Clearly if you miss one day on this list, you can miss a whole wave.
I'm still thinking paper for gum printing.....
As I may have mentioned too many times already, somewhere I have an
article by Alfred Stieglitz, titled "What Is Gum Bichromate?" (or words to
that effect). The theme was that there is no such thing as "gum printing,"
each worker's version being sui generis. Realizing the significance of
these sentiments from the Big Al, I filed the entire magazine (from teens
or '20s) very carefully -- and could never find it again.
But the point about no defining method for gum still stands. And it's
equally true that there is no defining paper, no substrate supreme. When
folks ask what is the "best" paper for gum, the answer requires at least a
chapter.
Members of this list, for instance, have mentioned a dozen or more papers
of varying weights and textures, with or without added size from rabbit
skin glue to spray starch (quel horreur!), with or without hardener from
the awful formaldehyde to fairy dust, which they apply by bath, brush,
squeegee, roller, or holy incantation. Offline I have even read the claim
of a printer that he gelatine coats and formaldehydes four times, though
that surpasses belief.
Meanwhile, there's speculation about a possible group purchase of
sized-to-order paper. No doubt a compromise, or "classic" choice could
please enough printers to gain the necessary numbers. But it might be no
one's first choice, and the final product might not be testable until the
deed was done. (I would most likely join such a purchase, though my own
paper preferences have been, to date, very inconstant.) Now, however,
glyoxal for hardening has softened the pain of home-sizing, so the matter
becomes less urgent, at least for me. (Impossible to describe the
difference at school this year or depth of gratitude for the information.)
On the other hand, my interest in the elusive Buxton is strong as ever.
It's a known, existing paper which I have tried, & which promises to be a
superior support for one-coat, *no-size-added* gum. Of course other papers
can also print one-coat no-size-added, but my sense of Buxton is that
the color is richer and livelier -- though I need to work with it more to
be sure. The fact that it's designed for iron processes and works well
with inkjet printers means a wider potential market, increasing the odds
for commissioning a ream.
Incidentally, in my tests, with added gelatine sizing the Buxton lost
some of its sparkle -- maybe it was the absence of gelatine that permitted
the sparkle in the first place. (In a pinch, if after many coats the paper
needs further size, Aquapel could probably be added, though that's down
the pike a bit & my own *intentions* are for only one, at most two, coats.)
Meanwhile, I hope/try/wish to get a quire (25 sheets). My so-far limited
tests suggest that it's worth the effort. If anyone has reached the
hypothetical John Purcell, or has other suggestions, please post......
Judy