OT: Archival properties of wood and wood finishes

[Rob F.]

I've been wanting to store my slides, the ones not in projection

magazines, for easy cross-reference and retrieval. I've been using

plastic pages for many years, as well as labeling the plastic and

paper boxes they come back from the labs in.

 

I keep remembering the wooden Negafile my dad had for slides. It

was neat, with little movable dividers that fit into slots mto

create individual compartments for the slides. It had a hinged top

with a card inside to make notes about the slides. It's long lost,

though. I phoned B&H: they quoted me $200 for a new Negafile! A

little web searching turned up another source with a price around

$140.00. But the Negafile is now made as a drawer inside a

cabinet. I didn't like that--the hinged top is gone. Not like dad

had.

 

I looked at the metal Logan files, but they were flimsy crap. The

plastic divider is as thin as the throwaway ones that you getr in a

bag of cookies. I didn't want that, either.

 

So, out to the garage workshop. I fired up my underused Craftsman

table saw and, just for sheer enjoyment, built a wood box like dad's

old Negafile. All but the top. I'm still working on that.

 

Now, the question. What are the archival properties of common wood

finishes? Some of you guys know a lot about chemistry. What would

an oil-based finish like varnish or polyurathane do to my slides?

What about French Polish, which is shellac diluted with a lot of

alcohol. That is a finish often used for the inside of drawers. It

leaves them looking like they are not finished at all, but it does

seal them. What about paste furniture wax? WOuld that be better

for the slides?

 

Finally, what about just leaving the wood bare? I cut up my wood

from scraps of 2x4, which I think are what the stores like to

call "whitewood" (spruce, really). The wood has no odor. It's not

sap-filled, like pine is. I used 1/4" luan mohogany for the bottom.

 

So, who knows the best way to minimize any slide-eating nasties?

Leave it bare? Finish it? With what? BTW, this is my "prototype"

model, to make mistakes on. If there's a better wood, someone tell

me and I'll use it for the "real" box (if I get that far). Nega-

file uses mahogany. I didn't see any promises about archiviality.

 

Thanks!<div></div>

[ronald_moravec1]

Nice workmanship. Very very nice.

 

I would maybe stain it, then put a wax finish on it.

 

Spray clear laquer should dry without fumes after a week or so.

 

Careful of any build up finishes that will make the groves smaller.

 

Whatever you do, let it dry open for a month before closing it up.

[blakley]

That's beautiful, Rob - you could sell those for more than the $200 B&H is asking for the modern Negafile.

 

Why do you want to finish the inside of the drawer? Are you worried about warping or cracking, or is it purely aesthetic? If the latter, my guess would be that the conservative option would be to leave the wood unfinished - I think any oil or aromatic hydrocarbon would be a risk.

[billsr]

I always stored my slides in plastic slide trays and stacked them in cardboard shoeboxes. If you have many shoeboxes place them in larger plastic storage containers with plastic lid. I believe the plastic trays used by numismatists for coin storage are the right size to hold slides vertically, and much cheaper than slide trays. If you simply love tinkering with wood, have fun and God bless. Best regards, Bill

[jtk]

Several coats of water-based urethane...probably impermiable gas-wise (from your wood). I wouldn't use any finish that wasn't water-based and I wouldn't use wood unless it was sealed with something water-based...the best material's metal, of course...but unless you're a brilliant metalworker...

[dan flanders]

I admire the quality of your woodworking but would suggest that next time you make the box, make the top and bottom in one piece and then saw the top off. That way you will achieve an exact and tight fit after the hinges are installed. I used maple for interior partitions, but birch, ash, and several non-resionous woods would do. I prefer not to finish the interior. I used Tung oil varnish for the exterior; five coats, sanded and rubbed between. This has worked well for me for the past fifty odd years and it looks good for another fifty or so.

[Brad_]

Of course everybody above is just guessing on how to finish wood for conservation

purposes - don't rely on that unless rolling the dice is OK. <P>

 

For a proper answer you will need to consult with a specialist skilled in art conservation.

