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Reslabbing your CGC comics every 7 years

Started by MMMarvel-migration,

Did you know that your CGC comic should be reslabbed every 7 years so the microchamber paper can be replaced?  

189 members have voted

  1. 1. Did you know that your CGC comic should be reslabbed every 7 years so the microchamber paper can be replaced?

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70 posts in this topic

fantastic_four

fantastic_four

Posted
Posted
The "7 year" rule will mean some of my books will need to be reholdered in three years or so.

 

So you're storing your CGC books in high temperature, high humidity environments, then? I thought povertyrow and mushroom made it fairly clear that it's not a "rule" if you're storing your books well.

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MMMarvel-migration

MMMarvel-migration

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The "7 year" rule will mean some of my books will need to be reholdered in three years or so.

 

So you're storing your CGC books in high temperature, high humidity environments, then? I thought povertyrow and mushroom made it fairly clear that it's not a "rule" if you're storing your books well.

 

Not a rule according to whom? Did CGC post something somewhere about NOT having to change the micro-chamber paper every 7 years as long as you stored your books well or that the micro-chamber has no harmful effects if left in your comic book past 7 years? How about whether you can store your comics sideways instead of upright? Not that I don't trust the knowledge of my fellow CGC board members, but Inquiring minds want to know.

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fantastic_four

fantastic_four

Posted
Posted

Since we've debated this half a dozen times before, I'll point you in the direction of the material to figure it out on your own:

 

I'll summarize with a statement you'll find across all research: storing paper in low humidity, low temperature environments reduces the chemical decomposition which leads to the release of acid absorbed by the microchamber paper. If you slow down the release of the acid with environmental control, the microchamber paper shouldn't fill up for quite a while--or never if you store them in an absolutely ideal environment. Based upon all the previous debates, it seems that nobody really knows how long it takes to fill up under ideal storage conditions, but 7 years is a safe number given that most slabs are NOT stored in ideal environments, as they're shipped back and forth across the country, lugged around to conventions or your friend's house, kept in houses where relative humidity is 70% in the summer, etc.

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fantastic_four

fantastic_four

Posted
Posted

There's something in that second thread that's been ruminating in my mind for months since we first talked about it...sealing comics in the CGC case is not significantly different than sealing them in a standard melinex (or even polyethylene/polypropylene) bag with three or four sealed sides. The suggestion by the LoC employee and the graphs referenced from the LoC web site suggest that storage in a container with 4 open sides is preferrable to allow acids to diffuse to the atmosphere.

 

So...you guys ARE changing your microchamber in your NON-slabbed books every few years, too, right? angel.gif What's that? You don't HAVE any microchamber paper in there? shocked.gif893naughty-thumb.gif Well, that's OK, just store them well and it should mostly compensate for this evil...you're doing that too, right? 893scratchchin-thumb.gifinsane.gif

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MMMarvel-migration

MMMarvel-migration

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Since we've debated this half a dozen times before, I'll point you in the direction of the material to figure it out on your own:

 

I'll summarize with a statement you'll find across all research: storing paper in low humidity, low temperature environments reduces the chemical decomposition which leads to the release of acid absorbed by the microchamber paper. If you slow down the release of the acid with environmental control, the microchamber paper shouldn't fill up for quite a while--or never if you store them in an absolutely ideal environment. Based upon all the previous debates, it seems that nobody really knows how long it takes to fill up under ideal storage conditions, but 7 years is a safe number given that most slabs are NOT stored in ideal environments, as they're shipped back and forth across the country, lugged around to conventions or your friend's house, kept in houses where relative humidity is 70% in the summer, etc.

 

fantastic_four I appreciate all the info. I am sure your opinion and the opinions of experts in the comic field that post on these boards are based on good information. My problem is that CGC doesn't address the issue. They are the ones charging for the slabbing service. They should be the ones that should provide information on proper storage of CGC comics and whether or not the micro-chamber paper can damage your comic if left in past 7 years. Myself and others shouldn't have to depend on 2nd and 3rd-hand information. The proper way to store an encapsulated comic (i.e. upright, side etc...) and the harmful effects of old micro-chamber paper should be addressed by CGC.

 

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fantastic_four

fantastic_four

Posted
Posted
They are the ones charging for the slabbing service. They should be the ones that should provide information on proper storage of CGC comics and whether or not the micro-chamber paper can damage your comic if left in past 7 years. Myself and others shouldn't have to depend on 2nd and 3rd-hand information.

 

If CGC gave that information to you, it would be second or third hand. They're not a research company...they didn't develop conservation standards. I don't believe it's a stretch to say every bit of conservation info the comic book industry uses came originally from research done by the Library of Congress, and that Bill Cole and Ernst Gerber are primarily responsible for that information making it here in the first place.

 

However, I agree that CGC should relay that information to their customers better than they have in the past.

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Illiterati-migration

Illiterati-migration

Posted
Posted
They are the ones charging for the slabbing service. They should be the ones that should provide information on proper storage of CGC comics and whether or not the micro-chamber paper can damage your comic if left in past 7 years. Myself and others shouldn't have to depend on 2nd and 3rd-hand information.

 

If CGC gave that information to you, it would be second or third hand. They're not a research company...they didn't develop conservation standards. I don't believe it's a stretch to say every bit of conservation info the comic book industry uses came originally from research done by the Library of Congress, and that Bill Cole and Ernst Gerber are primarily responsible for that information making it here in the first place.

 

However, I agree that CGC should relay that information to their customers better than they have in the past.

 

Are you sure YOUR name isn't BaghdadBob?

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fantastic_four

fantastic_four

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However, I agree that CGC should relay that information to their customers better than they have in the past.

 

Actually I should qualify that. They already convey information about storing CGC comics in an extremely efficient place--on the back label of every slab:

 

CgcBackLabel_storage.jpg

 

That will keep you safe, assuming you originally slabbed every CGC comic you own...but realistically, they need to address the real probability of poor storage prior to the point a CGC book entered your collection. I do wish they'd post more information somewhere on the main web site about how and when reslabbing to change the microchamber paper could be necessary.

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sterlingcomics

sterlingcomics

Posted
Posted

no, of course not. But I'm not storing them in a freezer in South Dakota either. Maybe I'm taking this information literally. Given "average" conditions (68-73 degrees, dark, avg 35% humidity not to exceed 50%) when should one rehold their books?

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fantastic_four

fantastic_four

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Given "average" conditions (68-73 degrees, dark, avg 35% humidity not to exceed 50%) when should one rehold their books?

 

Tough answer here--I don't think anybody knows! That's what Tracey Heft said in that linked post above. The lack of research on this topic makes it more of an art at this point than it probably should be. My educated guess is somewhere between 10 and 50 years...wide range there, eh?

 

Those conditions you described aren't much different than the ones some of the best pedigrees were stored in, so if that's what you're actually achieving, you're doing about the best you can do for a reasonable cost. How are you achieving that in Charlotte summers--dehumidifier? I would describe your "average" conditions more as "above average" conditions, particularly for the east coast of the US.

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sterlingcomics

sterlingcomics

Posted
Posted

sorry, I believe that was the last book I sold in late November. With the exception of that book, the rest of my ASM collection (what is left, anyway) is accurately documented in The CGC Registry. I even uploaded pictures (ohhh, ahhhh)

 

(yes, I need to remove #96 from my set; I did it one morning when I was bored sleeping.gif).

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