Glue to Repair Torn Print Emulsion?

[John Layton]

Just did a difficult to print 30x40 - really tore my hair out on this one...only to accidentally/carelessly damage the print emulsion during the final squeegeeing. Result is that there is a very tiny (2mm) area near the bottom of the image where the very top layer of paper (with the image) is torn and lifted. The base layer of paper is more or less fine.

My thinking is that with just a small spot of the right kind of glue...I could fix this - just a dab on the underside of the torn/lifted part and then push it back onto the paper base. But...what kind of glue?

[Tin Can]

Nori Rice glue

https://www.fineartstore.com/p-4669-...ing-paste.aspx

[Pfsor]

White glue will do.

[BrianShaw]

Ouch, that must be very upsetting. I’ve done similar repairs with white glue. The challenge is doing the repair cleanly so as to not create more damage. The glue layer must be exceedingly minimal to avoid getting squeezed out... and whatever you apply pressure with must be scrupulously clean. Otherwise, more damage. A certain amount of burnishing may be required on the year eve to best blend the two sides together... but too much could actually increase the damage. Are you sure that out of that entire image that 2mm is critical?

[tgtaylor]

As an alternative to using glue you could carefully cut a piece of dry mount tissue to fit in the hole, press the emulsion down over it and, using a cloth or board over the print for protection, melt the tissue with an iron just like you do when dry mounting.

Thomas

[John Layton]

Hmmm...I'll be dry mounting this print, so any glue will need to survive this.

I do like the idea of using a small piece of dry mount tissue - with the further assumption that I might want to "dig out" (lightly scrape?) the underlying paper ever so slightly - so that the additional thickness (however small) of this piece of tissue would not cause a later bulge.

I could carefully press the tear against the underlying paper prior to dry mounting...and then glue this afterwards. hmmm....

I know...maybe I'll try to re-create the tear on a "reject" print (got plenty of those!) and then see if I can fix this before I try undertaking the repair on the actual print.

[Drew Wiley]

Use a tiny flat artist's acrylic paintbrush (slightly stiff synthetic bristles) and some Yes glue. It might need to be slightly diluted, but not much. Ordinary office store nontoxic lipstick-style glue sticks are basically the same thing (dextrin) but maybe a little too stick for such a small spot. Be very careful not to get any on the surface of the emulsion. Press flat. It's a fairly simple task, but use reading glasses and practice first on a scrap print.

[tgtaylor]

With tracing paper you can accurately trace the tear and use it as a template to cut out the patch. If you plan to dry mount the print then you might want to wait until you have the print tacked down to the mounting board and then dry mount the print with the patch in place since heating the patch a second time may cause it to release.

Thomas