Museums, like MoMA in SF, frame photographs and other works on paper (as well as

canvases painted with oil and acrylic) in wood frames. Whether the wood is sealed or not

(and if so with what) I suspect can be easily discovered by calling a large city museum's

conservation department and simply asking. Be sure and tell them you are trying to

protect photographic slides, though.<P>

 

FWIW, I'm also a woodworker and make my own custom hardwood frames. I use a 1 1/2

pound cut of super-blonde shellac that I make myself - 2 oz of flakes to 8 oz of alcohol.

I'll let you know in 50 years how my prints are doing. :=)<P>

 

Seriously though, get some advice from a pro.

 

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<img src= "http://pages.sbcglobal.net/b-evans/Images%205/Frames.jpg"><BR><P>

<img src= "http://pages.sbcglobal.net/b-evans/Images%205/Frame2.jpg">

</center>

[Brad_]

Almost forgot, nice work!

[SCL]

Great project. My father had a similar wooden box, long since gone. His slides were in there about 40 years with little signs of deterioration or color shift (as best as I can tell). My recollection was that the interior was unfinished but the exterior had a clear finish which had darkened to a fine patina. As a woodworker, I would hesitate to place my slides in a box which might suffer outgassing of hydrocarbons from the finish. The drawback of not finishing the interior is the differential in humidity absorption. Maybe a very dilute coat of shellac, let it set 1-2 months before use. The outside should polish well.

[jtk]

Remember that woods vary tremendously.

[jtk]

..note that MOMA and others protect their photos and prints from wood, when they stoop to wood, with vapor seals.

 

They never simply frame with wood. Do ask the conservator at a substantial photo-involved museum. Don't bother with galleries or museums that don't have professional photo conservators on staff.

 

Paintings are routinely displayed on wooden stretchers, but of course they are not analagous in any way to photographs, are always impregnated with oil or are sealed against external threats (such as from frames) by virtue of being water-based paints in the first place.

[Brad_]

<I>...when they stoop to wood...</I><P>

 

Huh??? Stooping - that's funny. It's routine. Every show I've seen at SF MOMA, Arbus, Adams

(both of them), Weston, Eggleston, the Sack Collection, Sultan, Louie, Sander, Evans, Gursky,

and on and on. Including their huge rotating photography collection (of which most is in

storage). Even Paul Klee's works on paper, of which they have a substantial number.

DeKooning too. Ditto with Frank and Winogrand prints at the Cantor at Stanford. Hardly

stooping.

[lloyd_chan]

Rob, according to the Wilhelm Institute, "wood boxes should be strictly avoided" in storing photographic materials (Chapter 15, The Permanence and Care of Color photographs).

 

Im not a conservator, but my own enquiries have led me to use Microchamber products made by Conservation Resources. Its archival and affordable. Look at their Master Unit Slide Storage Box (2,160 slides $49) and their Slide Storage Box (400 slides $9.50)

 

http://www.conservationresources.com/Main/section_5/section5_02.htm

http://www.conservationresources.com/Main/section_5/section5_03.htm

[lee hamiel]

May want to check Berlebach's site as they sell several different wood slide storage boxes.

 

See:

http://berlebach.de/e_index.php?PHPSESSID=957904857561da4347a6eea84574f339

[lee hamiel]

I forgot to say that I have ordered directly from them with no problems.

 

Also - very nice work Rob

[Rob F.]

OK, well, thanks for all the answers and ideas. I'm leaning toward the shellac suggestion. James Krenov wrote that oil finishes have a tendency to turn rancid inside a drawer, so he recommends french polish, which is shellac based. Bare wood exposes the slides to lignin, which is not good for them. But I'll check with the museum.

 

Thanks again!

[mikel r.]

One finish that is fairly inert is parrafin wax. I make longbows, cabinets, knives, boxes etc. and when I need a finish to keep out moisture without using chemicals, I use parrafin. The trick is to use a blow dryer type heat gun on a low setting and slowly melt the wax into the wood pores. While it is still slightly melted, use a heavy rag to wipe off the excess. This actually penetrates deep into the pores and will not react to other materials. The only drawback is that stain sometimes seals the pores and retards penetration, so you can't stain it first with most of the stains we use here in the U.S. If you like the look of natural wood, then the finish would work. I would consider this on the inside of the box to help ensure that your box does not warp or crack do to moisture absorbtion or loss. You could use jsut about anything on the outside.

 

Your box looks great by the way. It gives some ideas to try out for my photo gear.

 

Good luck.

Mike