How-To: “Indestructible” 3-ring binder

Education
How-To:  “Indestructible” 3-ring binder
Indestructible-Binder-01.jpg

When I was a kid, I was very hard on school supplies, and I remember dreaming of indestructible versions of all my gear—Kevlar backpacks and, particularly, sheet aluminum binders with continuous hinges. These days, you can actually buy such binders, but they are relatively expensive. So why not make your own? Instructables user cowscankill did, with a salvaged snap-ring mechanism and riveted leather hinges. I want one.

10 thoughts on “How-To: “Indestructible” 3-ring binder

  1. peterlarson233.myopenid.com says:

    problem with this is that the rivets will scratch other things, like textbooks. for the hinges at least, if he folded the leather back around so the rivets were wrapped inside, that would probably help. still, i suppose it depends on what you’re using it for. when i carry books in my bag, i put them in a certain order so that the zipper on my bag’s internal pocket doesnt rip up the textbooks. these rivets would be pretty bad about that. i was recently thinking about building something like this, though, its pretty cool.

  2. Math Campbell says:

    Aye, I used to do the same. Pencil cases and glasses cases where my personal bug-bear. I even had a stainless-steel glasses case for a while, but the hinge was annoyingly cheap and broke, not to mention the steel was paper thin, so got dented in the harsh environment of my rucksack…

    I reckon I could maybe make a reinforced box-shape aluminium (hell, why not titanium) box for my glasses if I put my mind to it….

  3. Alan Blue says:

    I can’t quite decide if the hinges and back will provide enough support for my personal pet peeve about three-ring binders – crushed rings.

    A wrapping of denim – like a ‘cover’ for a textbook – would be pretty rugged and still reduce the impact of something this rugged on everything else you’re carrying.

  4. Andy Johnson says:

    An indestructible Instructable. Too cool!

  5. Shadyman says:

    A very nice reMake, though I’ll stick with my Better Binder from that Staples store until I get creative enough to make one of these :D

    (I abuse that binder endlessly, and it keeps going!)

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I am descended from 5,000 generations of tool-using primates. Also, I went to college and stuff. I am a long-time contributor to MAKE magazine and makezine.com. My work has also appeared in ReadyMade, c't – Magazin für Computertechnik, and The Wall Street Journal.

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