aerosol spray for canvas or easy alternative

[John V.]

Hi all,

I'm going to start shipping orders for loose canvas pretty soon. HVLP spraying would be too much for me at the moment.

I'm just needing a quick simple way to get some light-duty protection on each print, which will eventually be stretched/wrapped. Any suggestions for an aerosol spray? Maybe something new out there I don't know about? These are prints on Sunset Select Matte.

Thanks,
John

[Landscapes]

I'm not sure if light protection for a canvas that you intend to stretch will do.  I know these cans work well for prints to protect them because it just has to create a barrier between the ink and the air, but these canvases need so much more.  This is especially important when stretching because of cracking around the edges and corners.  I'm not even sure if there have this stuff in a can.

If you don't want to spray, some people have luck with rolling, which may be ok for infrequent use.  But I do think the coating has to be the stuff that is designed for canvas, and to the best of my knowledge, none of it comes in an aerosol can.  I bet the reason is that its much too thick to come out of a can, and you would need too much of it so a can would only last for a canvas or two.

[dgberg]

If you sprayed solvent or water based coating (Rolled too) on canvas and mount to flat gatorboard your mounting window is almost unlimited.
If these canvases are to be stretched you have maybe a week before they start to get brittle. YMMV Not sure I would want to send too many out that have to be stretched.
Most finishes get brittle to some extent over a short time and can crack at the edges and corners when folded and stretched. (Printshield and Clear Jet are several solvents I have tried with unacceptable results)
I have tested a half dozen products, water and solvent and they all crack to some extent if you wait too long to stretch.
The solvent products are available in cans but came out the worst in all my tests. (Works great when not stretched and mounted flat.)
Cans are expensive at about $1.00 an ounce. 2 really good coats will use up 1 oz. per square foot or $1.00 a square foot.
That is as much as most canvas costs per foot.
Although I spray you can roll on Glamor II or Timeless from Breathing Color.
Eco Print Shield will probably give you the best results if you cannot stretch right away as far as elasticity is concerned.
I print quite a few canvas prints ahead of time but only spray them at most a day before stretching.

[John Nollendorfs]

+1 to what Dan says. But I've been using a much cheaper alternative to the Glamour products that cost $100/gallon. The product I use is sold by Rosco (the theatrical gel & stage products company) and is called Clear Acrylic Gloss Transparent Glaze #5580. Available through theatrical supply companies. List price last I knew, was under $50/gallon. Also, it is quite thin, and is meant to be diluted 50-50 with water. I use two light coats, sprayed within about 5 minutes of each. This ensures a nice semi-gloss sheen, without a plastic look to the coating. Yes, it is more work than using a spray can, but . . . I have been using the product for over 5 years now with no problems what so ever. Water beads up on the treated surface and just runs off.

[dennmorr]

I have used Krylon Preserve it(gloss) aerosol for many years  on canvas.  It seems to give "finger" protection and I have had no issues with stretching. Has anyone else used this?
Dennis Morris