Well, I finished my custom binder for my Battlestar Galactica Blu-ray and soundtrack discs … almost.

I say almost because I wanna do one more thing, but overall it’s complete and I’m ecstatic. Beyond ecstatic!

Take a look:

(click the image to see the slideshow)

The Corners Conundrum

To resolve the corners conundrum, I paid a visit to a nearby Home Depot and scoured the hardware section for tools for cutting. A reader of the blog had commented that he used a pair of kitchen scissors to cut the corners on his — thanks for the tip! — but alas my scissors were of the wimpy variety and surely would have popped a rivet in the attempt. So, to the hardware aisle I went.

I came away with a plastic cutter (which looked like a plastic-handled hobby knife with a bizarre “hooked” blade) for like $3, and what looked like a pair of heavy-duty shears/scissors (Wiss MultiMaster) for $15. I ended up using the shears as they were easy to operate and made a pretty straight and even cut; just go slow and cut as precisely as possible.

Here’s where the almost comes in: I plan to use a bit of sandpaper or a file to run along the edges, just to “polish” them up the tiniest bit. Some might not even bother, but I’m something of a perfectionist.

Cutting Corners … in a good (BSG) way

Tools used:

• Wiss MultiMaster cutters
• a metal ruler 18″ long and approximately 1.25″ wide
• a Sharpee marker

I started by cutting the corners of the front and back covers of the binder:

1. I made the first cut in top right corner of the front cover, cutting along the inside edge of the embossed middle band using the Wiss MultiMaster cutters.
2. I then used the corner I’d cut away as a guide to mark where to cut on the other three corners, which do not have the bands, by aligning it with the corner then using the marker to draw a line, on the inside of the covers.
3. Next, I used the Wiss MultiMaster cutters to cut those corners.

I also decided I wanted to trim the width of the binder as well, since the half pages didn’t completely fill the inside and I wanted it more compact, so here’s what I did next:

1. I aligned the ruler with the edge of the binder, then used the marker to draw a cut guide along the inside of the cover on each side.
2. I then used the Wiss MultiMaster cutters to trim along that line. It went slowly and carefully so I wouldn’t end up with a jagged or crooked cut.

The next and final step will be for me to get some sandpaper or a file to “polish off” the edges. Then I’m really gonna be a super-happy geek!

Oh, one other thing…

I’m looking for a laminate pocket (think a single baseball card holder) with an adhesive back to put on the front cover to hold the front label. Will keep you posted on what I find, or whatever solution I end up with to put the label on securely.

> Check out other posts related to the BSG Binder

I’ve begun my custom binder for my Battlestar Galactica Complete Series Blu-ray set and BSG Soundtracks (CD), and here’s the first look:

click to view slideshow

I still haven’t decided how to cut the BSG-style corners. The plastic is very heavy, so I’m continuing to look into the best and safest method of doing those.

The spine and front cover labels for the binder can be downloaded here. It is in PDF format.

I have been so excited about Bill Hunt’s custom BSG binder solution for the Complete Series DVD set that I decided to make a set of Inserts that are ink conservative for those of us with printers that aren’t.

The inserts are JPGs so that you can put them into any template you need. The dimensions are 4.75″ x 4.78″ at 200 dpi, so that the text prints clearly. The inserts come in two varieties, one with squared-off corners, and another with guides for the BSG clipped-corner look.

I’ve also created an alternative to the inserts, a guide in PDF format that will fit in the binder. The guide should be printed on 8.5″ x 11″ (letter) paper, trimmed (guide line is provided), and then holes punched for the binder. The guide pages have a print margin of .25″ on all four sides. I recommend using a cardstock.

Both the insert and guide are for the Blu-ray version of the Battlestar Galactica: The Complete Series boxed set and utilize the information from Bill Hunt’s set of inserts. I plan to do inserts and guides for the standard definition version as well, but it may be a bit on those, just bear with me.

Note: The page/inserts of Bonus Disk material are not for officially issued discs in the boxed set. After some confusion with my own set, I inquired with Mr. Hunt, and he indicated that was content he’d collected and put on discs for himself. Just in case you were wondering where those discs were, like I did.

The Blu-ray DVD and CD Inserts

The Guide

Download (ink conservative versions)

• Guide (PDF)
• Inserts (JPG – clipped corners)
• Inserts (JPG – square)