Laminating Inkjet Prints

[jetcode]

I am interested in eliminating the standard frame style for a series of prints. I want to mount the inkjet prints to a 1/4 piece of hardcore and laminate them. It would be neat if I could do it myself and save the cost but I am open to professional mounting.

In the past I had Calypso mount a 40x50 (if you can't make it good make it big) ilfochrome on foamcore and it had a nice quality to it.

Any experience to share?

[mrladewig]

There are several places in Colorado that do excellent lamination work. One is Artist Showcase who have an inexplicable web address.

http://www.constructivehealing.com/Artist/Home/

The other is "picture this superior" who are easy to find on Google.

I've seen a good amount of work from both vendors and will probably have one of them do something for me soon. I'd say I've seen 3 dozen finished pieces mounted by one of these companies or the other. I just prefer to do framing myself as its much cheaper (so long as I'm not using museum glass). I have the impression that the dry mount presses they use would not be economical for personal use.

But basically that is what you're getting at. If you want to do mounting on gatorboard or a similar substrate yourself, you need a dry mount press. Small size ones can be purchased for a reasonable amount. I'd check with the art supply stores like Dick Blick or Meiningers.

Mel-

[Greg Lockrey]

I am interested in eliminating the standard frame style for a series of prints. I want to mount the inkjet prints to a 1/4 piece of hardcore and laminate them. It would be neat if I could do it myself and save the cost but I am open to professional mounting.

In the past I had Calypso mount a 40x50 (if you can't make it good make it big) ilfochrome on foamcore and it had a nice quality to it.

Any experience to share?

I do my laminating with a Seal flatbed press and do it in overlapping sections. I happen to use Seal brand laminate. The hard part is laying the laminate down without putting too much pressure on it without causing it to adhere before the press is ready to be put into action. I laminate to inkjet paper and mount to foam core with one pass at around 200 degrees F. With my 19x24" platen I am able to handle up to about 37" wide to 8 feet. If I had a wider press, then we could go wider. The length is not a problem. FWIW when I use Epson Enhanced Matte with the Seal Gloss laminate, the laminate makes the gamma look like it picked up a stop or two. Almost looks like a print done on Harman FB but with a little less detail and color accutance. Another good brand of laminate is made by GBC. I'm just starting to use this stuff, it's a lot cheaper than Seal and doesn't have that sticky side that has the protective sheet that has to be pealed prior to use. And it's a lot easier to position once on the surface.

[eyemagicphoto]

We encourage our customers to use Gatorboard because of how sturdy it is compared to foamcore. I have had foamcore bow on me and when trying to frame it, and it becomes quite the task. We outsource our laminating, usually we go with a semi-gloss, or matte for the our Inkjet prints (EPSON9800). We tend to create "realistic" prints though, so the less the laminate sticks out the better in our case. The laminate can really change the "look" of your images.. so keep that in mind as well.

Thanks,
eyemagic

[jetcode]

as crazy as this sounds I am considering mounting on 3/8" gatorboard (which appears to warp a bit too), laquering the print with Hahnemuhle spray and gluing some kind of surface around the framed edge.

[Greg Lockrey]

As a follow up to my previous post about laminates. For about six weeks now I've been using GBC brand laminate called Octivia Gloss . I find that it is much easier to use than Seal in that there is no protective sheet to remove. The laminate is "cleaner" in that it doesn't have a yellowish tint. You can position it after placing it on the work. The Seal has a sticky side that tends to grab the work which makes it more difficult to reposition prior to hot mounting. You have to look pretty close to see the difference with using Epson's Enhanced Matt and Gloss laminate and Harman's FB Gloss paper. The Harman does have better detail but at 4x the cost. I got a roll of 38"x 500 ft for about $90.00 shipped. Seal was 200 feet for $160.00.

[jetcode]

Greg how do you handle cutting inkjet paper? I had some prints recently mounted and the mounter sheered the foam core and print at the same time and the inkjet paper shredded slightly. I am noticing this on the Ilford Galerie Silk paper.

[Ben R]

How archival is lamination?

[Greg Lockrey]

How archival is lamination?

I don't know specifically, for the applications that I use are for commercial applications for protecting displays and that sort of thing. I have some Seal laminate examples that are dangling on my studio walls in hard traffic areas that don't seem to have any lose for wear for the past 8-10 years.

[Greg Lockrey]

Greg how do you handle cutting inkjet paper? I had some prints recently mounted and the mounter sheered the foam core and print at the same time and the inkjet paper shredded slightly. I am noticing this on the Ilford Galerie Silk paper.

Joe, I didn't see your post till now. I mount everything together and cut afterward. I use a razor knife that is specifically designed to cut foam core. It has a handle similar to a bicycle grip and perpendicular to a plate that holds the knife blade at a 45 degree angle. Don't know the brand name off hand but I got it at Michael's arts and crafts store. The blade is a razor and I can get about 10-15 long cuts with it before I need to turn the blade over. They have to be sharp. If mounter used a shear, that could be troublesome. Foam core doesn't like to be cut with a shear. I never ever noticed a problem with the paper, but sometimes the bottom of the foam core gets ragged if the blade is dull. That's my signal to change the blade. For really intricate work like a life size stand-up display of people I have a battery operated jig saw (Black and Decker) fitted with a scalpel blade. Works like a charm. Yeah, not everything done here is what you call fine art.