canvas masonite mounted photos

[Jen Ripke]

I ordered my first images on a canvas masonite mount from WHCC. They arrived today and I was looking them over and something really bothers me about one of them. The texture of the canvas is "crooked" ~ I mean, they didn't line the canvas up so it ran perfectly horizontal to the image. It is bothering ME to no end. My other ones look pretty on the mark... is this normal? Should I get my panties out of a wad and not worry about this? I don't like how it looks personally (this was printed for me, not a customer)...and I'm sure it would bother a customer, no?

[Jen Ripke]

Just an update ~ I love when our sponsors visit the forum!! I got a personal call from Kai (I probably TOTALLY botched the spelling of his name, I'm sorry!) and he assured me that this is not typical of canvas masonite prints. They should be mounted so that the horizontals and verticals all match up. So because WHCC has such rockin' customer service, they are reprinting right away. Yay! These will be studio samples so I wanted to be sure that the customer sees exactly what a canvas masonite mount will get them, so I'm happy this is being taken care of.

[allison muirhead]

Gotta to love WHCC!~ they rock!

[Dave Ashby]

Just an FYI. Masonite is the worst thing you can mount canvas on. Masonite absorbs water. I am actually quite surprised labs still use it, not to mention it is heavy. Masonite isn't even close to archival. When I mount canvas I use Gator Board.

Dave

[Travis Gugelman]

Dave-
We use self-stick masonite all the time for our canvas and I was unaware of this. Where do you get your gatorboard? It is self-stick?
Thanks!

[Vicki Quinn]

How do you get canvas to stick to self-stick anything?

Vicki

[Dave Ashby]

Dave-
We use self-stick masonite all the time for our canvas and I was unaware of this. Where do you get your gatorboard? It is self-stick?
Thanks!

I would never use self stick. It probably would not stand the test of time. I use a framer that does everything archival. I don't know where he gets it but he dry mounts it. I rarely mount canvas though. I usually stretch it.

Dave

[J. *Burke*]

Just an FYI. Masonite is the worst thing you can mount canvas on. Masonite absorbs water. I am actually quite surprised labs still use it, not to mention it is heavy. Masonite isn't even close to archival. When I mount canvas I use Gator Board.

Dave

Dave,

I don't beleive this to be true of tempered Masonite which is resin impregnated. I have a 40x60 Masonite in my unheated garage that is 25+ years old and it is as good as new. In fact, I stopped having my canvas mounted on strechers because the wood strecher frame would warp and the canvas would sag. When I started using canvas on tempered Masonite, the sag problem was solved. Tempered Masonite is shiney on both sides and is, in fact very stabile. I have prints mounted on tempered Masonite that are perfect after 30 years. Not all labs use tempered Masonite.

Burke

[J. *Burke*]

MASONITE TEMPERED
A hard wearing, moisture resistant hardboard used as stage flooring, wet-area wall linings, exterior doors, bench surfaces, boat building and signage. A tough, high-density product with superior strength and resistance to impact and water absorption.
Applications:
Dance floors
Indent resistant floors for vans and trucks
Interior lining of timber or metal framed walls and ceilings in workshops, garages, wet areas and industrial premises
Cabinets and industrial shelving, work bench surfacing and shop fitting
Surfacing of concrete formboards and formwork for landscaping
Floor surfacing for restorations
Art & Craft


Burke

[Travis Gugelman]

Burke-
So do you know of anyone who sells this to photographers?

[Travis Gugelman]

Vicki-
Were you joking? We just buy masonite from Rice Studio Supply that has a sticky side and we mount our canvas right onto it.

[J. *Burke*]

Burke-
So do you know of anyone who sells this to photographers?

Travis,

Some of the mount board suppliers carry it, might try Pacific Mount. Or any of the home improvement centers carry it in 4'x8' sheets (Menards, Home Depot.) I've cut and mounted myself, but it's a b*tch. Much easier to just let the lab do it.

Burke

[Dave Ashby]

Dave,

I don't beleive this to be true of tempered Masonite which is resin impregnated. I have a 40x60 Masonite in my unheated garage that is 25+ years old and it is as good as new. In fact, I stopped having my canvas mounted on strechers because the wood strecher frame would warp and the canvas would sag. When I started using canvas on tempered Masonite, the sag problem was solved. Tempered Masonite is shiney on both sides and is, in fact very stabile. I have prints mounted on tempered Masonite that are perfect after 30 years. Not all labs use tempered Masonite.

Burke

So what about regular Masonite? That's what I was reffering to. I used to paint with oils on masonoite and when some of them got wet they were ruined.

Sounds like tempered masonite might be an improvement, but I like the high end look of a stretched canvas better.

[Kori Henry]

Not all labs use tempered Masonite.

Burke

Sooooo, do you know which ones do?

[Scott Rigg]

Dave your original post about using Gator board is an excellent suggestion. I have also had very good luck with the double tempered hardboard. It really depends on your personal taste and view. I liked the extra weight of the temper board, in that weight equals value. Try picking up a framed 40 x 50 and have it weigh less than 10 pounds. It feels like you have a poster in a fancy frame. But hoist the same framed piece using hardboard and see the caution the clients give them. I stretch my own art but would recommend mounting for studios. It takes out the whole sag, warp thing.
HTH
Scott