Has anyone ever used spray type contact adhesive for mounting ilfochromes on a backboard? I know it wouldn't be archival, but i cannot afford the Scotch PMA #568 that i would like to use. Perhaps someone has another alternative to these....?

-- Phil Brammer (filsta@goconnect.net), October 10, 2001

Answers

Phil: I haven't mounted any Ilfochromes, but Scotch Super 77 is an excellent spray adhesive. Get the non-removable kind. I mount black and white RC prints with it and have never had one come loose. It doesn't work as well with fiber prints. I dry mount those.

Regards,

-- Doug Paramore (dougmary@alaweb.com), October 10, 2001.

Phil,

I've been using Scotch 888 tape (an archival tape) on the top edge of the print and letting it hang free. I sometimes put a small piece on the two sides in the upper 1/3 of the print if it's larger than 11x14. I tape the print to the front matte, which means that I don't have any adhesive on the same side as the image. I also do not put tape directly behind the image, itself.

I've been using this approach for about 10 years, and have never had a problem, but that's not much time in the eyes of museum types. But I feel that my approach is very conservative in that the tape can be cut from the print if necessary without risking the image. And as I said, the tape is on the back of the print which keeps the adhesive out of the way. Note that I have seen some waves form from time to time in larger prints, but they come and go.

One of the labs that does IlfoChrome printing, The Lightroom (www.lightroom.com), has a small discussion of mounting on their web site. They don't like taping across the top. They prefer mounting the print with corner mounts with no adhesive. I haven't had any luck with this with large prints, which seem to sag. They also point out that if you place adhesive over the back of the print, it will ultimately show any imperfections in the board on which it was mounted. Anyway, they wouldn't like my approach.

Good luck, Bruce

-- Bruce M. Herman (bherman@gci.net), October 11, 2001.

The easiest way to mount Ilfochromes without the spray or adhesive problems, while at the same time solving the wavy problems, is to use a static mount. Get a large sheet of acrylic the size of your frame & overmatting. Place the ilfochrome print on it where it needs to be for the overmat, put a cover sheet over it and rub over the print with a nylon or synthetic cloth. This should generate enough static electricity to bind the print to the acrylic. Then go ahead & place the overmat on it, put it in the frame & show as normal. From time to time if you want just rub the acrylic on the back with the rag to keep the static cling in place & you should be OK for a long time to come. Completely reversible and the print lies flat.

-- Dan Smith (shooter@brigham.net), October 11, 2001.