Clamp marks on the cover

Medium severity

Symptoms

Sunken or shiny rectangular imprint on book covers

Probable causes

  • Excess clamp pressure for the cover
  • dirty or damaged clamp face
  • sensitive covers (soft touch, metallized, embossed)

The Print Guy · 2026-10-05

Other problems in this category

Three-knife trimmer · TPG-250

Rough, torn or flaky trim edges

Edges not smooth; torn paper; flaking on laminated covers

Medium severity

Three-knife trimmer · TPG-252

Concave or convex front trim (block draw)

Front cut not straight: bowing in or out at the book's middle

Medium severity

Three-knife trimmer · TPG-254

Front and side cuts out of sync

Double mark at the corners; bitten or stepped corners

Medium severity

Three-knife trimmer · TPG-247

Variable sizes between books in one run

Inconsistent final format; some books shorter or narrower

High severity

Three-knife trimmer · TPG-248

Off-square cut (rhomboid book)

Head and foot not perpendicular to the spine; visibly crooked margins

High severity

Three-knife trimmer · TPG-249

Draw: cover or first pages pulled

Cover or top sheets shorter or with an inward-curved edge

High severity
All Three-knife trimmer problems (8) →

Other categories

UV coating (7)Water-based coating (8)Wire/Spiral binding (7)