Artcare Restore...Archival?

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Dave

Dave

SPFG, Supreme Picture Framing God
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Jun 11, 2004
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Edwardsburg, MI
Interestingly enough, in the directions that come with the reversable archival fom-cor, no mention is made of mounting originals or L/E prints. If this mounting process is truly archival, why is there no mention of these items? Is Bainbridge "covering their arse" from a liability standpoint? It makes me wonder about the true archival nature of this product. Their seal states "Artcare Archival System...Museum Quality Protection". Mmm-mmm... any input fellow Grumblers?

Dave Makielski
 
Rick Bergeron is on the Facts committee for adhesives. He's done some tests re the reversibility of this product with various papers, application methods etc.

He found that when used as per instructions it was reversible. The adhesive shows under UV light, and he found no UV visible traces of the adhesive on the test pieces after removal.

HOWEVER, this says nothing about its long term reversibility. Most pressure sensitive adhesives change in time. Also, Bainbridge doesn't say what exactly is in the adhesive, so predictions can't be made.

To be really sure, the adhesive would need to be analyzed, and artificial aging tests made, as well as long term natural aging tests.

The terms Archival and Museum Quality mean nothing. A prudent approach would be to use it only on easily replacable items with owner's permission. (See Phone Guy thread).

Rebecca
 
Hi Dave-We use this product for those "grey areas" in mounting. You know like that diploma or certificate or signed poster that really is of no real value.

It is for the items that we used to think "Should I or Shouldn't I" mount this bad boy.

For those items that never would be given any such consideration, like LE's or originals, it's mounting as usual.

Some stuff just would look better mounted flat than hinging, and from a purists point of view should be hinged. But, let's face it, this new product will take a lot of guesing out of the equation.

If it truly bothers you, I would stick to the tried and true method you used before. For us, it is a new product that fits nicely into our arsenal of mounting options.

I'm sure a lot of purists will pass on this product

Of course, my question might be were you really considering dry mounting an original?
 
Bob, yes I did mount an original!!!!


With the mom's permission, of course.

A child's watercolor so warped it was more of a 3-D scultpture than two dimensional art. Thought mounting it would help. Used Artcare and it flattened OK, but with a ton of wrinkles since it was painted with gouache (aka, opaque watercolor aka, poster paint) on thin drawing paper.

It looked worse mounted, so I carefully extracted the magic Artcare scapel from it's sleeve and...(drum roll)...it came up easily.

After hinging, the finished package looked fine even though the drawing was wavy.

Dave Makielski
 
I have used the Restore on a newspaper article and found it to not adhere fully. My first attempt was in a 160 degree press (preheated), left it in for 3 minutes at full vaccum. Let it cool and found that the fold of the newspaper was not adhered to the backing and slight ripples were starting to form. Put it back in the press at 170 degrees for 5 minutes and cooled it under a 5lb weight. Came back the next day and the fold of the newspaper had started to lift from the backing. Put it back into the press at 180 degrees for 8 minutes, cooled under a 5lb weight and was able to totally lift the article off the backing with a bit of print ink adhering to the foam core. Please forgive the length of this post, but I wanted to share my experience with this product. I am wondering if, by putting it back into the press after the initial attempt, the adhesive somehow degenerates? May I ask if anyone else has had this experience?

I still plan to try it out on some drawings and watercolors I did in high school; I think the product has tremendous applications.
Many thanks,
Julia
 
Our experience has been postive ...so far.
We have mounted paper and canvas. Low temp and a VERY sort mounting time ..about 30 seconds is all I believe. It has to be cooled down right away under glass. If it is warm at all it will lift off. It is a very strange adhesive. It rolls off very easily from the surface of the paper you are mountng. ATG will not stick to it either.
 
Bainbridge does state that Artcare Restore meets or exceeds FACTS standards regarding preservation framing as they exist today. We regularly use the product on various limited edition (signed posters and such) and "original" works (Little Jim's 1st grade masterpiece).... at our discretion taking multiple factors into consideration.

I have found that use of temperatures higher than recommended WILL cause problems which reinforces the reason for use of temperatures outside of manufacturers specification should be avoided. There is usually a reason for publishing specs; but I have had success using temperatures significantly lower than specified and increasing dwell time. Many presses, vaccuum or mechanical, have temperature indicators that are off by a noticable amouny and for that reason, I use a temperature strip mounted to foamcore that is accurate to 1 or 2 degrees to check our mechanical press. If the press top is lifted quickly, the suction effect will cause the piece being mounted to lift from the adhesive and cause a bubbling effect. Cooling under weight is required for proper application.

There is no claim that the product is re-useable; so when I have any questions about the mount, I grab a new piece of restore. Over time, each of us will find that there are some items that will not or cannot be adhered when mounted. Glossy magazine type pages are one that give me trouble.
 
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