I mount all of mine on 1/4 inch slats of oak with the silicone glue.
I thought the 1/8 was a little thin and it might be more prone to
warping. I don't know if mounting makes a difference or not, but it
sure looks nice. I like to think that as the ruber deteriorates,
the image on the wood will still look good so boxes will know what
it's supposed to look like.

So far, out of eight finds, I have yet to find another mounted stamp.

-MonkeyToes

--- In letterbox-usa@yahoogroups.com, "quiet_place"
wrote:
> I am currently struggling with the question of whether or not
it
> is "better" to mount my stamps before planting them...
> I used an eighth inch piece of wood (walnut), sanded. I
coated
> the stamp with silicone adhesive sealant and then pressed it on
the
> wood (after stamping the image on top). I could tell no real
> difference in the quality of the image, but I was stamping the
image
> at home at my desk. It may be different doing it out on the
trails.
>
> Then I read that wood can "warp" after time. I assume this
would
> happen more often when wood has been wet, and letterboxes
sometimes
> do get that way.
> -Quiet Place

> I am currently struggling with the question of whether or not it
> is "better" to mount my stamps before planting them.

It's just an option and not 'better' or 'worse', per se. Some boxes
may not work well for mounting stamp such as microboxes where stamps
with mounts may not fit at all. Very large stamps sometimes don't
work well with mounts either, because it can be difficult to get the
middle of the stamp to transfer well. (The force of pressing down on
the stamp ends up near the edges of the stamp, rather than the center
of the stamp.) And for some types of the MasterCarve, the stuff is
so thick, a mount is largely unnecessary.

The only two reasons I can think of to mount a stamp are:

1. It's usually less messy for people to stamp in

2. It makes the stamp look more professional

Unless you're shooting for one of those goals, there's not much
reason to mount your stamp.

Carpe diem!

-- Ryan

I don't know about the long run but I confess to being too lazy to
mount my stamps. However when I first started carving and I thought
that I had to, I was using wood and then one day I made a letterbox to
be placed in Oregon and I realized that warping could be a real
issue,[ as opposed to up here at 7000 feet in Utah where I currently
live. So I started using plexiglass which I assume does not warp and
looked kind of cool once I sanded down the edges with my palm sander.
I was never sure exactly what kind of glue to use, I used silicone but
I suspect that over the long haul silicone will work loose.
But these days I just use my stamps as is and it seems to work great,
I spend more time carving and less time messing with plexiglass!
Happy Stamping,
Nisha

Good question, and mostlt I agree with the others. I mount mine that are on erasers because the Magic Rub erasers are rather bendy. I haven't made any very big stamps, though. I haven't had warping problems over time, but then it has only been a year and change!

I *have* come across broken stamps that weren't backed, and it's been a real shame, for they were quite nice.

I haven't backed the hitchhikers, because I want to keep them of small dimension to fit in boxes.

My Tuppence,
Dave
The von der Insels
P10 F226 X120 H8 E2
----- Original Message -----
From: quiet_place
To: letterbox-usa@yahoogroups.com
Sent: Saturday, July 10, 2004 12:39 PM
Subject: [LbNA] Stamp mounting... or not?


I am currently struggling with the question of whether or not it
is "better" to mount my stamps before planting them. I have planted
29, with another five or so in the works. However, I have only found
six letterboxes. None of the boxes that I have found have been
mounted.

When I put together the last few of my letterboxes, I DID mount
the stamp. I had read something about stamps "breaking", which I had
no idea ever happened. It was also mentioned that mounting them
helps "little fingers" stamp them. So, I thought I would try it.

I used an eighth inch piece of wood (walnut), sanded. I coated
the stamp with silicone adhesive sealant and then pressed it on the
wood (after stamping the image on top). I could tell no real
difference in the quality of the image, but I was stamping the image
at home at my desk. It may be different doing it out on the trails.

Then I read that wood can "warp" after time. I assume this would
happen more often when wood has been wet, and letterboxes sometimes
do get that way.

I realize that there are benefits to doing this either way, with
or without a mount. But, I wanted to know if there are more "horror
stories" from one or the other. Are non-mounted stamps LIKELY to be
broken, or just occasionally are. Does wood mounting warp when wet?
Is there a huge difference in ability to get a clear stamped image
with either?

Thanks!
-Quiet Place



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[Non-text portions of this message have been removed]

About the breaking factor, it occurs to me that could be quite real
for some of the carving materials, however my favorite material is
Soft-Kut from Dick Blick and it is soft grey rubber that does not seem
to break. Even if I try it only bends. Some of the other materials
that I no longer use did break.
Happy stamp carving,
Nisha

Funny... I haven't found that many boxes, but so far every one has been mounted on wood-- at least 1/4" thick or more. Even here in PA where it's damp, I would think the warping wouldn't be such an issue if you use thick enough wood and the stamp is not too huge. I don't think it would be much use mounting on anything less than 1/4" thick. Seems too me the unmounted ones would be pretty messy, but as I said I haven't seen any. Some that were mounted on an organic shaped piece of wood rather than a square one were very nice to get a good grip on when stamping. The images don't seem to remain on the wood for very long, though. Maybe when you do that image, it should be stamped into something other than the ink we all use to stamp on paper. To solve the problem of the edges getting more pressure when stamping, I've seen a couple with knobs, like the wooden knobs sold for drawer-pulls at hardware stores. They worked great. --lunaryakketyact

[Non-text portions of this message have been removed]

My message was a bit confusing. I didn't mean that the rubber stamp doesn't stay on the wood. I meant that the stamp's image that the placer put on the wood backing has often been faded. I wondered if using permanent ink or something would last longer than stamp pad ink, for the image on the wood backing. --- lunaryakketyact

[Non-text portions of this message have been removed]

Another option I am seeing here (in SW OH) is using heavy foam as a backer.
(Scoutdogs has done this a bit)

I like the knob option, tho confess that my stamps are so pitiful I am
hesitant to do much to them, lol.

Mama Stork
aka Pam in Cinci

I had one stamp where the image on the wood faded as soon as I sprayed it
with the clear sealer. Poof! It nearly disappeared instantly. So I
restamped it on top of the dry sealer, and sprayed again. Poof! So I stamped
again, using a different brand of ink. Sprayed. Poof! I gave up at that point
and drew around the outside of the image with a Sharpie, so at least the
shape of the image shows.

DebBee


[Non-text portions of this message have been removed]

I confess.
I'm one of the ones out for the professional look Ryan mentioned. My
favorite part of making stamps is putting coat after coat of shiny
spray glaze on the back of the wood mounting, over the image. If I
can't mount it, I can't spray it, and then it's no fun.
Exceptions to this have been where the stamps in a series were
pieces of a map, and their labels. I couldn't imagine anyone peeking
under the wood to line up the edges, so I left them unmounted and
drew the outlines on top to help them along.
But now that that's over, my spray can and I am ready for the next
adventure...
Aud