi at the final printed size. Low-resolution images may appear blurry or pixelated when printed.

What file format should I supply?
Please supply a print-ready PDF with bleed, crop marks, embedded fonts and high-resolution images. Artwork should be supplied in CMYK where possible. We recommend using our templates to ensure your cover design extends into the wraparound are of the cover.

Can I design my book in Canva?
Yes, but please export your file as a PDF Print file with crop marks and bleed selected. Canva files are usually RGB, so colours may change slightly when converted for print.

Is this product VAT free?
Printed books are usually zero-rated for VAT in the UK when they qualify as readable printed publications. VAT will be applied automatically where required.

What is the turnaround time?
Turnaround depends on your chosen specification, quantity, finishing options and artwork approval. If artwork is supplied late or needs correcting, this may delay production.

How will my order be packed?
Most book orders are packed in boxes. Larger quantities may be supplied in multiple boxes or on a pallet, depending on the size and weight of the order.

Can SM1 help with my artwork?
Yes. You can supply print-ready artwork, or we can help with cover design, page layout, artwork checks and print-ready file setup.