Dear MMD'ers,  I have a collection of 65 note "A" rolls, some original,
some recent recuts.  Many of the recuts are made of very thin, almost
transparent paper with what appear to be random watermark patterns.
An 11-inch-long incandescent lamp is used for a light source.  I am
"reading" these with a photoelectric scanner which uses 65 infra-red
sensitive phototransistors in the tracker bar (Robbie has seen it).

My problem is that, as a roll is played, the thin paper with its
almost clear watermarks affords very little contrast between holes
and no-holes.  Unfortunately, the watermarks are not harmonically or
chronologically related to the tunes being played, and they get played
too.

Does anyone have any ideas on how the paper can be made opaque or at
least more (less?) translucent without damage?  Is there a dye that
might work?  Comments appreciated.

Lee Roan
Temple City, CA