The Framers Forum

What would the conservation police do??

Have a Sunday Supplement from years ago to frame, double page spread but not the exact centre of the mag, intend to float mount, so far so good, but it is STAPLED.

The question, leave staples in and risk them corroding away damaging the newsprint, or remove them and then the whole thing requires more support.

What would you folks do??

ps: Museum glass in finished frame requested

Regards

Ian

You could remove them, or better still the customer could, and they could be replaced with cotton thread or even stainless steel wire, just untwist some supersoft strand and use one strand. The cotton or wire could even be passed through the mounting board to help with support.

Removing the staples means the thing is no longer in its 'original condition' but it's just a supplement, explain the dilema to the customer and make the decision. Leave them, you remove them, or the customer does.

Very many thanks for that John

Leaving wires in as in good condition, shiny and new looking

Regards

Ian

Ian,

The conservation police are a figment of some people's imagination, believe it or not.

I believe in minimising risk of damage where possible, and in a lot of circumstances that doesn't add a lot to the cost. If it has more than a minimum cost, then the customer will make an informed decision on what I am to do.

I'm not sure the staples will remain shiny and new looking for very long. I would have explained to the customer that they will corrode/oxidise and removed them with their approval. I guess it will take a while for corrosion to occur in the frame, and if the customer isn't concerned, I reckon you've done the best you can in the circumstances.

I would "consider" removing the staples, so that they could be coated with a suitable protective medium such as Tuf-Kote which is a two part epoxy based clear coating. The intention being to replace these now safely coated staples back into their original holes.

Thus it is possible to preserve the published item in a condition as close as possible to is original condition, while giving a high degree of confidence that the staples are prevented from rusting, or otherwise corroding due to the epoxy barrier coating.

When I say "consider" by this I mean there is a need to review the technical product data sheets for this and other similar product and consider all eventualities, before coming to a final decision. It may be appropriate to employ more than one coating media, to ensure the maximum assurance of an effective long term outcome. Also consideration should be given to how a full and complete continuous all over coating can be assured.

Other products to consider may be a melamine resin coating, or a tropicalised conformal coating. Try Googling these for more information.

Just to put in my fourpenn'th.

I wouldn't remove the staples. You would probably do more damage trying to remove them than any possible rusting may cause. The whole mag is composed of highly-acidic newsprint paper anyway. Not to mention not-absolutely-top-quality inks. If the mag has any value, the ravages of time will negate less against the value than any well-intentioned improvements.

The best you can do is mount it properly and tell the customer to keep it in a stable environment.

Some years ago, I sold a 1952 Times supplement commemorating the climbing of Everest to a bookdealer for about £40, not long afterwards I saw another for sold at auction for about £150. We should not underestimate the value of such items.

To the successful bider, the condition of such items is of very great importance and they are often only to happy to pay to preserve the condition, even of the staples. These things can be very hard to come by!

Some customers will pay the extra, rather than take the risk. I have been trained and provide a conservation and restoration service as part of my business. It's good business, if you are properly equiped, trained and prepared to do it.

I think removing them is the best and safest option. Like NYAF the idea of sealing or isolating the staples with a barrier (such as acrylic resin) did cross my mind.

I also wondered if any 'archival' stainless steel staples are available that could be used to replace the existing ones?

But with both these methods there is a risk of damaging the paper when trying to put the staples back. So really I think it is best just to remove them.

A quick google for 'Metal paper clips and staples conservation', brings up a couple of very reliable sites such as ICON and the National Archives for a start:

http://www.archives.gov/preservation/ho ... -docs.html
http://www.conservationregister.com/fam ... s.asp?id=4
http://cool.conservation-us.org/byorg/g ... asics.html