Framing a Trans

[Roboframer]

I've been doing a bit of searching on The Grumble - if you go there and click on advanced search and search for 'cibachrome' in the suject heading on The Grumble, you'll get a full page of links.

Here's two, the first one has replies by two conservators, neither recommend FP90, in fact one gives the reason it (or any pressure sensitive tape) may not be the best idea.


http://www.thegrumble.com/showthread.php?t=2051

http://www.thegrumble.com/showthread.php?t=32452

[gesso]

P90 was a little week for these type of prints and also fibre based too but Ive been using P90 plus now for a year + and have found it stronger (+) than its name sake (think thats why they introduced it)I have many of my own photo's framed at home and ALL are still in place and holding well no moving evident upon internal inspection.

[Roboframer]

And I've been smoking since I was 12 and I'm still alive

[Roboframer]

A quote from one of the conservators in the links above


"P90's adhesive is proprietary, so even if it is mainly acrylic (it think it is) there may be external plasticisers or other unknown ingredients. It can change over time - crosslinking between molecules - and so be harder to remove in time. I've never heard of it losing it's grip, just becoming harder (sometimes impossible depending on substrate) to reverse."

Well I've seen it lose its grip - plenty of times on mounted prints in our browsers - but then I suppose that's down to them being more flexible than a framed thing and handled far more. But I've had framed things slip in my SW facing window and I've had things brought back that have slipped. But nothing of my own mounted with FP90 has slipped (FP90 'plus' or not, and I've had the FP90 plus since Lion or Euro mouldings first started selling it)

So yes, I use it too - but mostly never when it would be within the mount aperture or behind actual artwork - e.g. when there is no spare paper margin and never on a full monty job.

[gesso]

So what's your point?

[Roboframer]

Quite - I'm probably straying off it - anyway - folks can make quite an informed choice from the info here.

Next time I get one of these 'orrible things I'll be giving the static mount with edge supports a whirl.

[gesso]

But I've had framed things slip in my SW facing window

Seriously, I don't know a restorer in the land that could undo the damage caused to works from the sun (even when its been behind museum glass)as opposed to any man-made numb-skull's blunders.

P90 isn't great, if your going to use it, best make sure its well rubbed onto the material that it is holding (and that will raise issues too) but IF your going to use a tape of this nature then the P90plus does offer a far greater adhesion then its predecessor.

Just as a matter of interest Cibachrome / ILfochrome is a very close relative of another Dupont made material called Mylar, the thick photographic substrate in Ilfochrome is called melinex, in case anyone wants to do further research on its properties.

If a customer brings a print of this nature through your door don't even say hello before putting on a pair of soft cotton gloves with these ******* prints