Hi all, I recently found 2 boxes of ILFOBROM Vintage paper. These are 2 rolls of 100ft X 20 inches (Grade 1 & 2) never opened. I have been using both grades to print large formats (20X35 inches) and am blown away by this paper. It seems in mint condition (perfectly white, clean, no mold, nothing). Now it is slightly slower than modern FB papers from Ilford, but hardly. It is thin (like most of the older papers) but hang dries very well (only the edges curl a bit). I place my dried prints under a few books for a few days and can dry-mount them with no issues (I use 3M or Scotch pro adhesives in roll formats to mount to back board or plexiglas for the very large prints).
My only question (for now): I noticed thin wrinkles in the paper that seem to appear during the processing once the paper is wet. These are few, and only appear on the outer edges of the paper. I made sure these were not induced by my process (I designed semi-circular trays with an internal rolling weight that allow for the development of 22 X any length prints in 1-1.5L of solution). Can it be that the fibres of the papers have been fragilized with age? To process, the edges of the paper are clamped or stapled to brackets that allow to manipulate the wet paper during processing. I had to prototype a few holders-clamps to allow mounting the paper (which becomes very soft when wet), allowing some shrinkage flexibility while avoiding liquid retention, and thus, contamination). As soon as I place the paper in the wash bath, I notice these wrinkles. All large prints have at least 1.
Hard to find info on this paper, but from the packaging labels, it would seen to date from 1965-70, but not sure about this. I see no sign of such wrinkles when the paper comes off the roll prior to wetting.
(See attached img of the section of the front of a mounted print on a black area of a high contrast print. This is a bout 3 inches in length and length-wise w.r.t. to the roll.)
NB: The image attached is from the net and not the actual boxes, but table are similar. I'll try to take a shot of the actual items at some point.
Thanks for any input on this paper. In any case, I am very happy with this find! Regards.
My only question (for now): I noticed thin wrinkles in the paper that seem to appear during the processing once the paper is wet. These are few, and only appear on the outer edges of the paper. I made sure these were not induced by my process (I designed semi-circular trays with an internal rolling weight that allow for the development of 22 X any length prints in 1-1.5L of solution). Can it be that the fibres of the papers have been fragilized with age? To process, the edges of the paper are clamped or stapled to brackets that allow to manipulate the wet paper during processing. I had to prototype a few holders-clamps to allow mounting the paper (which becomes very soft when wet), allowing some shrinkage flexibility while avoiding liquid retention, and thus, contamination). As soon as I place the paper in the wash bath, I notice these wrinkles. All large prints have at least 1.
Hard to find info on this paper, but from the packaging labels, it would seen to date from 1965-70, but not sure about this. I see no sign of such wrinkles when the paper comes off the roll prior to wetting.
(See attached img of the section of the front of a mounted print on a black area of a high contrast print. This is a bout 3 inches in length and length-wise w.r.t. to the roll.)
NB: The image attached is from the net and not the actual boxes, but table are similar. I'll try to take a shot of the actual items at some point.
Thanks for any input on this paper. In any case, I am very happy with this find! Regards.
