Spine Width Chart
Minimum  page count | Maximum page count | Spine  width
1 | 50 | 0.2756
51 | 94 | 0.3937
95 | 122 | 0.4724
123 | 150 | 0.5512
151 | 180 | 0.6299
181 | 208 | 0.7087

Hinge

spine

Flat Size: 17.2756” W x 8.5”H (includes front cover, back cover and spine) Finished Size: 8.5”W x 8.5”H

FILE SETUP: When creating a Portfolio, you will need to provide two files: a cover file and an interior file. The cover file should include the front outside cover, back outside cover and spine, there is no print on the inside covers. InDesign Tip: When setting up your cover, set your columns for two and then input the size of your spine in the Column Gutter option.

BLEED: Your file needs to include a 0.75” bleed on all sides to allow for the cover art to wrap around to the inside of the cover (our white end sheets are glued into the insides of the cover and cover a portion of that). Bleed is printing that goes beyond the edge of the sheet after trimming. If a bleed is not included in document setup, there is a good chance there will be a  gap between the edge of the printed area and the cut line. This happens because there is a tolerance when cutting the printed  piece. For more information on the importance of bleed, visit our website: smartpress.com/support/printing-basics/bleeds-borders.

CUT LINE (finished size): This is where your artwork will be trimmed.

SAFE MARGIN: Your file needs to include a 0.125” safe margin necessary for production. Safe margin is the area around the edge of the sheet. If the safe margin is not included in document setup, there is a chance that the art close to the edge will get cut off. This is due to machine shift during cutting and because there is a tolerance when cutting the printed piece. For more information on cutting tolerance, visit our website: smartpress.com/support/printing-basics/cutting-tolerance.

SPINE: Your file needs to include the width of the spine. The size of the spine will depend on how many pages your booklet has. This document is set up with the minimum spine width of 0.276” which is for a book that has 1-50 pages. You will need to adjust the document size of this document if you have a page count more than 50 pages. See table to the left to find spine width for other page counts.

HINGE: This area is where the spine is scored. The hinge area on either side of the spine will be visible on the front and back covers and there will be an indent along the thin hinge line. No matter the width of the spine, the hinge area is will be 0.5”.