The Framers Forum

Waaaay back, a rep told me a story of a framer who would buy large quantities of bargain moulding (about 1p a foot back then) and chop it into simple rims. He then put them in a tatty box outside with " Seconds. £1 " on the box. Apparently the proceeds paid for a luxury holiday every year. The ...

I am fortunate in having a huge shed (ex-chicken hut) where I dump any frames that I think may "come in useful" later.
Sometimes they do. :P
But I rarely use them in their original state. I usually re-purpose them by chopping them down and refinishing them.

I get people now and then asking for ...

FWIW.....

I do a lot of bare wood frames and a few of these use wide, flat profiles. There is always a corner that is not quite
flush. Fortunately I can sand them flat before the finish is applied but even with a tiny 'step' it can be very tricky to get it perfect.
I hate those flat, glossy ...

Something I'll bear in mind. I may set up another frame of this style and keep it on the workshop wall to survey whether or not this happens over the long term. Perhaps it's less of an issue with thicker mount boards?


There was a technique, which was popular at one time, of using a double mount ...

Yeah but no but... It ideally needs pressure from both sides.

One point....

If you are going to combine a slip/spacer with a window mount. Without the glass pressing down on the mount surface
it is liable to curl.

Well.... I've used Klarlack clear varnish for years but that's not a lot of good to you as you can't get it anymore. :cry:
I have about ten 500ml tins and that will last me awhile.....

I did some experiments with Damar crystals dissolved in pure Turpentine and the results were encouraging.

The ...

I've just given my framing jumper a good dose of Febreeze.

It's not rocket science, but a few basic woodworking skills would be helpful.

A Japanese pull saw would be handy and a sharp chisel.

* On a side note... I'd put the panel on the left side. But that's just me.

One thing to remember....

Blades are cheaper than mountboard. It makes no sense to try to eek a few more cuts out of a blade and produce
an inferior mount which might have cost you £10+.

Mine was bought new in 1984 and has hardly seen a drop of oil since. Still works as well as the day it arrived from Ashworth & Thompson.

The key is: If it ain't broke don't mend it.

Rose&Hollis do a flat beveled section that is meant as a slip (A293). Thing is, if you mitre it with the bevel outwards
it makes a good extender as the bevel can be taken right up to the edge. It's about 27mm wide as I remember.

It's not just the rigidity of the moulding on a thin section you have to consider. It's the area of the cut mitre that
denotes the area that is glued. If you put wire hangings on the frame the corners are under torsion. Not a huge
amount but constant. This can cause the glue bond to fail eventually ...

I was once asked to replicate an old frame. It was about 5" wide and 4" deep. :roll:

So I went into my shed and sliced up a few oddments to mock-up an corner.

It actually came out better than it had any right to be. At least I didn't have any ornaments to contend with.

* As things transpired I ...

IMHO 2mm thick glass would be fine for something that size. With 3mm all you are doing is making it heavier.

For a frame of that profile I would add a hefty subframe and let that take the weight.

As for direct contact, OK(ish) if the work is drymounted. There is alway the risk that it will stick ...

I give mine an occasional wipe over with WD-40 and fine steel wool.

NealG wrote: Tue 01 Apr, 2025 2:17 pm Thanks for your feedback much appreciated

Noted re bubbling and have seen it myself,would a nice piece of 2 or 3mm float right on top of the print (no spacer) not keep it flat or at least help ?

You can be forgiven for thinking so, but it won't win if a bubble decides to erupt.

You have to 'play it by ear' to some extent. All papers are different and behave differently.
The general principle is to use as few hinges as possible and make the top edge ones 'hard'
and any side/bottom ones 'loose'. That is, with a bit of lateral 'give'. On big things
you maybe should do one ...

Self-adhesive boards + roller will work, but only up to a point... You can bet your boots you'll get a few comebacks with posters
that have developed 'bumps'. The fact is, you simply cannot evert enough even force with a hand roller to form a reliable
permanent bond. With posters, which tend to be ...