Our Indispensable Board Shears
One of the first things you’ll notice in our conservation lab is our giant cutters. These “board shears” are some of our most used tools. We use them to cut a wide range of materials in the process of making protective enclosures, repairing books, and performing various conservation treatments. Both of our shears are Jacques shears, named after their manufacturer, John Jacques & Son of Worcester, Massachusetts. Ours have been modified over the years with wood tops and new paint, but their cast iron supporting structures and steel blades likely date from the late nineteenth or early twentieth centuries.
While they were designed to be used for cutting board or paper by bookbinders, we use them to cut a variety of materials including the PETG (polyethylene terephthalate glycol) plastic that we use to make exhibit cradles for displays of the Hesburgh Libraries’ specialized collections. Our shears have held up well over the decades but sometimes they require specialized adjustments and realignments. Thankfully, through partnerships we’ve developed with machinists in the University’s Physics Department and the generous expertise of conservator Bill Minter, both shears have had helpful adjustments made to them in recent years. For more information on Jacques board shears and their maintenance see Bill Minter’s article Adjusting the Jacques Board Shear.
