Speedmount Woes

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schnoubi

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Joined
Jan 10, 2005
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46
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Colorado
It seems like everytime I post, it's always something to do with the speedmount... I have a customer who called today and has 4 framed photos that we did that she says have started to ripple. They were dry mounted about 2 weeks ago using speedmount at about 165 degrees for 2 min 30 sec. Haven't had any other problems lately with the Speedmount or the machine, but it sounded pretty bad, even though I haven't seen them yet. She's bringing them in on Wednesday, so I'll know more then. Has anyone else ever had this problem, could it be a bad batch of Speedmount? I appreciate any thing that might help. Are there any suggestions on how to fix the problem if they are really rippling bad and the bond isn't holding?
Thanks in advance,
Paige
 
paige, we have on occasion, gotten a bad batch of foam core where the paper itself is lifting from the foam.

Not saying this is your problem - but it's something else to look for.
 
I had a few in my beginning stages to lift in spots. I went to a slightly higher heat setting. My thermostat is set at 180 now for speed-mount.

Have you tried the temp test strips from Bainbridge?

I found that my temp was off about 10 degrees.

Speed-mount is reversible. It works very well. You can reverse the mounts and use another product if needed like Techmount or Fusion 4000.

At the very least you can pop them back in the press for several minutes and all will be well.
 
I also had a few problems early on with Speed Mount, and like Jerry, found that using a higher temp setting for a longer period was the trick. Haven't had a problem since. 180 for 4 min works best for me.
 
180 for 4 minutes is about what I use with my regular tissue and board, so why use Speed Mount?

I've tried for years to like liver and onions. I think it might be good for you and it actually LOOKS good to me, but I just can't make it work.

I'm a big fan of most Bainbridge products and I like the idea of Speed Mount, but I just can't make it work for me. I even had a call (because of a Grumble post) from a tech guy at Bainbridge who tried very hard to help me with my Speed Mount problem, but I ended up using a case of the stuff for expensive filler board.

I'm sure it's not a bad product, since so many love it, but it doesn't like me.
 
What I like about Speed Mount is the skipping of the mark/put down tissue/trim tissue/tack steps. With Speed Mount it's only mark/tack. I don't use it very often, only if I have several, usually small ones, to do at a time. Otherwise, I prefer the tissue mount. I only use 180 degr. so I don't have to wait for my press to cool down to 150.
 
I'm with Ron - if you're going to dry mount - use photo-mount tissue or fusion (depending on what you're mounting)
If you're like Val and prefer to save time (don't we all) there are other brands of boards w/ adhesive out there w/ less issues - give 'em a try
I can't remember anyone bringing back a poster or a photograph and requesting that it be removed - - -
If you want to be sure that the "art" can be returned to it's natural state - don't dry mount it!
 
I'm with Ron - if you're going to dry mount - use photo-mount tissue or fusion (depending on what you're mounting)
If you're like Val and prefer to save time (don't we all) there are other brands of boards w/ adhesive out there w/ less issues - give 'em a try
I can't remember anyone bringing back a poster or a photograph that had been dry mounted and requesting that it be removed - - -
If you want to be sure that the "art" can be returned to it's natural state - don't dry mount it!
 
Oops - sorry - didn't mean to double-post
shrug.gif
 
Mike, I only know of Speed Mount (new to me), what are the "other brands" of boards with adhesives and w/o issues?
 
Everyone who uses a heat press should get a FREE Bainbridge temperature test kit. It is reusable and, in many cases, will show that your press is not calibrated to match the dials. My press temperature was actually 10 degrees hotter than indicated by the dial or built-in thermometer and was causing problems.

More heat (Hotter) will many times make things worse when using the low temperature products because the adhesive will begin to activate and traps air into pockets which will not appear until later when the mounted piece is subjected to temperature and humidity changes. 180 degrees, if the actual temperature, is too hot and will cause problems on non-porous mounts.

Cooling under weight is also critical because removing the mounted piece from the press can sometimes cause a suction effect and lift the art from the foamcore while it is still warm and cause pockets that will be visible when the temperature and humidity changes.

If a drymount press, the pressure should also be calibrated properly to the particular manufacturer's settings.

And finally, like any other product, there is always the possibility of a defect.

While there are other brands of heat activated boards, I don't think that any are without issues of their own if not used within the manufacturer's parameters.
 
Thanks to everyone for their replies. The calibration strips are a great idea! I was using the Speedmount at 180 and had WAY too many problems, so I had to take it down to 165. It has worked VERY well at this temperature so I just wonder what went wrong. I will open up the pictures when I get them and see. If I need to release the pictures from the board, does anyone have any reccomendations on the best way to do this?
 
Originally posted by schnoubi:
...If I need to release the pictures from the board, does anyone have any recommendations on the best way to do this?
Click to expand...
185 to 190 degree for double the normal time and the item will peel off. Remove while it is hot, don't let it cool or it will re-adhere.

The reversibility is a great feature when something has gone wrong.
 
The "speed" of the dwell time of speedmount is only 15-30 seconds. 2 1/2 minutes is much too long. When I first started using it I thought if 15 seconds was good then 3 minutes would be better. Not the case here. On the quick reference sheet the longest time is 1 minute and that is for fabrics. Like others have said it could be defective product. I have had a few bad sheets, I inspect them prior to use now to try and avoid problems.
 
speed mount is designed to be used at 150 degrees with 15-20 sec as has been stated.

And that 15-20 sec is AFTER you come up to vacuum, about 28 psi in our case

Use it constantly for cheap posters and other stuff like that. No probs, no complaints and used it since it's inception.

Maybe you're overcooking?

Now Restore is another matter altogether. We were the early adopters of that stuff and it totally failed. BUT subsequently we love it.

another story for another thread I suppose
 
Order part number FACRUKIT05

This is a self-adhesive, re-usable temperature indicator that you stick to a piece of 3/16 foamcore and insert into your heat press that reads in 10 degree increments. I had better success receiving the kit by faxing the label below.

ARemail.gif
 
Rick is right about Cooling under weight.

It is very important to do this. We use a large 1/4 inch mirror just for this purpose.

Also, brining the piece to be mounted plus the foamboard to warm room temperature and removing moisture prior to mounting will prevent lots of problems (ripple effect) due to trapped moisture.

Things sitting in a cold basement are also subject to humidity which will throw off any precise timing for the mounting.

I usually leave the material to be mounted on top of the heatpress for a couple of minutes prior to mounting, just for the above reasons.
 
I love you guys! As a rep for Bainbridge I was ready to jump in this thread and talk about the test strip, over heating, drying the art etc etc, but you did it for me. Its like anything we buy, if we follow the directions it usually works out fine. If there is a problem don't hesitate to tell the manufacture rep so it can be addressed. Thanks!
 
If you continue to have problems, you could always try Bienfang's Step 150 ... it's also a low temperature / low time foamboard with dry mount adhesive.
 
Everyone knows that a "real man" hates to follow directions! especially if its coming from his wife or girlfriend...ha! ( and he doesn't eat quiche )
" When all else fails then read the directions " :)
 
An inexpensive heating gun will lift something from speedmount too. Had a 1950 newspaper drymounted on the wrong side recently. I tried reheating and removing with no luck. Our craft coordinator used the heating tool and it worked spectacularly! What a genious she is! Too bad she discovered it AFTER we paid the customer $200 for the ruined article. But she did rejoice when we called her, and paid for the framing of it.
 
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