Any ideas for mounting large (24 x 36 and up) prints w/o mat?

[samogitian]

Hello friends, on the advice of @Gerd_Peters here on the forum, I am using mat-less Halbe frames with spacers for my work.

They are truly brilliant, I am a convert. I've spent a small fortune on them, but I now have a collection of sizes that allows me to rapidly swap out photographs as soon as my prints are dry. If you don't know how these frames work, check this out.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KwJsV1ZigmE&t=19s

Now when I sell prints or display them in a museum, I have no problem bringing them to Laumont in NYC. It's close by and easy enough to do. 

But this undoes the ease of using the Halbe frames to some extent. First, it extends the process by a week, involves two 90 minute drives to the city, costs money  and means that the prints are thicker and therefore take up more space in my flat file.
   
For small prints below 24 x 32, the method shown in the video above is fine, 2 minutes and the old print is out and the new print is in.

For larger prints, I have a problem with the prints buckling due to their weight and perhaps the curl of the paper (I use Canson Baryta Photographique II). I was rather surprised when I visited my local art museum (small, but one of the better small museums in the country) and saw prints in a recent exhibition buckling as well. I have had exhibits at museums before, so I will go all out when it's time to do that.

But it's good to have the ability to swap out photos at home without having these mounting and I am just not going to invest in a massive press. Why? It's good to see these on the wall, it's nice to swap things around (reminds me of my mother saying "Oh no, guests are coming in 10 minutes and of course your father is moving all his paintings around…" now it's my turn), and so on.

I've asked a couple of photographers, but they don't have great ideas. Anything quick and dirty that you wouldn't feel comfortable giving to your clients but you use at home?

I experimented with T mounts with archival tape at the top, but that didn't work out well given the weight of the print and the curl of the paper. Maybe I should try it again.

[Richard.Wills]

You could try adapting the hedgehog muonting method, but that would take up plenty of time.

I'd get a small motorized roller laminator (Drytac used to do 24"), and use a pressure sensitive film to mount the prints to a smooth board, or Kapamount. If you're printing larger than 24", then the laminator suddenly becomes much bigger and heavier. The advantage of the motorized laminator is it leaves you with two hands to manage the print and swat dust. I use a 44" laminator and regularly mount prestige baryta to kapa mount, or Dibond (for larger prints).

I guess the issue of the flat file will not be resolved, but depending on the number of prints you want to prepare, might be worth the time and cost (once you've got over the learning curve).

For quick and dirty, you could try Ph7-70 ATG tape, but this wouldn't prevent buckling with shifts in humidity and temperature.

[samogitian]

Ph7-70 ATG is supposed to be difficult to remove, that seems annoying.

I think if I can get the curl out without creasing the paper, it would help. Any thoughts on that?

Strange that some prints I made last year didn't have the buckling issue. Hmmm… Interesting.

[Richard.Wills]

Starting with flat prints will always help, but the buckling tends to come in when the print is held by more than a couple of points, and swells/contracts from moisture. Depending on how deep a mount the system will take, might be worth revisiting the T-hinging, and attaching the hinges to something like this MR Backing. Trim the print to a couple of mm smaller than the glass size, so if/when it swells, it doesn't push against the walls of the frame.

[sportmaster]

https://posterhanger.com/

[Ryan Mack]

https://posterhanger.com/

I’m not a big fan of this system, I think the poster hangers from AS are much nicer.

https://www.ashanging.com/en_us/poster-hanger

[felix5616]

check out mural mounts at CodaMount. there are 3/4" thick and 1 1/2" thick. very stable with adhesive applied

[sportmaster]

I’m not a big fan of this system, I think the poster hangers from AS are much nicer.

https://www.ashanging.com/en_us/poster-hanger

I've own a couple of those.  They work well but I don't like the exposed hanging brackets.  Also, the max length is only 40" and they look big and clunky.   

[Ryan Mack]

Heh, I guess everyone has their own taste. I like the look of these and they do much less damage to the prints.

[sportmaster]

Not sure what you mean.  I have used dozens and never had an issue with damaging prints.

[Ryan Mack]

Ah, you're right, sorry. I was getting this one confused with a third poster hanging system I used but didn't like :-/  The STAS poster strips cut into the paper as you slide the print in.

[samogitian]

check out mural mounts at CodaMount. there are 3/4" thick and 1 1/2" thick. very stable with adhesive applied

Codamount sound like a great quick alternative to taking the prints to Laumont, but I'd have to buy a whole carton. Ugh.
I finally managed to cut one 24 x 36 print precisely enough that it isn't buckling after a bunch of failures. The problem is that either the Canson Baryta is actually 24" wide plus a couple of MM or my frame is slightly less than 24" tall (it measures correctly though). We have climate control here so I'm not concerned about buckling yet. We will see. If it becomes a problem, I'll probably give up and just go to Laumont.