"Rippling" page quality in modern books...

[TheAvenger80]

hey guys. So, I have a few modern books that are in great shape.. 9.0+ that have a rippling sort of waviness, especially on the top and bottom edges. I've seen this many times in modern-ish books. For example I have a Transformers 80. I don't believe it is moisture or anything. Do you guys know what I'm talking about? How/does it affect the grade of the book?

[sakaridis]

If I understand what you're talking about, I think it is a matter of humidity getting to your books.

 

Usually a matter of insufficient storage, which means that the books were probably stored in a place with high humidity.

 

It could even mean that the books remained too long outside a bag/mylar, which can be deadly even in a place with moderate humidity.

 

I can't think of any other reason for something like what you describe.

[joeypost]

hey guys. So, I have a few modern books that are in great shape.. 9.0+ that have a rippling sort of waviness, especially on the top and bottom edges. I've seen this many times in modern-ish books. For example I have a Transformers 80. I don't believe it is moisture or anything. Do you guys know what I'm talking about? How/does it affect the grade of the book?

 

It is like any other damage. Depending upon the severity it could impact up to a full grade or greater. As long as their are no stains it is one of the easier defects to "correct".

[Nostalgic Attic]

If I understand what you're talking about, I think it is a matter of humidity getting to your books.

 

Usually a matter of insufficient storage, which means that the books were probably stored in a place with high humidity.

 

It could even mean that the books remained too long outside a bag/mylar, which can be deadly even in a place with moderate humidity.

 

I can't think of any other reason for something like what you describe.

 

I have the same problem with many of my moderns. They have been stored in the same location and conditions as the silver and bronze books (which don't have the rippling problem). I've often wondered why they have rippled like that...and humidity is not a problem in this case.

[TheAvenger80]

If I understand what you're talking about, I think it is a matter of humidity getting to your books.

 

Usually a matter of insufficient storage, which means that the books were probably stored in a place with high humidity.

 

It could even mean that the books remained too long outside a bag/mylar, which can be deadly even in a place with moderate humidity.

 

I can't think of any other reason for something like what you describe.

 

I have the same problem with many of my moderns. They have been stored in the same location and conditions as the silver and bronze books (which don't have the rippling problem). I've often wondered why they have rippled like that...and humidity is not a problem in this case.

 

I agree, I have never thought of it as a humidity issue, because books from other time periods really don't exhibit the same effect.

 

I always assumed it was a production issue, because the rippling goes through the entire book, i.e. it doesn't just affect the covers or a few pages.

[TFL-migration]

I sense another Pressing Thread coming on!!!

[Schmakt]

I've noticed this too... I do not like the way today's books are published at all... I miss newsprint.

[Mr. Zipper]

I always assumed it was a production issue, because the rippling goes through the entire book, i.e. it doesn't just affect the covers or a few pages.

 

I know exactly what you are talking about and it is a production issue. Very slight waviness along the top and bottom edges. I have seen it consistantly on brand new comics out of the box, so it is certainly not a moisture damage/storage issue.

 

I presume it has something to do with the full bleed ink coverage affecting the paper, but don't know for sure.

[SuperBird]

It happens to 50% of my moderns, and it one (of many) reasons I stopped buying comics. Has much to do with living in the north east (NYC), I suspect, along with modern printing techniques and paper stock.

 

Additionally, There is a 2-3 year period from the late 80's where every single Marvel book is HIGHLY susceptible to rippling. Literally every single copy of Conan 215-240something I have seen in the past 4 years has this type of damage. I have been trying to locate copies that are undamaged, to no avail...

 

My copies, stored exactly the same as the rest of my collection, have very dense 1/8" waviness on the top edge, while the rest of my collection is fine.

[Nostalgic Attic]

I have that same list of Conan Books ....have been unable to find them in unrippled condition either.

[SuperBird]

I have that same list of Conan Books ....have been unable to find them in unrippled condition either.

 

at least now I know I'm not nuts. I have gotten to the point where I would buy slabs of them... if anyone bothered to slab the POS* books!

 

 

 

 

 

 

* Conan was REALLY bad from 220 onwards

 

[the blob]

a mere printing defect. still acceptable in CGC 10.8, but not in 11.

[TheAvenger80]

Any other thoughts??

[Lazyboy]

Very common to Marvels circa 1989-1992. It is NOT a storage/environment issue. I assume the materials (mostly the paper) used to produce the comics are the reason.

 

[CollectingStanLee]

I've noticed the ripple effect as well on comic books with a lot of color and thin paper. It probably has to do with the wet ink stretching the paper as it dries. New Avengers #1 Quesada variant was a real pain. I bought 20 of them before I found one that would grade 9.8, and I was probably lucky to get that grade.

 

Lately I've seen a dimple on all modern comic books, appearing on the left side, about 4 inches from the top. I haven't tried to grade any of these books yet, but it will be interesting to see if any of them grade high with this defect. Literally every book I've seen recently has it. Any one know what I'm talking about?

 

Bill.