Flattening Unexposed paper . . .

John Galt · Mar 12, 2019

I have a previously unopened box of Ilford MGIV FB 16" x 20", 50 count, double weight paper. It is about 12 yrs old. Tested a small piece and it is good to go. However, the edges of the paper are curled to the point where even an 8x10 cut from this will not lay flat, making it impossible to use. I have other paper from this lot, stored the same, that does not exhibit this edge curling.

Can I use my Seal dry-mount press to flatten it one piece at a time? Will the heat compromise the emulsion? Thanks!!

darkroommike · Mar 12, 2019

Might be better to try to steam it one sheet at a time with something like a humidifier or a Shark steamer.

koraks · Mar 12, 2019

Can't you just tape the corners down when putting it onto the easel? Any method employing heat may induce fog if it's applied prior to development.
You could also take the bag from its box, press the air out and put it under a heavy pike of books. The paper should flatten in due course that way.

Doremus Scudder · Mar 12, 2019

I had a similar problem some years ago. I was using a Saunders 4-bladed easel and the paper would actually lift the blades off the easel base by half an inch or more. I solved it by getting some rather strong magnets and placing these on the easel blades after inserting the paper. These pulled to the metal base of the easel and held the blades down flat against it with the paper between. There was a slight buckling in the center that was inconsequential. Maybe something similar will work for you.

Another, far messier, solution is to soak the paper, squeegee it as dry as you can get it on both sides and print it wet. That'll flatten it out just fine, but your easel and maybe the baseboard will get wet, which might not be an issue if you can waterproof the area well enough, or dry it afterward. Alternately, you can use a piece of glass inside a large tray under the enlarger. That will contain the water, but that comes with positioning problems. Maybe you can figure out a way to deal with that.

I wouldn't want to use heat on unexposed paper...

Best,

Doremus

Mainecoonmaniac · Mar 12, 2019

It's common with FB paper due to the emulsion coated on one side. I think if you attempt to flatten the unexposed paper, you risk ruining it making it unusable. I have a Saunders 4 bladed easel that help flatten it when I expose the paper. If you don't have a 4 bladed easel, you possibly can get some strong magnets to hold the corners down before exposure. I think the more humid the environment, the more it curls.

John Galt · Mar 12, 2019

Thanks for the well thought out responses everyone. Since this paper cost me almost nothing, I figured . . . what have I got to lose. I took a 16x20 sheet, put it in the drymount press at 170-180 deg F for one minute. Then pressed it flat while it cooled, Took two 1x5 strips and developed one in Dektol for 2 minutes and fixed the other one for the same amount of time. Then washed in perma wash. There is no fogging that I can detect. Now I will test it for VC using my Ilford filters along side some fresh, new paper.

koraks · Mar 12, 2019

If it doesn't fog, it sounds like a swift and easy method!

John Galt · Mar 12, 2019

Well I printed an image with the paper I flattened in the dry mount press. Although it did not fog in my test the printed image is certainly quite ~flat~ compared to the same one printed with fresh MGIV RC paper . . .

I will do a test tomorrow or the next day comparing the ~flat~ image with the same lot of paper that was not subjected to the heat of the dry mount press. FWIW I did both prints (RC and FB that had been flattened) using split grade method.

I'm a cheap bastard so I really want to be able to make good use of all this paper I got for almost free . .

I will post scans of my results.

mshchem · Mar 13, 2019

John Galt said:
Well I printed an image with the paper I flattened in the dry mount press. Although it did not fog in my test the printed image is certainly quite ~flat~ compared to the same one printed with fresh MGIV RC paper . . .

I will do a test tomorrow or the next day comparing the ~flat~ image with the same lot of paper that was not subjected to the heat of the dry mount press. FWIW I did both prints (RC and FB that had been flattened) using split grade method.

I'm a cheap bastard so I really want to be able to make good use of all this paper I got for almost free . .

I will post scans of my results.

I'm a cheap bastard too. I've seen fiber base paper curl like you describe .Strong magnets work. I've never tried anything that big. I have my Dad's old Airequipt 4 in 1 easel from the 1940s ,it was made for this. Heavy gauge steel, locks shut. Makes perfect old school 1/4 inch borders too.
Keep up the quest!

koraks · Mar 13, 2019

Try a test strip of the untreated (unflattened) paper. Your paper may very well have lost some contrast simply due to age.

Nodda Duma · Mar 13, 2019

I actually found a Speed-ez-el in 16x20 for that exact purpose — keeping old cheap Ilford MG FB 16x20 paper flat during enlargement.

Cheers,
Jason

RalphLambrecht · Mar 13, 2019

John Galt said:
I have a previously unopened box of Ilford MGIV FB 16" x 20", 50 count, double weight paper. It is about 12 yrs old. Tested a small piece and it is good to go. However, the edges of the paper are curled to the point where even an 8x10 cut from this will not lay flat, making it impossible to use. I have other paper from this lot, stored the same, that does not exhibit this edge curling.

Can I use my Seal dry-mount press to flatten it one piece at a time? Will the heat compromise the emulsion? Thanks!!

take the whole stack and place something heavy on top of it for a week or longer and You're good to go. I would hesitate to heat-treat it prior to use.

John Galt · Mar 13, 2019

RalphLambrecht said:
take the whole stack and place something heavy on top of it for a week or longer and You're good to go. I would hesitate to heat-treat it prior to use.

My dry mount press does 18x24 so I will put in that for a week with NO HEAT and see how it does.

Steve906 · Mar 16, 2019

Maybe you could DIY borrow or buy some sort of vacuum easel ?

I've thought of making my own for some time but never quite got around to it.

Flattening Unexposed paper . . .

John Galt

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Flattening Unexposed paper . . .

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