Malde-Ware POP post-coating drying time?

Hopefully, someone on these forums is doing pt/pd printing with the Malde-Ware process...

In Pradip's book "Platinotype" he specifics a drying time of 5 mins after coating the paper, then it goes for humidification for 1 - 2 hours. Does anyone know if that 5 min drying time before humidification is "cast in stone?" In other words, could I coat a sheet of paper, let it air dry overnight, then move on with humidification and the rest of the process?

Thanks!

Alan9940 said:

Hopefully, someone on these forums is doing pt/pd printing with the Malde-Ware process...

In Pradip's book "Platinotype" he specifics a drying time of 5 mins after coating the paper, then it goes for humidification for 1 - 2 hours. Does anyone know if that 5 min drying time before humidification is "cast in stone?" In other words, could I coat a sheet of paper, let it air dry overnight, then move on with humidification and the rest of the process?

Thanks!

Click to expand...

You might get an answer over on the inkjetmall forums

fatso said:

You might get an answer over on the inkjetmall forums

Click to expand...

Thank you. I'll try there.

Alan9940 said:

Hopefully, someone on these forums is doing pt/pd printing with the Malde-Ware process...

In Pradip's book "Platinotype" he specifics a drying time of 5 mins after coating the paper, then it goes for humidification for 1 - 2 hours. Does anyone know if that 5 min drying time before humidification is "cast in stone?" In other words, could I coat a sheet of paper, let it air dry overnight, then move on with humidification and the rest of the process?

Thanks!

Click to expand...

Hello! Thanks for the question. The time is to allow sensitizer to penetrate the paper slowly, and as homogeneously as possible. The humidity levels of the next step, hydration, have some effect on the importance of this 5 min. "air drying". If, for instance, your are hydrating in an atmosphere of high humidity (anything greater than 50% RH at 20C) the 5-minute air dry becomes quite important.
Now, there is a huge difference between a 5 min. air dry and a 12 hour air dry (coating the night before). The coated paper won't explode, metaphorically speaking, certainly. But the results will be different from a 5 min. air dry prior to hydration. Much depends also on the atmospherics during this period. Extensive (anything much longer than 2 hours) storage of coated paper at any stage will alter the results, and ultimately degrade the maximum density, resolution and contrast, as well as lead to unpredictable results.
In sum, this is all about establishing consistent workflows in order to arrive at a fairly predictable result. So, if it is more convenient for you to "coat a sheet of paper, let it air dry overnight, then move on with humidification and the rest of the process" then by all means do that, and do it consistently. Then calibrate your negs for this workflow. You should be fine! I hope this helps! Thanks again,
P

pmalde said:

Hello! Thanks for the question. The time is to allow sensitizer to penetrate the paper slowly, and as homogeneously as possible. The humidity levels of the next step, hydration, have some effect on the importance of this 5 min. "air drying". If, for instance, your are hydrating in an atmosphere of high humidity (anything greater than 50% RH at 20C) the 5-minute air dry becomes quite important.
Now, there is a huge difference between a 5 min. air dry and a 12 hour air dry (coating the night before). The coated paper won't explode, metaphorically speaking, certainly. But the results will be different from a 5 min. air dry prior to hydration. Much depends also on the atmospherics during this period. Extensive (anything much longer than 2 hours) storage of coated paper at any stage will alter the results, and ultimately degrade the maximum density, resolution and contrast, as well as lead to unpredictable results.
In sum, this is all about establishing consistent workflows in order to arrive at a fairly predictable result. So, if it is more convenient for you to "coat a sheet of paper, let it air dry overnight, then move on with humidification and the rest of the process" then by all means do that, and do it consistently. Then calibrate your negs for this workflow. You should be fine! I hope this helps! Thanks again,
P

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Thanks, Pradip, for the detailed info.

The real issue I'm having is coating a small sheet of paper with a glass rod to be used in a calibration process to produce digital negatives. I only need about a 3/4" x 8 1/2" strip for each step, but the smallest glass rod I have (and, maybe, the smallest made) is for doing ~4x5 prints. Another potential issue is the use of Tween and Glycerin. When doing prints about 8x10", I use one drop of both additives. I have no way of measuring the more microscopic amounts (<0.05ml) for small strips. Therefore, I coated an 8x10" sheet of my normal paper with about 5x9" worth of mix, let it dry for about an hour, cut it lengthwise in 3/4" strips, and put those into a film box for storage until needed. The next morning, I started the calibration run by humidifying one small strip at about 74% humidity for about 1 hour in the chamber I built per your book.

I'll finish this calibration run for now, but if you have any suggestions for how to coat a 2x9" strip with a glass rod my ears are open. I figure with humidification, exposing, processing, and drying I could probably complete two test steps in one day. I've tried coating with a brush because that's the way I've done pt/pd printing for years, but haven't been real successful with the Malde/Ware pre-mix I purchased from inkjetmall.

Thanks, again.

Alan9940 said:

Hopefully, someone on these forums is doing pt/pd printing with the Malde-Ware process...

In Pradip's book "Platinotype" he specifics a drying time of 5 mins after coating the paper, then it goes for humidification for 1 - 2 hours. Does anyone know if that 5 min drying time before humidification is "cast in stone?" In other words, could I coat a sheet of paper, let it air dry overnight, then move on with humidification and the rest of the process?

Thanks!

Click to expand...

Hi Alan,

Have you by any chance ever done density readings with a densitometer using the Malde-Ware process as against the normal Pt/Pd process ?

I'm just curious to hear what the rise in maximum density of the blacks is in real terms.

All the best..

bwpuk said:

Have you by any chance ever done density readings with a densitometer using the Malde-Ware process as against the normal Pt/Pd process ?

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Sorry, no, as I don't have any equipment that properly reads UV. What I can tell you, though, is that the blacks look visually deeper than my normal developing out process and, generally, I get better separation in the lower values; especially when compared to Na2-based prints.

How does the process compare from a cost point of view Alan? Also do you use the same curve as the Na2 method? I might buy a bottle and give it a go, but I still have quite a supply of my normal chemicals. I'm always trying different things to improve. Multi coating certainly improved the blacks with the Na2 method with my system and Gum over Platinum has another entirely different look to it.

bwpuk said:

How does the process compare from a cost point of view Alan?

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Overall, the cost for the solutions are somewhat higher than those for typical developing out processes. You can save a few bucks by mixing yourself from raw chemicals, but why risk an error in mixing and/or something else going awry. Yesterday, I happened to be looking at replenishing my supplies (Bostick & Sullivan Labor Day sale) and was comparing prices against InkJetMall. I was SHOCKED at the increase in price for the 50-50 Method 1 blend that I bought a mere 7 months ago! Probably just another casualty of all the craziness we've all experienced for the last year and a half.