Seeking Vendors for Printing PDFs

February 20, 2009 10:40 AM

Seeking the best way to print a nicely-printed, bound version of a bunch of PDF pages.

Asking for a relative who is completing a 20-year-long genealogy project: She would like to produce several (each slightly different) bound copies of the finished product for various branches of the family, ranging from about 30 to more than 100 pages. Ideally, the completed books would be printed on acid-free paper and hardbound. She can provide the files in PDF format.

Would greatly appreciate any advice and recommendations, especially from those who have had relevant experience with specific printers or vendors.

posted by dreamphone to grab bag (4 comments total)

Haven't worked directly with them yet, but I've seen some nice examples of Lulu's work, in hardback.
posted by hwickline at 10:44 AM on February 20

Definitely have them printed off at a professional print shop -- printing from home, even with a laser, will leave you with curled/rippled pages. I know, I just printed and bound several hard copies of my thesis, 130 pages. When I had it bound at a local shop, the printing on the spine/cover was what dictated its price, not the number of pages. Just look up "Bindery" or "Binding Services" in the yellow pages. It's a piece of cake, just takes a few weeks to get the whole process done -- the glue takes a while to cure.
posted by lizbunny at 12:20 PM on February 20

It's not the cheapest option, but I've worked with BookMobile on printing paperbacks. They do print hardcovers and you should get a free quote from them. You might also try Instant Publisher.
posted by mattbucher at 12:58 PM on February 20

My wife and I have had some books printed by Lulu and have been very happy with them. We had a "casewrap hardcover" printed out for our son and it's very high quality, and we though the price was very reasonable. I'd be happy to answer any more detailed questions about the experience or the finished product.
posted by larsks at 5:38 PM on February 20