3M Photo Mount spray

[VesaL]

Hello !

3M Photo Mount spray

Does anyone Know how "acrhivally safe " is this stuff to use mounting the prints to matting board ?


vesaL

 

[Ian Grant]

There's more than one type. One is semi-permanent, the other permanent.

It isn't archival, and goes against all recommended practice.

Ian

 

[craigclu]

I work for 3M (different division than this) and dropped a note just now to the area that produces this. I asked what the company statement is regarding the archival nature of the photo adhesive. I'll let you know what I find out. I've never used it for photos but have used it many times for producing foam core board displays of printed materials for visiting exec tours at work, etc. It works very nicely for that duty as it doesn't saturate standard paper or seem to interact with inks, etc.

 

[Pinholemaster]

I wouldn't use it on anything of value.

If you want archival, dry mount.

 

[bdial]

One view of "archival" is that it should be reversable. Using that definition, neither the spray adhesive nor dry mount tissue are archival.
Either way, the print can only last as long as the mount does, and if the mount is damaged, it cannot be replaced without severe risk to the print.

 

[glbeas]

I've used 3M spraymount to mount RC paper to polystrene board for 'quick and nasty' mounts for photo contests. So far the only problem I've had is the adhesive coming loose in a hot environment. I've seen no deterioration of the print itself in eight years so far.

 

[vdonovan]

I use it all the time. I don't know if my prints are going to live forever, but it sure is easy and I like the results.

 

[Ian Grant]

One view of "archival" is that it should be reversable. Using that definition, neither the spray adhesive nor dry mount tissue are archival.
Either way, the print can only last as long as the mount does, and if the mount is damaged, it cannot be replaced without severe risk to the print.

This is the accepted view. I guess I've been using 3M Spray mount for well over 30 years, for commercial applications. The prints were never needed to last more than a year or two, most are just as good now as when produced,and very few have come apart.

If you need archival prints then Spray mount isn't the solution, but if you want a good quick method of mounting RC prints then it's excellent.

Ian

 

[VesaL]

Thank you all for your kind help.!

vesaL

 

[craigclu]

The tech service person assigned to this within 3M supplied the following information:

Thank you for your interest in 3M aerosol adhesives.

3M Spray Adhesive's: 77, Photo Mount, Vac-U-Mount and Spray Mount have been tested by the Rochester Institute of Technology, Image Permanence Institute for pH and Photographic Activity. They are all pH neutral in the dry adhesive film state and pass the Photographic Activity Test for both color and black and white photographs.

Those are the only two tests we are aware of that would indicate if a spray adhesive is suitable for mounting prints/photos. We should not reference "archival" but rather these tests.

If I can try to help in any other way, please let me know.

Regards,

Robert ( B. Jay ) Inserra

3M Industrial Adhesives & Tapes Division
Technical Service - Aerosol & Cylinder Spray Adhesives
3M Center, Bldg. 230-2S-29
St. Paul, MN 55144-1000
651-733-8337 office
651-216-8005 cell
651-737-1920 Fax
rjinserra1@mmm.com

 

[dancqu]

One view of "archival" is that it should be reversible.
Using that definition, neither the spray adhesive nor dry
mount tissue are archival. Either way, the print can only
last as long as the mount does, and if the mount is
damaged, it cannot be replaced without severe
risk to the print.

How about 3M Spray Mount Artist's Adhesive? Mounted
works can be peeled off. Must be some using it. May be
as good as wheat or rice starch. Dan

 

[kmw]

how long will a photo last if you use 3m spray on the image side of the photograph to adhere it to the glass? (art project)

 

[glbeas]

The spray is not crystal clear so will make it look pretty bad first. Secondly, anything like that glue is not going to be kind to the emulsion.

 

[fdi]

The reason one of the best practices for archival is completely reversible is since the frame components get contaminated over time you can eventually swap them all out with fresh components.

If you are going to forgo reversibility, you have two things to consider. One is will the process damage the print. Dry mounting can damage some types of artwork and some adhesives are harmful. Assuming the process is not harmful the next question is how permanent is the process. Permanence of the process is critical for longevity if you cannot reverse it and redo it later. Permanence is where dry mounting does very well and it is where spray adhesives tend to do poorly.

Cheers,
Mark

 

[VesaL]

The tech service person assigned to this within 3M supplied the following information:

Thank you for your interest in 3M aerosol adhesives.

