Flat Prints

[ASA1000]

I had another post about "Why is this Happening'? Ilford FB MG paper curling when drying on the short sides. Now I'm working with 11x14 paper and it curls on the long side. I am Blotting prints and screen drying then flattening in the press.
THIS IS A PAPER ISSUE. After 20+ years in the printing industry I believe their paper is sucking up moisture in the side of the paper roll when it is in the plant or someplace in processing, and that changes the fiber so it doesn't shed water the same when it drys again.
Grrrrrr.... this stuff is too expensive not to be perfect!

after screen dry
after press flattening... look at the edge

[nolindan]

For print curl nothing will beat Dupont Varilour, the paper rolled up like a pencil.

Some of my boxes of Ilford frill like that at the edges. The frilling goes away with the years. The only suggestions I can make for instant relief are to print with a wide margin on the frilling side(s) and trim the frill off or to mount the print on museum board or foam-core.

[paulbarden]

Is this double weight paper??

[bob carnie]

For silver gelatin drying and pressing out I find the humidy level has to be over 45% .. much lower than that and I. can get the same edges you post

[Vaughn]

Things to try.
Squeezee off excess water and dry between two screens (metal edges of the screens touching to minimize curl).
Once air-dry, put them into a photopaper box the same size and let them mellow out for awhile (allow the paper to attain the same moisture level through-out). Then dry mount press them flat later if needed.

[Michael R]

All Ilford FB papers are double weight.

Is this double weight paper??

[Richard Wasserman]

I always ran a humidifier when drying Ilford FB prints in the winter when the indoor humidity is low. Slows down the drying time just a bit, but they were much flatter. I was having the same problem you are and the humidifier made a large difference.

[ASA1000]

I knew I couldn't be the only one having this problem. Thank you all for your replies.
It is clearly the lack of humidity in my basement. I'm at 20-22% Prints air dry in under 3 hours! I'll have to section off an area to run a humidifier but that looks to be the next approach. Yesterday I tried drying just the long edges, in the press, between some watercolor paper, when the prints were still just slightly moist and that helped, but added yet another step.
I'm sure I'll find a process to get this worked out, but I think this is a material defect of the paper. Right now I'm squeezing the print, blotting it between two soft towels and screen drying. As it dries the water 'wicks' out the edges. If you look carefully you can see the slightly darker wet area move to the edge, but it doesn't move evenly- maybe its air circulation in the basement, but as it dries the last remaining wet spot is the 'weak' spot and it bends. This could possibly be related to the way they trim the paper off the roll. Perhaps a dull cutter. Something is changing the long edge on 11x14 and the short edge on 8x10. It would be interesting to see the layout for cutting the different sizes.
I'm trying to make prints to fit standard size mats so I can't trim an inch of the edges and I don't want to start cutting custom mats, it would be yet another expensive step in the process of fixing, what is, Ilford's problem.
Thx again!

[faberryman]

Fiber based paper doesn't dry flat. It is just a fact of life. You will need to flatten fiber based prints in a dry mount press.

[Doremus Scudder]

Fiber based paper doesn't dry flat. It is just a fact of life. You will need to flatten fiber based prints in a dry mount press.

Exactly. Maybe you need to start looking for a dry-mount press. The classic presentation for fiber-base papers is trimmed to the image borders and then dry-mounted on mat board with an overmat window slightly larger than the image itself.

Other presentations of fiber-base prints almost always end up with wavy prints, which just looks unprofessional, IM-HO.

Best,

Doremus