P3D Re: Stereocard Mounting

["Susan B.F. Wageman" <swageman@xxxxxxxxxxxxx>]

>I've heard that dry-mount tissue can be fused with a regular clothes
>iron (no steam, please!), instead of the costly presses which are
>designed for the job.  None of my photo-books has any tips on this.
>Does anyone have methods, tips and/or warnings?

When I used to work in exhibit production, we used Seal's Fusion 4000
repositionable dry mount adhesive for our graphics mounting. It didn't have
a carrier and melted at a relatively low temperature. Still, I don't know
what kind of result you might get without the firm even pressure of a
press. Since the images are small, using an iron would probably work, if
the temperature is right. Doesn't sound like fun, though.

>Ray Zone says he uses wax.  I always heard in my cut-and-paste days
>that wax dries out and is actually the most temporary option of all.
>Is that so?

Yup, this is about as temporary as you can get. Also, over time, the wax
can stain your mount -- don't know about the photos.

>Thus far I have been using rubber cement on both
>surfaces, allowing them to dry before mounting.

If you care about long-term preservation, you probably don't want to use
rubber cement, either. It contains sulphur, which will break down the
photograph and mount over time. Rubber cement also tends to lose its
adhesive qualities over time. This is *not* considered archival.

The Fusion 4000 stuff was specifically designed for use on photographs and
was considered safe to use near archival materials. (We're talking museum
context here. You would never mount a collection item, but your labels
should not be offgassing.) I see from the Light Impressions catalogue that
Seal makes an archival mounting tissue now. Anyways ... things to consider
if you go for heat sealing. (I haven't worked with collections for a while,
so I won't promise that my info is current any more.)

I have found the 3M positionable mounting adhesive #568 to be just right
for my purposes. I have no idea if it is archival. The Q-vu mounts and
color prints aren't either. I carefully store the negatives, so I can make
more prints when the time comes.

 Fumes make me giddy,
but not as bad as the spray adhesives. X-)  Any idea of the shelf
life, and manner of failure, on these two, non-archival methods?



Susan Wageman
swageman@xxxxxxxxxxxxx
suewageman@xxxxxxxxxxx



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