Mylar for wet mounting

[Bob McCarthy]

Is there any trick to keeping the mylar film clear of dust between uses. The stuff I have is a real dust magnet and is more of a pain to keep dust free than my negatives.

Can it be washed in a bath of water and photo-flo? Or whatever works?

bob

[Gem Singer]

Bob,

I believe that the Aztek Mylar sheets are designed to be single shot. Although they can be reused, they become dust magnets when they are wiped off, and they build up static electricity.

Here's what i suggest: purchase a sheet of anti-Newton glass from Focal Point, in Florida (well worth the price).

Place your film on the scanner platten, emulsion side down. Cover it with the AN glass (dull side against the base side of the film), and scan just as if it were wet mounted.

Merely wipe the glass surfaces clean with a lint free cloth. Dust spots are greatly reduced and no more expensive mounting fluid or mylar to purchase. Especially,no wet mess to clean up.

(The student is teaching the teacher here).

[Bob McCarthy]

Eugene, the platten on the Cezanne is already AN. Have to think about that one.

It does seem wasteful to single-use the sheets, but your correct they do build up static badly and become unworkable.

I normally don't wet mount everything as some others do, but I have a few 8x10 negatives that just won't lay flat and wet mounting solved the problem. Tape alone doesn't get the job done.

I have been hesisitant to use a hard (glass) hold down sheet as the platten on the Cezanne is soft and marks very easily. Its made of the same substance as the drum in a drum scanner. Replacement cost is outrageous so I'm being extremely cautious.

bob

[Peter De Smidt]

You can try anti-glare plastic picture framing glazing from a framing store. It has a texture on one side. It's awful for framing prints, but it works well as a cheap alternative to AN glass. Some people report having the texture show up in scans (or on prints), but others don't. The only way to tell if it'll be a problem would be to try it. The good point is that it's cheap.

I have the tray for the Cezanne with 6 openings. A clam shell holder, with AN on both pieces, holds the film flat. These aren't big enough for 8x10, though. Screen did make a hold down sheet, but my guess is that buying one would be ridiculously expensive.

I don't wet mount much any more, but when I did, I found a Zone VI antistatic brush helped, as did keeping the humidity from getting to low. (I also run a hepa filter near the scanner.)

[timparkin]

Is there any trick to keeping the mylar film clear of dust between uses. The stuff I have is a real dust magnet and is more of a pain to keep dust free than my negatives.

Can it be washed in a bath of water and photo-flo? Or whatever works?

bob

Fairly impossible from what I've found - one shot is the way to go (50p per scan isn't too bad)

[Gem Singer]

"The platten on the Cezanne is AN plastic"-- All the better.

There is no need for AN cover glass with your uber scanner.

Focal Point sells less expensive optically clear glass with rounded corners and polished edges. They recommend 2mm thickness to hold the film perfectly flat.

As long as you are careful not to scratch the delicate platten, a good quality cover glass will solve your problem.

Much easier to clean, and your scanner's sensor won't need to read through a layer of dusty Mylar and a layer of Kami fluid with air bubbles in it. And, no mess to clean-up.

Just be sure to mount the film on the AN platten base down (shiny side), and you won't get Newton rings.

[Bob McCarthy]

Thanks,

I'll give it a try

bob

[Greg Blank]

Only way to d that is with a reverse charge, any static collecting material has to be discharged to drop clingy dust from the surface. That is why certain anti static devices work they produce a negative charge. Use a staticwisk type brush or shaking the mylar like a bed sheet my simply work near a vacuum cleaner. I wouldn't wash it - if its that dirty with dust mylar should be pitch in the waste can.

Is there any trick to keeping the mylar film clear of dust between uses. The stuff I have is a real dust magnet and is more of a pain to keep dust free than my negatives.

Can it be washed in a bath of water and photo-flo? Or whatever works?

bob

[jp]

I'd try putting it one of the metallic anti-static bags that computer motherboards come in. They are like magic for stopping static buildup.

[IanMazursky]

I wouldn't recommend reusing mylar for anything important, but on occasion i reuse some for testing.
I store them in a file cabinet drawer and a few of the top sheets are sacrificial.
Washing will probably do more harm then good but Kami film cleaner or like will work to a point.
You will never get it 100% clean. When you mount, lots of stuff comes off the film, dust, other particles, some chemistry....
Most of it ends up stuck to the mylar, its the whitish stain on the backside. Its a huge pain to remove, you just end up scratching the mylar more.
What i do for tests is to flip the mylar over and use the side that was previously against the film as the top.
Seems to work much better as you can clean only the areas that you will scan.

Dust is inevitable, its our curse! You have to weight how much spotting you are willing to do over saving a few bucks.

In my shop i installed a top gun air ionizer attached to our compressor but i have seen some small air ionizers for sale.
A quick blast will discharge a lot of the static and keep some of the dust off. At that point, mount quickly to avoid attracting more dust.
I also installed a 3 fan ionizer previously used in a clean room, not that you would know it from the condition it was in and the dust and dirt.
It was very cheep on the bay, shipping wasn't! But i have to say that the bay has a fantastic selection of dust control equipment from retired clean rooms.
I even saw a whole clean room for sale. I would investigate some of those options if you plan to reuse the mylar.