mounting photos on PS (polystyrene)

[lungovw]

Hello,

PS, the most common type of plastic, used in many thousands applications, for instance, for CD cases, is very cheap, easy to cut to size (talking about 1,5 mm thickness), flat, acid free and lasts for ever. I tried it in combination with spray adhesive 3M 77, and liked very much the result. Talking about 8 x 10 prints. It is just perfect for framing: thin and rigid. Now the question: am I missing something? Does anybody foresee any possible unwanted chemical or physical effect I should be afraid of? I am considering adopting this as my regular photo mounting procedure.

Wagner

[Nathan Potter]

I would worry about the purity of the spray adhesive - but maybe I'm too obsessive about that. Others must have experience with that adhesive - I don't.

Nate Potter, Austin TX.

[Rick A]

I would stick to spray adhesives that are specifically designed, and labeled, for mounting photographs. They can be purchased through Freestyle or Porters Camera, and other reputable dealers. While 3M brand spray adhesives are good, I question their ability to be archival, and not destroy prints. There are tested and proven products available for this.

[Steven Barall]

I've never heard of anyone using PS for mounting artwork. Sintra, which is moderately expanded closed cell PVC, is the material commonly used. I think that PS gets brittle over time and that it is not UV stabilized.

[Jim Michael]

They also make a material that comes on a roll for face mounting to plexiglass, which might work for regular mounting or face mounting to PS provided it has sufficient clarity and lack of defects.

[bob carnie]

The plastic materials should not be used for hot mounting, big ass problems with bubbling, and bouncing off the substrate over time.

[John Brady]

You could cold mount on it with Coda cold mount 1 adhesive if you have access to a roller press. The coda material is acid free archival and according to Coda makes a barrier isolating it from non archival material. I use a product called mighty core, it's like gator board only smoother.

www.timeandlight.com

[chuckyd74]

Definitely mount to sintra or acrylic if choosing to mount to a plastic material. Face mounting behind acrylic is really becoming quite a popular way to display photographs. The print has such vibrancy when mounted this way. You could also mount photos to aluminum, gatorboard and any number of wood panels. We do a lot of this kind of work so hit me up if anyone has any questions.

www.bumblejax.com