> I am compelled by a higher power to ask about that... I myself know that a
> touch of the finger is the surest way to tell if a gum emulsion is dry,
> although I would never allow in public that I do any such thing.
OK, I won't tell if you won't! Besides, I didn't know there was a higher
power... (that is a joke, although I try to avoid inernet "smilies" at all
times).
> It is my understanding that the chemicals in a platinum-palladium print
> are even more poisonous than dichromate. True, some of us are more
> thin-skinned than others... but the skin of ALL is a permeable membrane.
> Do you have any advice to offer (or a rationale???). Perhaps the contact
> is so brief, or perhaps a barrier cream would make a difference, or you
> scrub instantly, or I'm exaggerating the effects, or....?
Yes, I think you are exaggerating the effects. Surely in their powdered or
liquid states, contact with or inhalation of oxalates, dichromates and heavy
metal solutions/powders should be minimized as much as possible. My rationale
for touching the dry, coated paper is this: I don't touch the paper until it
looks dry, or when I expect it will be dry based on experience (15 to 30
minutes after the first coat and an hour after the second), and then only
briefly. I am hard pressed to believe this is giving me any significant
chemical exposure to be concerned about. Of course, that is just my opinion,
and I may be wrong. I imagine breathing the air in any metropolitan area is a
much greater risk to one's long-term health. Plus, the paper feels good!
Kerik "I ain't no doctor" Kouklis