UKC

The eagerly anticipated second part in the Climber's Club's lavish West Cornwall series ticks most of the boxes for guidebook nerd Rob Greenwood

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In reply to UKC Gear:

What you say at the end about matt vs gloss finish on the cover is interesting, Rob. I personally like the matt finish that is present on the new Scafell and Wasdale definitive, the Wired guides etc - though I expect this could just be because matt is hot right now (is anybody painting their walls with silk paint at the moment?).

However, from what I hear of sales figures, gloss finish covers sell guidebooks! So is there a difference in taste between a connoisseur such as yourself and the buying public?

In reply to Will Hunt:

Do you know if those sales figures are specifically for climbing guidebooks or for books as a whole? If it's the former, I'd imagine that they're likely skewed by Rockfax*; if it's the latter, I guess I'm not that surprised because, because as you say it could just be a difference in between the perceived desires of the minority vs. the actual desires of the masses (i.e. most people don't really care, won't read this review, and are unlikely to give more than a moments thought to what's on the cover - let alone its texture!).

Still, it's funny how limited edition prints + hardbacks tend to get a nice matt finish, which then becomes gloss once it's available in paperback, so there must be some sense of value to it.

*it'd be interesting to know Alan's reasoning for using gloss as opposed to matt, as I'm sure this is something he's thought about

In reply to UKC Gear:

So happy about these books; every time I'm climbing in Cornwall, I look at the old CC definitive guides and despair at how horrible they are to use, but there has undoubtably been so much love and effort go into those pages as I flick through the endless text pages and tiny line drawings. I've often wondered just how many beautiful secluded zawns go unnoticed to all but the most avid explorers willing to persevere with the CC nightmare guides and how great those books could be with a bit of the rockfax treatment.. and here they are

In reply to Rob Greenwood - UKClimbing:

Gloss gives richer colours is the main reason. I always find matt photos on covers a little flat, so it is personal preference.

In guidebook sales, I am pretty sure the texture of the cover has zero impact on sales. The quality of the cover might have some influence but probably still not that much. 

Now if you want to talk about size and thickness then definitely there is a substantial impact - big guides = bigger sales - simples, Sergei!

Alan

In reply to Rob Greenwood - UKClimbing:

Will have to go and have a crack at South Post Direct. What kind of nick do you think it might be in?

James