I wrap the print (flat) in tracing paper, then i cut two sheets of foam core board one inch bigger in the dimension of the image on both sides, sandwich with the print taped lightly to one of the boards, tape, wrap evrything in kraft paper and off to the post office I go.
Paul,
I use both heavy duty cardboard and PVC Armour type tubes of my own design.....not because they're better than the armour tubes, but because I make them for about 1/8 the cost. I don't mail many photos and have never tried sending flat via any of the methods above. Something to consider if it's working well for others though.
Cheers,
I am planning to send a mixture of prints, both fiber matte and gloss, and Epson inkjet. The Epson produces some 4-ft panoramas, and the local office supply store sells tubes which can protect against UPS, USPS, and small elephants. But these have a 3-inch diameter, and I want something larger because they come out with a curl! I wrap the panoramas in acid free tracing paper to protect them.
Thanks for the info about U-Line! They have a really good selection there.
Jorge, when you say tri-ply, do you mean plywood with three plys, like 1/4-inch or so?
"It's the way to educate your eyes. Stare. Pry, listen, eavesdrop. Die knowing something. You are not here long." - Walker Evans
QT I get it a wood shop, they cut it for me 16x20 sizes and the sheet including the cutting whihc gives me 6 boards is $15. I dont know if Home Depot would work, you need a place that sells wood only.
Brian, correct I forgot in the US is called plywood. The 1/4 inch is the one I use.
I've never been a great fan of tubes. I print on heavyweight Photo Rag which has a comparatively delicate surface, rolling them tightly and stuffing them in tubes seems all wrong. For smaller prints up to 13"x13" I use 3 or 4 layers of stiff card. Larger prints are best protected by hardboard or ply.
For a stiffening and protective medium, if the prints need to be shipped flat, you might want to consider foam core instead of cardboard. I use foam core to protect flat prints up to 16X20 - and for me this seems to offer the best ratio of strength to weight.
PS: plus, using foam core looks more elegant and "professional" than does cardboard - a consideration, for what its worth, if indeed your prints are being shipped to a buyer.
Both pieces of board don't need to be equally stiff. You could could save some money and weight by sandwiching between one heavy duty sheet (wood, masonite, etc.) and one piece of cardboard or foamcore. As long as one of those pieces is rigid, your print will be safe from the most likely kinds of abuse (getting dropped on a corner, getting folded, etc.).
Old photo paper boxes also work great. I used to work in a commercial lab, and I'd take home all the 16x12 and 20x24 cibachrome boxes. Everything arrived safely in those. I'd sandwich prints between thin cardboard on the inside to protect them from sliding around. For some reason Ilford made the nicest boxes.
the plywood mentioned above is also used for packing when shiping high dollar hardwood plywood. they will put one sheet of the cheap stuff on either side of the stack. this "dunnage" can be bought cheap at lumber yards and many will cut them to size for a nominal fee.
For 11x14" prints, there is a perfect corrugated box you can find at Staples--11x14x2". They come in 5-packs for about $9, and you can fill the empty space with corrugated cardboard sheets or bubble wrap.
For larger prints, I like the way that West Coast Imaging ships. They put the print in a sleeve and tape the sleeve with drafting tape to an oversized corrugated cardboard sheet with two more corrugated sheets on top of the print and one more behind, all wrapped in a corrugated cardboard box. If there are other materials to send like disks or original transparencies, they get taped between the two top sheets.
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