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Thread: Anyone still use old print dryers?

  1. #1

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    Anyone still use old print dryers?

    Hey guys,
    Just curious if anyone out there still uses old electric print dryers? I've got one of the two-sided ones, but I still need to clean it up before I think about trying to use it. I'm also a little hesitant to use something that old which has both ancient wiring in it, and produces heat...
    I've looked the drum style dryers too. Not looking to Ferrotype my fiber prints, just looking for an alternative to letting them dry and putting a big stack of books on them for a week.
    Cheers,
    Scott

  2. #2

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    Re: Anyone still use old print dryers?

    Clean it up including the apron and dry with emulsion toward the apron. Don't remove the apron, but wash it with a brush and then stretch it into drying position to let air dry. This is to prevent shrinkage and will work on both models.

  3. #3

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    Re: Anyone still use old print dryers?

    Make sure to clean it well. Chemical residue from the unsufficiently washed prints of decades could contaminate your freshly rinsed prints. That's why I stopped using these dryers years ago.

    Michael

  4. #4
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    Re: Anyone still use old print dryers?

    Quote Originally Posted by toolbox View Post
    Hey guys,
    Just curious if anyone out there still uses old electric print dryers?
    No.

    Quote Originally Posted by toolbox View Post
    Not looking to Ferrotype my fiber prints, just looking for an alternative to letting them dry and putting a big stack of books on them for a week.
    There are other much better alternatives.

  5. #5

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    Re: Anyone still use old print dryers?

    I have an RC dryer I use all the time. Wish I could find a replacement foam for it. Spits out specs every now and then.

    I don't use my toaster ovens. Well, to put it more accurately, I don't print FB much at all. But have no concerns about plugging in old electric appliances. They were built to last in will outlast anything in your kitchen including your grandma's fine china.

  6. #6

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    Re: Anyone still use old print dryers?

    Clean it up really well and use it. I use one and find them great. As someone else pointed out, the emulsion side goes on facing the canvas. The old ferrotype requires a special coating and probably isn't useful unless you just really, really want it.

  7. #7

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    Re: Anyone still use old print dryers?

    With the emulsion on the canvas side, the glossy papers come up very nice with a pearl finish.

  8. #8

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    Re: Anyone still use old print dryers?

    Quote Originally Posted by toolbox View Post
    Hey guys,
    Just curious if anyone out there still uses old electric print dryers? I've got one of the two-sided ones, but I still need to clean it up before I think about trying to use it. I'm also a little hesitant to use something that old which has both ancient wiring in it, and produces heat...
    I've looked the drum style dryers too. Not looking to Ferrotype my fiber prints, just looking for an alternative to letting them dry and putting a big stack of books on them for a week.
    Cheers,
    Scott
    While a big stack of books will flatten the prints (more or less) for me it never eliminated curling around the edges of the print. There aren't many things in photography about which one can say "if you want to do it right, this is the only way to do it." But drying prints is one of the few ways about which that can be said (IMHO obviously). Here's the way. Lay the prints on a non-metal screen, face up. Put a second screen on top of the first one. Let the prints dry on the screen. Then when they're dry put them in a dry mount press for 10-15 seconds to eliminate the curling around the edges.

    Electric print dryers were made primarily for people who had a large volume of prints that they needed to dry very quickly (e.g. labs, newspapers, etc.). Ferrotyping, as you know, was used to add a glossy sheen to the prints. If neither is your situation then there's no reason to use an electric print dryer that I know of.
    Brian Ellis
    Before you criticize someone, walk a mile in their shoes. That way when you do criticize them you'll be
    a mile away and you'll have their shoes.

  9. #9

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    Re: Anyone still use old print dryers?

    A friend used to print with wide borders and taped the print face up to a sheet of glass with adhesive tape (rubberized paper tape). When the paper dried, it stretched and flattened nicely. He cut off the borders with a box cutter. The print was and stayed perfectly flat.

    Michael

  10. #10

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    Re: Anyone still use old print dryers?

    I have a Premier drum-type dryer; the canvas has water stains. Haven't use it since the late 1980's. If anyone wants it, send me a PM; it's your for the shipping cost.

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