liquid emulsion coating problems

I have generally found that a streaky coat means a too thin coat. I've been coating
24"x24" sheets of thai mulberry paper for a few years now with a 4"
japanese brush with short soft bristles. I do a total of six brush passes, seven
passes under certain circumstances. Horizontally in one direction and back, then
vertically one direction and back, then horizontally again. Also, the paper I use
is sized with Krylon Matte Finish 1311 on the back side--a couple of light sprays
with no bleed through. This allows the emulsion to sit up on the paper a bit more.
It's really toxic though, so spray in a well ventilated area with a good mask.
I find that a cooler surface is preferable to a warmer one, because warmer conditions
seem to make the emulsion slide off the paper. Sometimes I even let the first horizontal
coat become a bit tacky before applying the vertical and second horizontal coats--a
minute or two is all it takes. This method gives a good thick coat. I can only
do about twelve or thirteen sheets of 24" paper per liter of luminos. It is
extremely expensive I know, and the temptation is there to get by with as little
emulsion as possible, but I have wasted a lot of good paper and emulsion with thin
coats, so I always err on the side of more. Another thing to keep in mind is that
low contrast images always (at least for me) show streaks more than higher contrast
ones.

good luck!
Ruthie
Received on Mon Sep 27 13:45:23 2004