I've been dinking around today trying to get a message to Mike from Arkansas about transferring images to metal or wood. I've decided to start a new thread and give you all the information that will be on this site soon when it is updated.
............................................................................... This is for gluing a color copier print to metal or wood;
Lacquer and color copier prints don't mix. Anyone who has tried putting lacquer over the prints knows the problems. Shellac doesn't seal it. Krylon Crystal Clear will not seal it. Even poly will not go on the prints without problems.
The answer is Minwax's Polycrylic. Put a coat of this on the print and you can lacquer over it. Similiar stuff from other companies should work as well. Using a bristle brush may leave some very slight lines, more visual than physical, but this is no problem when it's over straight grain. I did another one using a super soft blending brush women use on their make up. This worked so much better. I bought the brush in a garage sale.
I couldn't find any paint from a spray can that will go on the color print so I never tried the spray Polycrylic.
Now, about the color copy machines. Look for some place that has the newer models. They print better and you can edit your print on your computer, copy to a CD and take it to the copier. FWIW, a guy who works at Kinkos told me that if you have a file on a CD, the Xerox machine does the best job. If you have an image to be placed on the machine glass, the Canon copier does the best job.
I have used Deft and Watco spray lacquer over the Polycrylic and there were no problems.
Use Polycrylic to glue the paper. With Polycrylic as the glue, you create a 'sandwich' with the paper trapped and isolated between two layers of Polycrylic. Also, Polycrylic will act as a vapor barrier between the print and the wood cabinet.
Follow these steps;
1- Give the print face an even coat of Polycrylic and let it dry for 24 hours. This is IMPORTANT because you don't want to damage the print when you glue it and squeeze out the excess Polycrylic.2- When ready to glue, soak the paper in water and blot it between toweling .
3- Put a layer of Polycrylic on the radio. Position the print on the glue and squeegee the print to force excess Polycrylic out. One of those wooden rollers wallpaperers use to rub seams is a good tool to use. Have a damp rag ready to wipe up the excess.............................................................................. This is for transferring the color copier image to metal or wood;
I worked on this method as a way to duplicate the faux woodgrain on some metal cabinet radios. It could be done on wood cabinets, but isn't really necessary unless you absolutely do not want paper on your radio.
Image transfer is a method of transferring the ink from a color copier print to another surface by using a glue and then removing the paper. The image is glued face down. The print image should be a mirror image of what you want so that when the paper is removed, your image will be correct.
The steps in this method are; !- Get a print from a color copier. This print should be reversed [mirror image].
2- Give the print face an even coat of Minwax's Polycrylic. Allow to dry for 24 hours3- When you are ready to transfer; Soak the print in water and and place it between toweling to to absorb excess moisture. Put an even coat of Polycrylic on the radio and place the print face down on the wet Polycrylic. Smooth it out with your fingers.
4- Have a couple damp rags handy to wipe off the Polcrylic that is squeezed out the edges. Wipe away from the print and turn the rags after each wipe. Keep as much of the Polycrylic off the paper as you can. When it looks smooth, roll it with one of those small wooden wheels used to roll wallpaper seams or squeegee the paper to force out the excess Polycrylic. Continue to wipe away excess Polycrylic. Squeegee away from the print so you keep as much as you can off the paper. You MUST be sure that there are no air bubbles. No air bubbles means you will get a perfect transfer. Allow to dry 24 hours.5- Soak the paper with COLD WATER and use your fingers to remove the paper. Keep it wet with cold water as you work. The bulk of the paper will come off easily, but when you get to the last of the paper it takes more time. Allow the paper to dry and a haze will form on those areas where more paper needs to be removed. At this point, use a barely damp piece of towel on your finger to remove the haze. This will provide some friction to help in removing the haze.
In the photo below, the images are actually about 8" x 10 and 1/2", but were reduced in size for e-mailing. The images are on a sheet of aluminum that was painted with Krylon white acrylic paint.
Like all methods of making DIY Photofinish paper, some practice should be done first, To save costs they can be done with black and white prints from a copy machine. If you are transferring to bare wood, seal the wood first with Polycrylic or acrylic paint.
I have made three magazine paper size transfers onto aluminum without any problems.