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Wilhelm's bombshell - understanding the latest test results



Although this subject is of major concern, it's surprising how little
"relevant" discussion has been generated on this list about Wilhelm's
latest test results under the section, "Desktop Inkjet Printers (newer
products)":

EPSON STYLUS 3000 PRINTER (4-ink Lysonic E Inks)
Luminos Lumijet Premium DW Glossy (discon.)   >120 years
Luminos Lumijet Premium Tapestry X (tentative)   >120 years
Arches Cold Press Paper   50-55 years
Somerset Velvet Paper   >25 years
UltraStable Canvas (glossy)   >15 years
Lysonic Standard Fine Art Paper   4-6 years
Epson Photo Paper (1998 "Improved type)   4-5 years
(years listed are before noticeable fading occurs)

Lyson and Luminos had originally claimed that their Lysonic E  and
Platinum inks would give an estimated 65-75 years of fade-proof
performance on traditional non-coated papers like Somerset Velvet or on
their "matched" coated papers like Lysonic Standard Fine Art Paper or
Lumijet's Classic Velour.  These papers perform beautifully, so many of
us didn't mind paying four times the cost of plain ol' Somerset Velvet
if we could get richer blacks and more saturated colors.  (Please
remember that we are also talking about a "family" of watercolor papers
-- these test results apply to all 3 of the Lysonic watercolor papers
[Standard, Soft & Rough] and all 3 of the Lumijet watercolor papers
[Classic Velour, Museum Parchment & Flaxen Weave] -- because all these
papers are made from the same paper base, using the same coating.)

Now Dr. Wilhelm is telling us that we're only going to get 4-6 years
before noticeable fading (a performance that isn't much better than
Epson's Photo Paper).  Do you feel a little rip-off or betrayed?  Are
similar test results going to come back on the very popular, Somerset
Photo Enhanced, 6 months from now?  It could happen.

You need to keep in mind that Lyson and Luminos did not just arbitrarily
pick these estimated performances out of the air before releasing their
products to the public.  They took their products to several experts
(including Dr. Wilhelm) to get these estimates before releasing the
products.  They then released their products in good faith with these
estimated numbers.  So why does there appear to be such a big
discrepancy between their original estimates (65-75 years) and the
current test results of 4-6 years?

As a dealer for these products, I certainly wanted some answers, as I
knew many of you would be asking me those same questions.  The head
people at Luminos and Lyson are quite concerned as you can imagine.  I
have been told that Dr. Wilhelm's latest tests were conducted using
higher humidity percentages than his earlier tests, and that sets the
"bar" at a higher level.  (They point out that even Somerset Velvet and
Arches ratings have fallen considerably compared to previous tests.)
There is some talk that Henry's tests may not necessarily mimic
real-world results.  And although they do they plan to continue their
testing with Dr. Wilhelm, they may also submit their products to other
labs (like RIT) to help "vindicate" their original estimates.  In all,
they still feel that their inksets offer considerable fade-resistance
over the current OEM inkset (and the great results on other papers would
seem to confirm that belief).

In defense of Dr. Wilhelm's most recent findings, they certainly would
indicate that he tries to be a true scientist, that can't be bought --
otherwise he would not have published such potentially damaging results
("4-6 years" for the Lysonic Fine Art) for his paying clients!

Will these fine art watercolor papers suffer the same fate as Liege
did?  Legion had high hopes for its Liege paper (which was originally a
coated Somerset paper), only to learn that the paper produced color
shifts after a few years -- relegating the paper to use as a
great-looking "portfolio" paper, but losing its status as an archival
fine art paper.

Lyson had already been working on a reformulation for their watercolor
papers, even before these latest test results.  So you can expect to see
some new watercolor papers, in addition to their current papers.  These
new watercolor papers are expected to be 100% rag papers (the current
watercolor papers are wood pulp base).

Everyone is clamoring to find archival solutions that will perform RIGHT
NOW.  We need to keep in mind that experimental solutions for "fine art
printing from the desktop printer" have only been around for a little
over a year.  This industry is in its infancy, yet it is moving very
quickly.  This is an exciting time.  When Graham Nash first started
using the commercial Iris inkjet proofers to make "giclees" in about
1990, the current inkset were also only lasting 2-3 years.  It took
almost 5 years to get longevity up to about 10 years, yet we're all
expecting 50+ years of longevity overnight for our desktop printers!  It
will happen, but it may take a little longer than some had hoped.

In the end, Dr. Wilhelm's latest article, "The Intimate Relationships of
Inks and Papers: You Can't Talk About the Permanence of One Without
Considering the Other" does cause one to reflect on the importance of
MATCHING papers and inks.  One used to think that paper COATINGS could
only LOWER an inkset's fade-resistance performance (like Liege's coating
did for Somerset); however, Dr. Wilhelm's latest test results for
Luminos Lumijet's two "Premium" (coated) papers, "DW Glossy" and
"Tapestry X" seem to show that a coating may even ENHANCE the paper's
longevity performance (with a test result of >120 years) with some
inksets (Lysonic E)!

Yes, there is hope....

Royce Bair
royce@tssphoto.com
http://www.inkjetart.com/
Inkjet Art Solutions


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