The Framers Forum

hi all,

When i'm stetching canvas (bars and wedges) i use Rustproof / Stainless 8mm Stapels rather than the standard Steel ones.

Price Steel £5.70 per 5000 or .001 per staple
Rustproof £32.90 per 5000 or .007 per staple

For a canvas 24 x 20 = approx 75 staples
The cost difference is .42 pence

I feel as an overall part of the pricing this is quite small in proportion to the job as a total,
However i do wince when i have to re-order @ 32.90 + Vat per 5000

Any comments on this would be interesting.

Also, anyone out there use Cut - Tacks,
and your oppinions on these v staples

Good thinking. But having said that, I have seen 100's of stapled canvases and I've never seen one with rusty staples.

Tacks are the more traditional method, but IMHO staples do less 'damage' to the canvas, you get a two point fixing. And they are easier to apply.

Interested in comments from others.......

Thanks Prospero,

What length tacks do you use ?
I see Lion do them in 8mm and 14mm

I think they are 8mm. There is no gain though driving them deeper and often you need to remove them.

What Prospero said. Especially with my sexy new pneumatic staple gun!

personally i see one or two every week with very rusty staples. maybe its the sea air here, or perhaps someone locally is/was banging out canvasses with staples which are prone to rust?
If stretching canvasses I prefer to use the shallower staples as well, 8mm.

a proper staple removal tool really helps when taking apart old canvasses for re-stretching too.

Unfortunately weve seen a few lately which have obviously been stretched before, bought abroad, and then cut off the stretchers, (presumably for ease of transport home from holiday) and not leaving a great deal of canvas to wrap round the bars.

Ah....sub-tropical West Cornwall. You are practically in the Caribbean M8. It's too cold up here for anything to rust.

Yes, those canvases with 1/2" of overlap are a right PITA.

prospero wrote:..canvasses with 1/2" of overlap...

Luxury!

prospero wrote: Yes, those canvases with 1/2" of overlap are a right PITA.

When I was in Vegas, I took a class with Rob Markoff on extending canvas with 'Beva' and a particular fabric. Since I got back I have bought a small quantity for when someone brings in a canvas with little or no canvas outside the image.

Beva is a clear film with an adhesive on one side that is heat activated.
I will look up the details when I get to work and let you know what the products are.

The fabric used is 8xxxx Polyester fabric. The same stuff that screen printers use for their screens. It's extremely strong!

Info on Beva film can be seen here: http://tinyurl.com/38qujr

The film carries the adhesive and can be 'ironed' onto the polyester fabric, then the film is removed leaving the adhesive behind. The poly fabric can then be 'ironed' onto the canvas.

Beva film can also be used with Stabiltex to line the back of a frail or damaged canvas. This is probably best left to a conservator!