Curly Kodalith prints

jmlynek · Nov 24, 2016

I have a box of original Kodalith prints from the 70s that I didn't mount. I would like to scan them and perhaps mount a few, but they have become very curly and I don't want to crack the emulsion. Anyone with some experience here who would let me know how to proceed to flatten them?

Thanks in advance to all APUGers.

jmlynek · Nov 27, 2016

Bump.

jmlynek · Dec 1, 2016

Bump.

MattKing · Dec 1, 2016

I think part of the problem might be that most are unfamiliar with Kodalith prints. I'm not sure that what I remember and might be a Kodalith print is actually what you are asking about.

What I am thinking of was used in pre-press in a print shop.

jmlynek · Dec 1, 2016

MattKing said:
I think part of the problem might be that most are unfamiliar with Kodalith prints. I'm not sure that what I remember and might be a Kodalith print is actually what you are asking about.

What I am thinking of was used in pre-press in a print shop.

You're right. Kodalith paper was a graphic arts product like Kodalith film. It's a thin, fibre-based paper. You can see some examples of it on my Instagram feed.

MattKing · Dec 1, 2016

jmlynek said:
You're right. Kodalith paper was a graphic arts product like Kodalith film. It's a thin, fibre-based paper. You can see some examples of it on my Instagram feed.

Its nice to know that at least some of the 40+ year old parts of my memory are still in place .

I'm assuming your prints don't have any wax on the back. All the ones I worked with did (for pre-press use).

IIRC, the paper was really, really thin. Given that, it may be that people's experience with single weight papers might be applicable. So you may want to start a new thread asking about people's experience flattening that.

faberryman · Dec 1, 2016

Back then, paper came in single weight and double weight. Now days, it is all double weight. Your Kodalith paper was probably single weight, hence the tendency to curl. I would take one of the prints, soak it in water until it is saturated, squeegee off the excess water, and lay it face down on a screen to dry. When dry, place it in a dry mount press between two clean mat boards for a minute or so at 180 degrees (I place my face down on a sheet of regular kitchen parchment paper in the mat board sandwich), take it out, and place it face down with a weight on top until cool. It should then be reasonably flat and undamaged, and you can proceed to do the rest.

MattKing · Dec 1, 2016

faberryman said:
Back then, paper came in single weight and double weight.

The Kodalith paper that I vaguely remember was thinner than single weight. IIRC, it was designed to be pasted (using wax) on to page layouts which were subsequently shot in a line camera.

jmlynek · Dec 1, 2016

faberryman said:
Back then, paper came in single weight and double weight. Now days, it is all double weight. Your Kodalith paper was probably single weight, hence the tendency to curl. I would take one of the prints, soak it in water until it is saturated, squeegee off the excess water, and lay it face down on a screen to dry. When dry, place it in a dry mount press between two clean mat boards for a minute or so at 180 degrees (I place my face down on a sheet of regular kitchen parchment paper in the mat board sandwich), take it out, and place it face down with a weight on top until cool. It should then be reasonably flat and undamaged, and you can proceed to do the rest.

I think that MattKing is right about it being thinner than single weight. I've been thinking about doing exactly as you suggest but concerned that it might crack the very thin emulsion.

jmlynek · Dec 1, 2016

MattKing said:
The Kodalith paper that I vaguely remember was thinner than single weight. IIRC, it was designed to be pasted (using wax) on to page layouts which were subsequently shot in a line camera.

You're quite right about it's intended purpose. And, yes, it is thinner than single weight. Interestingly, Kodak came out with an RC version that is double weight. I have a few prints on that, but they haven't curled.

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