Adhesive holders

[pgk]

FWIW, for the DIYers this might have some interesting potential: https://www.ikelite.com/products/vacuum-pump-with-gauge

[Drew Wiley]

Vac holders are easy to make if you use em one-sheet only : you seal off the back side of a regular double-sheet holder, drill a set of tiny holes in the septum, shim the backside so the septum doesn't deflect under vacuum, insert a tiny tube into the appropriate part of the edge, then cement in the rear darkslide to make it airtight. Nowadays you could use a small cordless vac, or for shorter exposures, a little hand pump like the one on a previous post. I've done it, but prefer the simplicity and two-sheet capacity of adhesive holders.

[Tim V]

Ok, so I’ve made myself an adhesive holder following the outline here by modifying a Fidelity holder. I could only get tape that is 12mm wide and was told the wider rolls are discontinued. Might not be true for you people is the US or Europe...

The slots were actually harder to cut than I thought they would be, but got there in the end. The tape covers more area than the pictured Sinar example and doesn’t look as pretty, but fingers crossed...

I can see what Drew means about goop on the edges of the roll, but it doesn’t look too bad. Pretty good, actually, but I guess the proof will be how much residue it leaves behind if film is in holder for more than a few days, plus I’m interested to know how long it stays sufficiently sticky...

Who else has attempted this DIY?

[Drew Wiley]

Mine still work after 20 yrs! Sinar used the same 3M "tape", but had it custom cut in sheet sizes. The minimum order for something like that would probably do 120,000 holders. I'm facetiously guessing of course. 3M is infamously hard to communicate with; but they also carry a incredible number of unique products. In this case, it's basically just a special Post-It division adhesive, permanent on one side, removable on the other.

[Tim V]

Thanks Drew. Yes, it seems to work really well! I put a fogged sheet of film in the holder three days ago and left it there upside down and checked it today. No sagging or curling at the corners and no residue on the back of the film when I peeled it off. Success! Just need to check it for light tightness now before I trust it in the field.

As an aside, if I load it with 400 ISO film and leave it in a lit room out of direct sunlight, how long should I leave it out for? I'm guessing if left long enough all holders will leak a bit, so wondering what the sweet spot might be for testing?

Thanks again,

Tim

[Drew Wiley]

They shouldn't leak light at all if the holders are correctly modified. I've had film in em for months on end.

[Michael Roberts]

Tim,
I have also attempted this with very mixed success. I've had sheets fall out of the holder into the back of the camera when I pull the dark slide, so now I'm testing exposed sheets in the holders for longer times to see how long they'll hold and under different temperature conditions.

I really, really want this to work b/c it opens up whole worlds of opportunities for me to fabricate ULF holders such as 7x11 (I've got a bunch of vintage Kodak holders, but they're relatively scarce) and odd sizes like 10x16....

What I've been working on is a set of 10 7x11 holders I've made; I'm using one as a test for the tape; the rest are waiting to have the tape installed.

Drew's success has been a huge inspiration to keep working on this.

[Michael Roberts]

Here are some pics of my diy adhesive holder...

1. placement and coverage of 3m tape
2. film curl on top and bottom of long side
3. film pressed flat

This film has been in the holder for about 3 mos., and the tape has held it in place very well except for the long edges. I may need to replace/add another strip of tape along the edges.
I may also need to make sure the film is flat each morning before shooting. I can fairly easily do this with a changing bag while traveling.

I am also wondering if the tape works better/worse with different types of film, i.e., whether different thicknesses/weight, backing, etc. affect adhesion? So far, the film I've had trouble with is Efke. This sheet of Provia seems to be sticking better.

Will update when I have more to report.

Michael

[Michael Roberts]

Update: I've been testing Provia and Efke over the last 24 hours, and the Provia is not sticking well at all along the long edges. It curls up within 15 minutes. So far, the Efke 100 is much flatter and is holding much better.

Tim and Drew, what film have you successfully been using in your adhesive holders?

Thanks,
Michael

[Drew Wiley]

My adhesive holders work with all sheet films. Never a problem. In your posted picture, Michael, the adhesive strips looks rather wrinkled. It might take some practice to get it right. If your tape did not come with its own release paper, you could use an 8x10 sheet of silicone treated drymount release paper over the tape in order to firmly pressure roll it down onto the holder surface. The backside should be permanently bonded to your holder (unless you deliberately remove it with solvent). Such bonding requires pressure.