Where do you get your stuff framed?

[Argonus]

Originally Posted by Darth Pain

I just bought a pk of 200 fancy thumb tacks for $3. That saves me $247.

That's like... another Mondo poster in savings, right there!

Originally Posted by Hellboy

I was always more of a Jason Priestley guy myself.

...next you'll admit that you Dapper Dan'd your hair like his. So dreamy.

That show's "success" spawned or inspired 2/3's of the garbage that's been on tv ever since; I hate you, Aaron Spelling.

[Luminous]

Here is some friendly advice for those of you new to custom framing. The frames for my Star Wars prints are an overall size of 30 1/2 x 42 1/2 and the molding I used is roughly 1 1/2 inches wide. Something I discovered the hard way is that that is a relatively thin molding for such large dimensions. The result is that the left and right legs began to bow/bend inward since the framers decided to put the anchors for the wire at about the midway point.... naturally the stress caused the wood to bend inward. This is something that could have been avoided and something they should have known might happen.

The framers have attempted to make the warping look like it is within acceptable parameters of typical wood framing. As a result they are implying that I am the one who is being too picky for noticing or complaining about 1/16 of an inch. I am sorry, but for the kind of money custom framing demands I expect quality framing.... not something I can expect from $25 frames from Walmart. When you look at the measurements it seems like a negligible difference, however when you look at them on the wall the problem is painfully obvious to me.

The fact that I have had to jump through hoops to get them to correct this matter has left a sour taste in my mouth about custom framing. Thankfully it appears that I got through to them and they are presently replacing the frames and are changing the anchors for D rings. My advice is to make sure you do plenty of research on your own before letting anyone frame your prints. I spent weeks making sure I had all of the information I needed. Unfortunately it looks like I didn't know enough. If your frame is going to be this big I would consult the framer about D rings or your concern about reinforcement. Expressobeans.com is a great place to find information on custom framing.

[Hellboy]

thanks for the heads-up. I will make sure to express concern in regards to this matter when I pick up my print from the framer.

And I totally agree on your stance about expecting a quality product. For the money they charge it should be perfect and if it isn't they should do whatever it takes to rectify any mistakes/oversights at their expense.

[OpticBlast]

Sorry to hear about that and thank you for the information it's something to easily overlook but makes all the difference in the long run. I was lucky my framer already realized this was a potential problem, and automatically took the right precautions.

When i switched from the optium museum (acrylic) to museum glass at first i thought it was an inconvenience when he didn't install the standard wire to the D rings for The Bride and Frankie frames. He explained that with that kind of weight it was safer to go wireless and just mount it on the hangers directly to the D Ring which were drilled in to the frame itself 1/3 form the top and provides a safer distribution of weight so the heavy frame doesn't cave in on itself.

Due to the size if you have a glass type of glazing and are using wire anchored toward the middle the frame tends to bend inwardly because of the weight distribution. with the optium museum it's 50% lighter then glass so he said you could get away with using wire. I'm torn in the middle of which i prefer, either wire or just D rings only on the sides of the frame. For heavier frames i nail the hangers to studs which is a lot easier if you have a wire, because it's hard to find studs exactly 30 inches across from one another.

So im left with using D rings and potentially only nailing it to the drywall which i hear only supports 10 pounds of weight safely, or using wired and finding studs but risk the frame warping. Not sure which is the way to go, so far I've found 1 stud for each frame while the other side is on drywall so its hung directly on the D rings.

[Darth Pain]

Thanks for the info!
I've never had anything framed before. So it's much appreciated!

[Nidgit]

Yep. Thanks all for the info and advice guys. Whilst I've had other art works framed, I'm yet to frame one of my mondo prints, so this info will be very useful when I do