29 May 2013

A5 Original - Note Pad

We reviewed the A5 Original a couple of weeks ago, a few people commented about the Jotter Pad in the back of the organiser, wishing that is was a normal A5 notepad. The Jotter Pad pages can be punched of course but they are quite narrow.

So can you fit a normal A5 note pad to the Original... yes you can, and here's how to do it.

So looking at the back cover you can see the Jotter Pad fits on to the back cover using a slot in the leather. This slot is about 78 mm in width and it is off-set towards the outer edge of the organiser.


An A5 Notepad is of course 148 mm in width. Here is how to make it fit.


Turn the notepad over and mark the cover with a vertical line 75mm from the edge.


Then cut the backing card with a simple cut along the line, but leave both parts attached to the pad.


Turn the pad over and now slot the outer part of the card in to the slot, being careful to ease the card in to the back pocket.


There you have it, an A5 Notepad in the back of your Original. I'm sure a similar mod will work on the personal size Original. If you decide to use the pad in another A5 with a more conventional slot, just take the card back together with a length of sticky tape.


16 comments:

  1. That is so smart! I will be doing that!

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  2. I just ordered a Personal size of "The Original"---and I was wondering--Does the personal size have a note pad of any type in the back? I thought the slots in the back might be for that purpose.
    Anyone know?

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    Replies
    1. Yes it has a Jotter Pad too. See Laurie's review over on Plannerisms.

      http://www.plannerisms.com/2013/05/the-original-personal-size-filofax-in.html

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  3. Although they have a different cover, are the jot pads supplied with The Original, the same as the Flex ones? These are perhaps the biggest rip-off ever! They come in packs of three and cost £10 in the UK. Each contains just 14 pages, making each "note" 24p! They are a quarter A4 size, making a single sheet of cotton cream A4 nearly £1! Outrageous!

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  4. Re jot pads I buy "wilko handy jotter" pads from Wilkinsons for my pocket Malden. They are lined, 50 sheets and 80 gsm paper for 18p!

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  5. Genius idea Steve. Thank you

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  6. Steve this is brilliant, I wouldn't have thought of leaving on the rest of the cardboard backing, I would have just hacked it off without thinking.

    I have added the link to this post in my personal Original review on Plannerisms. I don't have a personal size notepad to try it myself but I'm sure the results would be the same.

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  7. That is a good idea. I had an elastic pen loop that was attached to the back cover of a spiral bound notebook. I wanted to use the pen loop in my Filofax. I cut the part of the cover that had the pen loop to business card size. Then I inserted it in a side insert business card holder and put the card holder in my planner. It works well.

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  8. The Rhodia Pad No. 8 has the same dimensions as the notepad supplied with the A5 Original, so, in theory, it should be the perfect replacement. Unfortunately it isn't :(

    The Rhodia Pad has a large binding staple about 1cm from the top edge of the pad that effectively prevents it from fully sliding into the Filofax's leather insert slot. This means that the Rhodia pad can only ever protrude beyond the Filofax's back cover and never fit nicely inside. Disappointing.

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    Replies
    1. It is quite easy to remove the staple though I have done it quite a few times

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  9. Thank you for this! I have used this clever adaptation on my Flex, making it an A5 notepad holder for taking to meetings. I can, afterward, transfer the pages to the appropriate section in my A5 Chameleon.

    I have recently ordered an Original, from Filofax USA, and I plan to use this on that A5, as well.

    Thanks, again!

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  10. What a clever trick, especially the 'leave both parts of the cardboard attached' part!

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