Pigment inks & paper warping.

[rodbam]

I had to print up about 20 A3 shots for a local exhibition & when the prints were put into mats I stood them up on a shelf to look at as I printed others. After few days I noticed the prints warping & bulbing out in places which looked really bad.
The prints are taped all around with masking tape & then a backing board is taped on to the back so the prints can be handled & hung up for exhibition. I know if we puts prints in frames we shouldn't tape them all around because the paper needs to move with expansion but we all enter our prints for club comps etc the way I described above & there's been no problems, so why would this buckling suddenly happen now?
I also printed up 8 shots for someone else & all her shots buckled after she mounted them. Because I printed her shots last year with no problems she thinks it must be the pigment inks from the pro 9500 causing the buckling because last year I did the prints on the dye ink Pro 9000 without a problem.
The other difference is I also used the GO on every print, would this make matters worse?
I know for permanent display the prints should not be fully held by tape but for years now it has been fine for club comps.
We are coming into summer down here with temps in the high 20s & nights a cool around 12C so would this large change in temps be the problem although last years exhibition was at the same time of year but I can remember the temps from back then.

 

[Emulator]

Hi Rod
You don't say what paper you are using. Have you tried one without the gloss? I suppose it might be surface coat shrinking. Alternatively bubling might be due to increased humidity, but PE paper should not absorb liquids. So I would go for the surface coat shrinking.
Regards Emu

 

[websnail]

I'd have to agree with Emulator... It does sound suspiciously like the GLOP/GO is the more likely candidate but I'm curious as to why you seem to be fingering the pigment ink as the culprit?

Perhaps try printing off a GLOP only print and recreate the conditions re: taping/framing then see what happens. Likewise the pigment prints with and without GLOP layer.

That should tell you pretty quickly which is responsible. From there, I'd guess, seeing how long you need to leave things flat/to-dry would give you an idea of whether there's a minimum drying time to allow for.

 

[mikling]

This is the same reason why I caution folks who want to use pigment ink on plain paper as well. The issue centers on the pigment ink and how much is on the paper. Remember that when pigment dries the resin hardens. On plain paper, with a large surface printed with medium to dark colors, you get paper curl that literally coils the sheet.

Let's think about what is happening. When liquid hits paper it contracts and causes curling. If it is left in this contracted state and the resin hardens it takes a set. With dye ink, when the paper dries, usually the curl goes away. I do believe that the GO might have accentuated the effect. You might want to consider properly drymounting the prints on a high quality foamboard..i.e no ripples and watch the quality i.e acid free. I do believe the pros use a vacuum press to do this properly but I have never delved into the details of how they properly mount their fine art prints.

 

[websnail]

On the mounting suggestions, something like Spray Mount or Photo Mount from 3M might be worth considering too, although.

We used to use that religiously with any art work, including watercolours back in the day so may well provide a halfway solution that does the job.

 

[fotofreek]

I've used several 3M spray adhesive products. They work very well, but they are difficult to manage with large prints. The problem is that they have a very aggressive "tack", and when any part of the print touches the mounting medium that is where it will stay. This is especially of concern with very larg prints. I've used dry mount tissue in the past with prints from my darkroom. Very easy to manage. I didn't have a fancy press so I used a warm iron.

I've also had some "bubbling" with larger (A3) matte paper prints and dye based inks. Especially prints that have very full, dark coverage areas. There may be some effect from temp and humidity variations as well. I live in an area that has very cool foggy nights and mornings and warmer sunny afternoons. I expect that some method of full bonding to a more rigid backing - dry mount or spray - would be best.

 

[rodbam]

Thanks all I used a range of papers from Canon Pro luster, Canon Platinum pro, Canon Fine Art Natural & a cheap Chinese gloss paper. The Luster, Platinum & Chinese papers were the worst. I have been printing & mounting the same way for my club prints (2 every month) using the same papers, ink & GO & haven't seen this as the buckling was really bad, all the prints were A3+ (large white borders) but mounted as A3. I haven't sold any prints so they are just for club use & the once a year exhibition so it's not a disaster.
Martin I would never think it was the pigment ink it's just the 8 I printed for a club friend all buckled the same & it was her that said it must be the pigment ink because the ones I printed for her last year on the same paper but with dye ink didn't buckle at all.
I will do a test as you all say & see what happens.
I did try to mount some prints for my sister on foam board with 3m spray mount but as Photofreek said it was really hard to do & after trying all different ways to do it I gave up on that.

 

[fotofreek]

Rod - for prints that were not to be mounted for enduring artistic value I finally started to use Scotch doublestick tape. I put it just shy of the edges all the way around, plus some strips on the inside of the borders with more inside strips the larger the print. Setting the print down gently on the mounting surface permitted a bit of nudging into position, followed by pressure over all the areas where there is tape. This did hold the print flat - even in the middle.

This tape claims to be photo safe. You can buy either permanent or non-permanant tape. I've used permanent as I didn't want the prints coming undone while on display. You can buy 1/2 inch or 3/4 inch wide tape. I've used 1/2 inch on smaller prints and 3/4 inch wide on larger prints. The 3/4 inch tape is much easier to handle as the 1/2 inch tends to either twist or curl when you ar about to apply it to the bakc of a print. Office Depot had small rolls in the store, but you can buy larger rolls online. You really need to have a dispenser with a cutter and not work just with a loose roll of tape.

It takes some practice as the adhesive "tack" is very aggressive. I found that if I cut a piece and stretched it between both hands I could stick down one end and, with the tape stretched out, lower and appy the whole strip at once.

I was at a great art store last week and picked up a spray can of rubber cement. A bit expensive, but worth a try. I don't know if it is any easier to work than the other 3M spray adhesives. If it is I'll let you know.

 

[rodbam]

Thanks Photofreek the tape sounds like it would be a lot less stress. With the 3m I had my wife & daughter helping me & we still buggered it up

 

[The Hat]

Thanks Photofreek the tape sounds like it would be a lot less stress. With the 3m I had my wife & daughter helping me & we still buggered it up

The trick when using the 3M Spray Mount is to spray and mount vertically and not horizontally.

If you spray first then gravity helps give you a nice even coating of adhesive
which then makes it much easier to mount the prints in that perfect position.

If you have someone hold the bottom of your print while you make several attempts at positioning it correctly,
then you can make a much better professional looking job of it.

Two sided adhesive tape works very well when used vertically also..