Van Dyke/Argyrotype - Archival Properties 101

[Marco B]

I may get in touch with Mike Ware to see where one can get gold chloride in the UK. Mind you reading his article it would make me sound a complete philistine if that was all I asked him so maybe I better not!

Mike seems to be quite an accessible and amiable chap... Dead Link Removed

 

[nze]

I don't if this double toning will work. I just make some test with toned argyrotype print that then put in a solution of nitric acid to convert silver in silver nitrate.

With single toned print There is no loss in the highlith but a little loss in the lowlight ( about 10% reading of the grayscale)
With double toning the loss is so insignifiant that it is not visible.

 

[Loris Medici]

Christian, what is your double toning procedure? One toner is gold-thiourea (if I'm getting it right), what's the other and in which order do you tone? (My wild ass guess would be partial pt or pd toning then gold... ???)

TIA,
Loris.

 

[nze]

that's just starting with a noble salt toner, wash and then put in another salt toner. The toner can be use in the following order Gold, platinum palladium. I use the folrmula given by Sandy king in his article on unblinkingeye, but dilute them twice to slow down the toning.

 

[sanking]

that's just starting with a noble salt toner, wash and then put in another salt toner. The toner can be use in the following order Gold, platinum palladium. I use the folrmula given by Sandy king in his article on unblinkingeye, but dilute them twice to slow down the toning.

Do you just add the second toner to the tray with the first, or rinse the print and then add the second toner?

Sandy

 

[nze]

I first rinse the print then I add the second toner. I use to tone the print with a coating rod and a one shot toner. THe second toner have less visual effect than the first one. it only add archival quality.
I also mix toner but just not try to put a such toned print in my nitrci acid bath. May be the result is the same.

The first printing is the more important as is totaly toned the highlight ( for most toner) and the 10% loss of density only happen in the lowlight.

 

[SadowskiPL]

Hello,

Can I use for Van Dyke and Kallitype a TETENAL Gold Toner ?
And in waht dilution ?

Cheers,
Konrad Sadowski

 

[Loris Medici]

Probably yes, OTOH, AFAIK, Tetenal toner is used w/o dilution; it's at working strength already...

Mind that mixing gold-thiourea toner yourself would be way cheaper. You don't absolutely need Gold Chloride (AuCl3) for the toner, Potassium Chloroaurate (K[AuCl4]) will work too. You may find this at gold platers / jewellery workshops for much better prices than AuCl3...