Grammage of Paper

 

New Delhi. 02 January: For an Indian Student of Mass Communication, “The Art and Print Production” by Prof. NN Sarkar is considered a gold standard, particularly for those interested in Print Media. I studied this book thoroughly in my school days, much before entering the college. This book is so much sought after that its first edition copies are a rare find. In our college days, our college library had provided us with the xerox copies of this book, and I was the only person in my whole batch to own it’s rare First Edition Copy in my possession. 

Well this NN Sarkar book is very interesting and talks in detail about the various aspects related to page setting, font selection, printing technologies, types of papers etcetera etcetera; But for the first time in my life it introduced me to the Grammage of  Paper, or the Paper-Weight. The “Grams Per Square Metre (GSM)” is a unit that defines the thickness of the printed paper. It is defined in numbers, the lower the number - the thinner the paper and vice versa.

Broadly speaking, Paper should be divided into following categories of GSM values:-

Conservation Paper - The Japanese / Thai / Korean conservation papers are broadly available between the GSM of 1 to 30. Paper between 1 to 10 gsm values is well suited for paper tear repairs.

Tracing Paper / Glassine - These papers are translucent in nature and have a GSM value of 40 gsm.

Printing Paper / Xerox Paper - These papers are well suited for modern day digital printing machines and are available in the Grammage of 70 gsm to 100 gsm. Normal Black and White laser printer paper is of 75 gsm, whereas Bond Paper and Color Laser Printer Paper have a weight of 100 gsm.

Book Binding and Dust Jackets - For Hard Bound books, the covering should be made from a paper between 120 to 140 gsm. Papers thinner than 100 gsm are not good for this purpose because they can’t tolerate the moisture of the glue. For the printing of Dust Jackets a gsm of 150 to 180 is enough, but it can go up to 200 gsm. Digital photographs can also be printed on a paper of 150 gsm or higher.

Card Stock - Any paper with a gsm value between 200 to 300 gsm is considered a card stock. It is good for photo printing , as a drawing medium and in some book binding applications where a thicker piece of card is needed. Greetings are also printed on this kind of paper.

Image Courtesy:-

1). Art and Print Production, NN Sarkar - Oxford University Press.

2). Colored Paper  - FreePik (https://www.freepik.com/free-photo/high-angle-vibrant-bent-papers_6748923.htm#query=printing%20paper&position=1&from_view=keyword&track=ais&uuid=3d5b011a-dfb5-4a59-a2c7-ded12816941f)