3M Spray Adhesive's: 77, Photo Mount, Vac-U-Mount and Spray Mount have been tested by the Rochester Institute of Technology, Image Permanence Institute for pH and Photographic Activity. They are all pH neutral in the dry adhesive film state and pass the Photographic Activity Test for both color and black and white photographs.

Those are the only two tests we are aware of that would indicate if a spray adhesive is suitable for mounting prints/photos. We should not reference "archival" but rather these tests.

If I can try to help in any other way, please let me know.

Regards,

Robert ( B. Jay ) Inserra

3M Industrial Adhesives & Tapes Division
Technical Service - Aerosol & Cylinder Spray Adhesives
3M Center, Bldg. 230-2S-29
St. Paul, MN 55144-1000
651-733-8337 office
651-216-8005 cell
651-737-1920 Fax
rjinserra1@mmm.com

Hello Craig,
I´m sorry for my very late reply, just wanted to thank you for contacting 3M Industrial Adhesives & Tapes Division.
Have a nice summer. Over here in Finland weather at the moment is cold and it´s a bummer :0)
-Vesa

 

[Vaughn]

I must have missed this post 9 years ago...thanks for bringing it back up!

 

[RalphLambrecht]

Hello !

3M Photo Mount spray

Does anyone Know how "acrhivally safe " is this stuff to use mounting the prints to matting board ?


vesaL

stay away from it! It's evil and gets everywhere in your room. It's also anti-archival! give it away to somebody you don't like.

 

[Rudolf Karachun]

I did a successful mounting with the rice starch glue. Its easy to prepare and use, it is fully archival and reversible. With a little bit of accuracy and maybe one experimental trial mounting you can became a master in no time. And it is not expensive. It takes less then a teaspoon of the starch powder to mount about 8 15"x15" prints. it works well with resin coated papers and of course will work with fiber base papers even better. This glue used in book binding and old books restoration and recommended by NY Metropolitan museum for the restoration work. You can find it there:
http://www.talasonline.com/Rice-Starch?custcol_matrix_weight=7

 

[RalphLambrecht]

There's more than one type. One is semi-permanent, the other permanent.

It isn't archival, and goes against all recommended practice.

Ian

exactly!

 

[Doc W]

One view of "archival" is that it should be reversable. Using that definition, neither the spray adhesive nor dry mount tissue are archival.
Either way, the print can only last as long as the mount does, and if the mount is damaged, it cannot be replaced without severe risk to the print.

A dead thread lives again!

What archival mounting processes are reversible?

 

[faberryman]

It is so easy to mount with archival corners and an archival mat, I don't know why anyone would fool with spray adhesives.

 

[fdi1001]

A dead thread lives again!

What archival mounting processes are reversible?

The idea behind museum level conservative framing is that you can easily swap out all of the framing components with new ones since they will become contaminated over time. This pretty much rules out all sprays and most adhesives. Ideally you use photo corners or things like back doors on mounting boards. Hinging tape with archival adhesive such as Lineco self adhesive hinging tissue with acid free adhesive is almost as good. It is very neutral adhesive that is only touching the print in two small place. A step up is Gummed Linen Hinging Tape or even better is
Pure Wheat Starch Adhesive found in the Lineco Museum Mounting Kit. These adhesives are water activated and can be reversed with water. Although water reversible adhesive can be considered archival for most photo's it is not at all appropriate for die based ink jet prints since water will destroy one of those prints. Some mounting tissue is reversible with temperature which can be archival as long as that temp needed to reverse will not hurt the item being framed. In most cases, a museum will not want to mess with adhesives very much since it is really hard to know exactly how the chemicals in an adhesive will interact with he print and the mounting board over the long run with variation in temperature and humidity. You can see some of the hinging tapes and mounting items on our site here:https://www.framedestination.com/framing-accessories/photo-mounting-supplies.html

 

[bdial]

A dead thread lives again!

What archival mounting processes are reversible?

As @faberryman suggests, photo corners are one way. Hinging the print with archival tape and adhesive is another method. I use photo corners.
But, prints don't present quite as well using these methods, if you get the corners too tight then the print will buckle slightly. Even if you leave some room with the corners the print won't be as flat as it is dry mounted.

Aside from being archival, photo corners are far, far cheaper than a dry mount press, however, which is a big plus, and they are much smaller to store.

 

[bsdunek]

I'll ditto Ian Grant and do it one better. I have prints from 1972 mounted with 3M Photo Spray Adhesive, and the look fine. That's now 45 years. Good enough for me.