Fiber paper getting curly before printing!

JeffD · Jan 18, 2006

Ok, someone has to have a good fix for this. My recent box of Ilford Fiber 11x14 paper has begun to curl on the ends pretty significantly, before I have been able to print on it. I am afraid that it won't lie very flat in my easel at this point.

I probably blew it, and kept it in a box in my darkroom, where there is probably excess humidity from the wet side of the room.

Any brilliant ways I can make this stuff relatively flat again? I hope I didn't just lose a bunch of good paper!

Mongo · Jan 18, 2006

I've used a thick piece of glass the same size as the paper...just lay it in the box for a while. This trick only works if you've got enough room in the box for the paper and the glass, though.

lesdix · Jan 19, 2006

I have no real solution but I bought a box of Kentmere Warmtone recently and it had a curl straight out of the box. I have to put some a weight on the lower right hand corner of the easel to get it to lie flat.

Les

Bob F. · Jan 19, 2006

lesdix said:
I have no real solution but I bought a box of Kentmere Warmtone recently and it had a curl straight out of the box. I have to put some a weight on the lower right hand corner of the easel to get it to lie flat.

I had this with the same paper, but mine seems to have got flatter by itself in the 2 months I've had it. I had to use a couple of old loudspeaker magnets to keep the easel blades down at first...

I agree that a weight on top of the paper is probably the only practical way. Weigh it down somewhere dry.

Cheers, Bob.

gbroadbridge · Jan 19, 2006

Every single box of Ilford FB i've purchased has a curl at the edges. It curls towards the emulsion which is useful as an indicator if I drop the paper.

The easel keeps the edges down during exposure.

Graham.

JeffD · Jan 19, 2006

I usually flatten my dried prints with a heat press (using lowest heat setting, I place the print in the press, and turn it off an let it cool.) When the press is room temp, the print is perfectly flat.

I wonder if this would cause problems with emulsion prior to actually exposing and printing. This would be kind of arduous, though, as my giant press is not in a very light proof room.

I guess some form of weight is my best solution.

Does anyone think that the somewhat elevated humidity of a a darkroom would be causing the curling?

winger · Jan 19, 2006

I would think humidity could do it, especially since FB tends to curl even up here where it's so dry in the winter. Weighing it down is probably the best bet. If you use a 4-bladed easel, just add some more weight on the corners and the edges. Once it's exposed and developed, you can flatten it with heat. If the paper is damp and then dries too fast, it'll curl more, too.

Joe Symchyshyn · Jan 19, 2006

JeffD said:
Does anyone think that the somewhat elevated humidity of a a darkroom would be causing the curling?

I think it's the opposite. Having a slightly elevated humidity in the darkroom would not only keep the dust down a bit, but also relax the paper.

Just my opinion,

joe

pentaxuser · Jan 19, 2006

JeffD said:
Ok, someone has to have a good fix for this. My recent box of Ilford Fiber 11x14 paper has begun to curl on the ends pretty significantly, before I have been able to print on it. I am afraid that it won't lie very flat in my easel at this point.

I probably blew it, and kept it in a box in my darkroom, where there is probably excess humidity from the wet side of the room.

Any brilliant ways I can make this stuff relatively flat again? I hope I didn't just lose a bunch of good paper!

I am not a user of FB so this is only an idea but there may be an alternative to Mongo's glass if there wasn't room in the box. Use two pieces of fairly thick plywood with holes at each corner into which you place bolts with wing nuts to tighten. Properly and evenly tightened these will exert a lot of pressure. If the paper is properly sealed in its lightproof black bag, I'd have thought this sufficient to keep out light. Better still do the whole operation in safelight with the blackbag and then place the whole apparatus into a box which can be sealed.

Alternatively back to Mongo's idea for the future, should it happen again. Keep old boxes and bags. Decant half the contents of a new pack into an old bag and box and place heavy glass on top. Do same to the remaining stock.

The more I hear about FB and its problems, the more I am happy to stick with RC.

Pentaxuser

JeffD · Jan 19, 2006

pentaxuser said:
I am not a user of FB so this is only an idea but there may be an alternative to Mongo's glass if there wasn't room in the box. Use two pieces of fairly thick plywood with holes at each corner into which you place bolts with wing nuts to tighten. Properly and evenly tightened these will exert a lot of pressure. If the paper is properly sealed in its lightproof black bag, I'd have thought this sufficient to keep out light. Better still do the whole operation in safelight with the blackbag and then place the whole apparatus into a box which can be sealed.

Alternatively back to Mongo's idea for the future, should it happen again. Keep old boxes and bags. Decant half the contents of a new pack into an old bag and box and place heavy glass on top. Do same to the remaining stock.

The more I hear about FB and its problems, the more I am happy to stick with RC.

Pentaxuser

Hey, that sounds like a pretty easy fix to the problem. I'll give that a shot.

I really haven't had any issues with FB, except some angst about the paper being less than flat prior to printing. Once in the easel, the paper seems to be ok, so it may not be that big of a deal- I'd feel better if it was flat before being restrained by the easel blades!

I wouldn't really use FB paper if I wasn't toning. The Ilford warmtone FB paper just gives me a really neat tone when using sepia and selenium. After laying on the carpet to dry, which causes some curl, a quick press in my Seal heat press, and the prints stay flat as can be from there on out.

dancqu · Jan 19, 2006

JeffD said:
Ok, someone has to have a good fix for this.
My recent box of Ilford Fiber 11x14 paper has begun to curl ...
it won't lie very flat in my easel ... Any brilliant ways I
can make this stuff relatively flat again?

A bummer is what it is. A carefully aligned enlarger with
glass carrier, a well focused high quality lens, and warped
paper on the easel. An intolerable situation.

There are those who will not put up with it one little bit.
A once and for all solution is a must. A whatever paper or
size of paper solution.

Vacuum easels are bulky and noisy. Sticky-backs though
are easy to maintain, near cost free, DIY projects. They
may be the best single solution. In their most basic form
they are borderless.

Have you ever seen a warped sheet of wet FB paper?
Pre-wet, sponge dry on a flat, then locate that on the
baseboard. Did I pull out a plum? I'm going to have to
try that myself. Dan

Fiber paper getting curly before printing!

Privacy & Transparency

Privacy & Transparency