Resoring Paper Labels

[Sooth]

Hi, I recently bought a beautiful Birge & Fuller 8-Day Column & Cornice clock. IT was damged pretty badly in the mail, see here:

http://photobucket.com/albums/v473/sooth15/?action=view&current=Birge1.jpg

My question:

There are several large pieces of the label that were torn off during transportation (despite professional packing) and I was wondering if there is a ceretain type of glue than can be used to reattach the pieces.

I want to try to preserve as much of the remains as possible, without causing further damage. Is there a glue that will not further deteriorate the paper, and not stick too much that I can't apply it with a soft brush?

If there is anyone who can help me with this, I'd really appreciate it. This is a truly beautiful clock from the late 1840's.

I will not be able to work on the clock until the insurance claim is finished, so I will to wait about 2-3 weeks to start.

Thanks.

[Sooth]

Hi, I recently bought a beautiful Birge & Fuller 8-Day Column & Cornice clock. IT was damged pretty badly in the mail, see here:

http://photobucket.com/albums/v473/sooth15/?action=view&current=Birge1.jpg

My question:

There are several large pieces of the label that were torn off during transportation (despite professional packing) and I was wondering if there is a ceretain type of glue than can be used to reattach the pieces.

I want to try to preserve as much of the remains as possible, without causing further damage. Is there a glue that will not further deteriorate the paper, and not stick too much that I can't apply it with a soft brush?

If there is anyone who can help me with this, I'd really appreciate it. This is a truly beautiful clock from the late 1840's.

I will not be able to work on the clock until the insurance claim is finished, so I will to wait about 2-3 weeks to start.

Thanks.

[Jim Moss]

For help with your dial, contact the Canadian Conservation Institute at:
http://www.cci-icc.gc.ca/

You could also contact the American Institute for the Conservation of Historic and ARtistic Works (AIC) at:
http://aic.stanford.edu/

Ask them for advice or have them actually do the treatment for you.

Don't mess with various glues because you and others who offer advice do not have the scientific background to be able to know what is and what is not harmful to your dial.

[TomT]

Sooth,

Sorry to see the damage to your clock. The photos tell it all.

Regarding the label, there are a number of posts regarding label restoration/preservation which note the need for special care and use of correct conservator quality products. Excellent preservation supplies (adhesives, de-acidification solutions, physical protection) are available from several suppliers such as Talas (http://talasonline.com/)

I have sent you an off-line message with some specific suggestions.

Good luck,

[stewart]

hello sooth

I bought a clock and recieved it destroyed in the mail. The shipper made good with the insurance but I must say it was really due to the poor packaging job done by the sender. It's a shame to see these clocks that have survived so long destroyed in an instant by improper packing.

good luck

stewart

[Sooth]

Thanks for the kind message Stewart. I did my best to try to get it here safely, but apparently "professional packing" isn't worth a dime, and even with 5 day shipping UPS was useless (I'm not using them anymore, it's the second clock they break).

The damage is not too bad though. Some parts will need regluing, and a few will need patching. If you go to the link and click "next" you can see a new photo.

To Tom: I think I can reglue most of the label sucessfully, but nowhere in town carries ph neutral glue (I'm assuming it's NOT the same as acid free glue). I will order some.

As for the actual label pieces, I'd say there are over 300, and under 1000.

:frown:

[TomT]

Acid-free, pH neutral pretty much the same thing. The important thing is to avoid adding any more acid to the paper. It is already pretty acidic.

300-->500-->1000, whatever.....Save every piece you can. Use the glass to protect them. Once you start putting it back together, you are going to be amazed at how many of those pieces actually find a home.

Once they are back in place, you can look into de-acidification and protection.

Stay with it, you will be glad you did........

Regards,

[Sooth]

Hey Tom, I only saw two "acid free" glues available here, and one was a glue stick. I will go back tomorrow and have another look at the other glue I saw. I think it was a liquid glue, but might have been the kind with a sponge on the tip. I'd need something I could brush-on.

I am usually pretty good about keeping everything that comes with a clock. I have several old clock with little ziploc bags containing misc bits of wood or nails that were found with the clock. I did my best to find as many pieces of the label as possible, but I doubt I will find a place for ALL of them. I will probably find more when I remove the back from the case. A lot (100?) are tiny little flakes bately 1/8 of an inch with no words. It doesn't help that the label was already missing pieces of it (prettly large). But the label does show part of the address way at the bottom, in Hartford.

However, whichever pieces are left will still be kept.

I might have to lift off most of the remaining label because it is almost completely detached from the wood everywhere, unless you can suggest a better option. I know there are sections that can be lifted quite a bit to brush glue beneath them.

As for deacidification, I'm not sure I can afford the 45$ can of spray right now. I will definitely look into it some more. I also have an old Waterbury ogee clock which has the entire label in very nice condition, but it's darkened from sunlight and acid (it's a medium to dark brown - see site for photos).

I also found a handwritten note glued to the bottom. It was written in ink on lined paper or card, but it's very VERY dirty, and hard to make out. It says something along the lines of:

This clock goes to my daughter
Leda Lake _______ my death
H___ mother
__Leda Lake Quees(?)

Is there something I can use on it to clean it up a little. It's mostly dust and dirt. I used a soft paintbrush to clean most of it off.

[TomT]

The note you found in the clock sounds really interesting. For whatever reason, it was pretty common for people to put notes in their clocks.

For cleaning old labels, I usually use a 1 inch white-bristled throw-away brush. If the label is reasonably stable, you can gently brush a small section at a time to remove dirt. There are special document cleaning pads which are cloth bags filled with a rubber powder. They work well if the paper is in good condition to start with.

There are techniques to bleach old paper, but it's pretty involved and delicate.

You definitely want a glue that is a liquid you can brush on. Depending on the situation, you may even need to thin it more to get it in the places you want. The Jade 403 from Talas fits the bill well and is not expensive.

Good luck with it.