Hi folks,

I'm mounting 9 13x19 photos on masonite with no glass. Is there a product or film that you guys would recommend to do it at home?

Also, I saw at Kinkos that they have a big double lamination machine that they use for signs or banners I think. Is this good? should I take the photos before mounting (sticking) them to the 1/8 masonite?

Thanks

You will almost certainly pay more in equipment as start-up costs for DIY than you would to get these nine prints professionally laminated by a local vendor, so if you just have these nine prints and nothing else for a while, check for people who do the "plak-it" service in your town.

Do it yourself: You need either a either a fairly large hot press or a 24" cold roll laminator, and you need both under-print adhesive and over-print lamination which generally are sold only in rolls of 200' or longer. All told, figure $600 as an absolute minimum to start, and probably more like $1000. You can do your own pricing at drytac.com, which is my supplier for this stuff. I do it myself because I have a lot of prints to do, and mount up to 4' in length here in my studio. Anything bigger I farm out.

Good luck to you.

We eventually settled on buying a cold lamination machine after working with vendors for couple of a times. We couldn't find a company that would care enough to make sure that there were no dust/bubbles on the laminated print. It was such a pain reprinting and sending the prints to the shop over and over again. So if you can find a vendor that's 1st class, it'll be great. Otherwise, you will save money and time in the long run with your own equipment.

Wes

You might want to consider a clamshell type dry mount press. You can pick them up on ebay. A 16x20 platen would handle your needs.

Drytac MHA is what we use on our 61" roller press, and something like it should work for you. You also need a tacking iron.

The press and iron should run far less than a roller machine, and be easier to use.

You might also want to reconsider masonite. Gator board is lighter and less likely to warp.

You'll also need some dust control equipment. We use a sticky roller that Drytac can also supply you with.

If you go forward with this, practice on some waste material first. Mounting is a learned craft, and you'll make some mistakes along the way.

i'm in the sign business and laminate my stuff all the time.

i use a clear uv vinyl with a solvent adhesive

if u are using pigment inks can use this stuff. i soak my print in a pucket of soapy water then lay it over the laminet and squeege the water out. let it dry and its done. if your image is not printed on a adhesive paper or vinyl then the next step is to get a aresol can of 3m adhesive and spray it on the back side of laminated image and mout it to your masonite

kinkos is about $8 per square foot for lamination

doing it my way is less then $2 per sq/ft

need clear laminate in small amounts let me know.

for my el cheepo signs i use packaging tape a 4 mill with solvent adhesive
i get it in 36" logs by 300 feet for under 7 cents per sq/ft no release liner thow

the good stuff with a release liner is about .50 cents per/sq/ft

another way to go is spray it or brush the clear laminate on it. i use that on realy big pieces over 2' in with x 5 feet in lenght,. cost of that stuff is about 12 cents per/sq/ft of coverage.

if u use dye inks only 2 ways to go kinkos or spray it.

Ed

Here is a cheap manual dry laminator:
http://drytac.com/productcart/pc/viewPrd.a...8&idproduct=569

... and here is an even cheaper one. http://www.lbalbumframe.com/

These are simple, simple tools. I have no idea why they are even this expensive.

Tom

On thing to note, the masonite will turn fiber based prints yellow over time, it's not neutral ph. I mounted some prints to masonite along time ago and found out that it took only a year before I noticed yellowing. Sintra (plastic) and aluminum are better for long term mounting on stiff material.

I ran into a company called Pacific Studio Supplies at WPPI earlier this year, and ordered their cold mounting/laminating system. They have some laminating surfaces I really liked, included one that is reminiscent of the McDonald spray texturing that many studio photographers used back in the 70's/80's.

Not sure how their price compares, I'm sure they are just buying from others sources. I haven't used the equipment too much yet, but it seems to work as represented.

One tool I really like is a "tacky" roller that easily cleans the back of the print to be sure there is no dirt on the print before you laminate it.

Here is their site ...

http://www.pss2001.com/

Anyone here use Clearshield? It is a liquid laminate.

I have used it on canvas, and it's ok. Not good for papers IMHO.

Why not? Just wondering since I have done some experiments and it does curl the paper if not mounted first. I also found that a single coat of Print shield is needed before applying clearstar or it mottles black areas.

Charlie

The "dirty secret" of modelmakers is Future Floor Polish, which is an aqueous-based clear acrylic. I've coated both canvas and paper prints with it, using an HVLP sprayer and up to three sparse coats applied a few minutes apart. Since it dries to a textured gloss finish with this application method, it works extremely well on canvas, and remains flexible as well as very durable (can't scratch through with a careless fingernail). I haven't shipped prints with this yet, as I am still doing long term testing including sun exposure, but all results so far indicate it is viable and very inexpensive compared to other aqueous finishes. (Reports of Future going yellow, when followed up on, are invariably the substrate going yellow underneath it.)

Both canvas and paper should be sprayed after mounting. With paper prints on watercolour media, I have done experiments in wetting the paper thoroughly then mounting it as if it were canvas, on stretcher bars. As the paper dries it shrinks, it becomes tight as a drum, and rewetting it e.g. with a sealant as above makes it saggy, but it tightens up again. Still, stretched paper is about as fragile as it gets no matter how much acrylic is on it, and I wouldn't recommend this technique for anything other than self-amusement.

For high dollar prints or repro work, something like Premier's EcoShield is probably the best way to go, as it has been thoroughly tested on a wide variety of media. Very easy to apply, although quite expensive.