I just acquiired a lovely Graphic View II, s/n 469904, with red bellows. The bellows seems to be in excellent condition except that along part of the seam the seam is coming apart.

What type of adhesive would you recommend I use to repair this seam, and are there any special hints and kinks I should observe?

Thanks.

On a couple of my Graphics I have been able to make a couple decent repairs of the bellows seam by doing the following:
Carefully apply masking tape along both sides of the separated seam. Clean with appropriate mild cleaner if tape will not stick. It is good to have one hand supporting the bellows on the inside.
Using a very small art brush or suitable device, spread contact cement underneath the sepparation to both sides of the seam. Let sit for a few minutes. For best results,keep seam surfaces sepparated to allow cement to air.
Then very carefully press seams together being careful to keep the seam aligned and not get unwanted kinks and folds in the material. Let dry for a few more minutes and then carefully remove the masking. Excess cement should ball up and be easily removed, or if done cleanly simply left alone.

Hi, T,

Thanks so much. That was just about what I had in mind (including the masking tape - a thought that just came to me this afternoon).

The type of contact cement I would be inclined to use is Pliobond. Do you have some specific type to recommend?

Thanks again,

Best regards,

Doug

I recomend using Latex/Neoprene based contact cement. Dap Weldwood Nondflamable or Elmer's Pro Bond product number E-753 are the two brands that I'm familuar with. DO NOT use solvent based cement.
Charles

Hi, Charles,

Quote:

On 2006-09-09 22:26, 45PSS wrote: I recomend using Latex/Neoprene based contact cement. Dap Weldwood Nondflamable or Elmer's Pro Bond product number E-753 are the two brands that I'm familuar with. DO NOT use solvent based cement.

Thank you so much.

Best regards,

Doug

Use what you have availabale, solvent whatever doesn't really matter unless worried about the "extremely flamable" part.

While I like Pliobond for many things, I would not use it on the bellows repair as it will not allow you to adjust the position of the pieces as you bring them together. It is an agressive glue that means it when it says "contact".

For the repair you describe I've used rubber cement, worked into the open seam with a long-stemmed Q-tip. It is easily worked and will allow you to slide things around a bit to get the pleats completely lined up.

Whatever you use, be sure to remove all the excess glue that gets squeezed out.

Which is a good point to make. A long separation is harder to get properly alligned. It is possible to do it in small sections so as to prevent unwanted kinks or missallignment. short areas of only a couple pleats are simple.
I have personally never used rubber cement prefering high tack fast dry and nearly forever stick.
One observation when making these repairs a few times is that excess contact cement can be balled up and easily removed with the fingers right after pressing the material together (provideing one does not let cement pre-dry more then five minutes). Also hence careful masking, and propping the separations open so glue can a. dry, and b. one can work short sections of one or two pleats at a time so as to keep things manageable and properly alligned. They come out very nice and one would not even notice the patch unless extremely critical...like me.