Acrylic Face Mount Printing suggestions needed

[Peterretep2]

I have a client wanting one of my landscape photographs enlarged to 24 x 34 inches and it being very glossy. She first wanted to go the metal printing route but I suggested she not do that due to the fact that the location the print will be displayed receives some direct sunlight. I suggested an acrylic face mounted print but I have zero experience with having one made. I'm looking for some guidance as to what may be the best route to go for this starting with the medium that the image will be printed on to the best options for the acrylic itself. Any help and/or suggestions for quality labs offering this service are greatly appreciated!

Thank you!
Peter Montanti

[mearussi]

Depending on how much your client is willing to spend you have several options.
1. regular acrylic face mount (least expensive)
2. AR acrylic (more money)
3.Diasec (most expensive)
 
The first two are self explanatory. Diasec is a proprietary process using a gel to adhere the print to the acrylic. This gel is not suppose to separate like the double sided tape used in regular face mount which will separate over time due to heat and cold expansion.

https://www.reedphoto.com/services/finishing/acrylic-face-mount-prints-to-plex/

[Peterretep2]

Thanks for your response mearussi. I had read that also about diasec being the better way to go and luckily my client is willing to have it made right as I am. I've been wanting to see one of my photos made this way so I'm anxious to see the results and will keep my profit as low as I can as my contribution into this new to me process.

Peter

[Peterretep2]

Can anyone else chime in? I'm especially hoping to get responses from those who have experience from different labs with this process, both good and bad experiences  would be most helpful.

Thanks.
Peter

[cbcbell]

Hi Peter, I have had a number of prints — both LightJet and Canon iPF8100 inkjet — face mounted for collectors. Some ten years ago, I bought a 26" Drytac laminator and received training in Toronto on how to face mount prints. However, it turned out to be exceedingly difficult without a much more expensive laminator, and I was never satisfied with the degree of "silvering," the extent to which one could always detect (especially in dark areas of the image) the presence of the double-sided adhesive film bonding the face of the print to the back of the acrylic. I then turned to the highly recommended mounting department at Laumont in New York:

http://laumont.com

and they mounted my prints using the Diasec method, with a non-glare acrylic face, and a 3mm Dibond (aluminum composite) panel behind. Laumont is an absolutely top-end lab, and quite expensive, but their quality is impeccable. I have subsequently had prints as large as 2 x 2 meters printed, mounted and crated for shipment to Europe there, and have always been pleased with the work. Give them a call and talk to Willie Vera, who runs the mounting and framing department out on Long Island City, and do visit if you can, as it's an incredibly impressive and professional facility.

[Peterretep2]

Christoper, thanks for the recommendation of Laumont. The more I look into this process the more I've come to the conclusion that going the more expensive route is probably the wisest way to go. Most notably using Diasec and TruLife Acrylic.

I've been to Laumont's website but don't see any information about their making face mounted prints. I'll give them a call.

Thanks again,

Peter

[cbcbell]

Hi Peter, the pricing can be found in the Laumont PDF of services, under "Finishing." I am primarily a painter, and normally abhor "non-glare" acrylic, as it simply softens the look of any work positioned behind / under it. However, with face mounting, the fact that the print is in intimate contact with the surface of the acrylic seems to preclude that effect, so I always specify the "Plexiglas (1/8") face-in non-glare." "Face-in" is Laumont's term for mounting acrylic to the face of the print. I use Dibond as a support for all my paintings, and so I specify it for prints as well, and the 3 mm thickness is entirely adequate. Finally, face mounted prints need bracing, both to keep them in plane, and also to provide a hanging structure, so you will need to specify bracing (I always specify aluminum so there is no possibility of future warping). The costs do add up, such that the charge for mounting a 20 x 30" print as I have described is $413. On the other hand, the attention to detail (such as the way that Laumont finishes the exterior, cut edges) is superb, and my collectors have always gasped in delight when they see the finished work.

I'm trying to add a .png screenshot attachment, but it doesn't seem to work any more in Safari on a Mac. Does this site no longer allow attachments?!

[dgberg]

Hi Peter, the pricing can be found in the Laumont PDF of services, under "Finishing." I am primarily a painter, and normally abhor "non-glare" acrylic, as it simply softens the look of any work positioned behind / under it. However, with face mounting, the fact that the print is in intimate contact with the surface of the acrylic seems to preclude that effect, so I always specify the "Plexiglas (1/8") face-in non-glare." "Face-in" is Laumont's term for mounting acrylic to the face of the print. I use Dibond as a support for all my paintings, and so I specify it for prints as well, and the 3 mm thickness is entirely adequate. Finally, face mounted prints need bracing, both to keep them in plane, and also to provide a hanging structure, so you will need to specify bracing (I always specify aluminum so there is no possibility of future warping). The costs do add up, such that the charge for mounting a 20 x 30" print as I have described is $413. On the other hand, the attention to detail (such as the way that Laumont finishes the exterior, cut edges) is superb, and my collectors have always gasped in delight when they see the finished work.

I'm trying to add a .png screenshot attachment, but it doesn't seem to work any more in Safari on a Mac. Does this site no longer allow attachments?!

Seems about right Christopher if not a little low. I would have guessed Laumont to be in the $600 + range for that size. $100 a sq. ft. is a good average for a face mounted print.
Add dibond and aluminum back frame it tops $500 very easily. Maybe that is there wholesale price?
On the other hand and I agree it is not the same quality as face mounted, metal is about half the price averaging in the range of $50 a sq. ft.

[Stephen Ray]

Can anyone else chime in? I'm especially hoping to get responses from those who have experience from different labs with this process, both good and bad experiences  would be most helpful.

Thanks.
Peter

I recommend the following...
Link to Nevada Art Printers for acrylic face mount prints
Visit their FaceBook page for current customer stories.

Contrary to an earlier mention of "regular face mount which will separate over time due to heat and cold expansion," a failure of this type is almost impossible to occur from any expert and knowledgeable provider, especially photo labs with some history. The process has been around for 40 years and the materials are made for one another. They are dimensionally stable. They expand and contract at the same rate, if at all. They do not separate.

Yes, some people have attempted the process and may not have had the best success. Their defeat was not usually due to equipment but rather because of materials and environment not designed to produce such a product. Common inkjet paper being a part.