Boards: Do Modern Comics Really Need Them?

[matchstick johnny]

Hi,

 

I think CGC has been making a lot of us hyper critical of the condition of the comics we collect. With that comes the feeling that we HAVE to bag and board every comic we buy. I believe modern comics can stay in minty fresh condition with only a bag to protect them. For example, about ten years ago I put this Uncanny X-Men comic into a polyethylene bag and stored it in a long box with other comics.

 

 

 

The point is that you don't have to spend a ton of money on supplies to keep your comics nice. Anyone else agree or disagree? Lets hear it!

[Sabertooth]

I'd like to see a comparative study of the same book stored in different types of bags and boards with under identical temp, light, and humidity. I'd like the more expensive mylars, etc., to show why they're worth the extra cost.

[rob_react]

I don't bag or board new books. I stick them in a magazine box and forget about them (except for the occasional re-read.) I may be taking some chances with them, but this isn't highly acidic newsprint we're talking about and I also don't really care about condition on them.

[DKB]

I bag and board my modern books, but I stick two books per bag/board, one on each side. Up until 2 years ago almost all of my collection was like that actually, and i've only recently gone back through the Silver and Bronze stuff and rebagged and double boarded them, 1 book per bag.

[deathlok]

I keep most of my moderns in polypropelyne bags and boards.

 

I am not worried so much about the acids or gases, as I more concerned with bending the book. I really don't enjoy creases on staple bends on books that I could have spent a little amount of time and money by adding a board inside.

[jbud73]

Lets see you're using tape on the bags - someone get FFB in here to set this gentelmen straight. I think I see a small impact on the BLC which will bring this down to a 9.8 and the top staple looks like its got a 1/100000 of an inch, potential crease in 2029 starting there.

 

But seriously, I bag and board all my comics, I just do - its an instinctive thing. I think the post around here about how many ppl on the boards have a comic worth over $250 (or something) in the OS that they bought off the rack was telling - there weren't that many of them.

 

On the other hand you see the ASM 238 CGC 9.9 change hands at $2300 and you wonder

 

I think to each their own, its you collection do as you please and I guess we'll see in 40 years when moderns might be worth something - I'm Darth, they are the backbone of the hobby and the reason for my meager existance.

 

The only protection issues I think about for comics is what books to take out of simple backs and go Mylar with. I do disagree with the rebagging ever 7 years thing. Throwing out all those bags is bad for the environment - now where's my tree It needs a hug.

[Solar]

I do everything possible to keep all my books as nice as possible. Why not. It's worth the extra 5 cents per book to put a board in there. Right now it might not matter since I'm only buying them to read, but if people still give a damn about comics in 20 years, it'll be nice to have all of mine in 9.4 or better.

[mrwoogieman]

My new LCS purchases always get bagged and boarded when they enter the comics preserve. I used to tag them too, but now I just microchip them, it's much less destructive than the tags.

[stynxno]

My new LCS purchases always get bagged and boarded when they enter the comics preserve. I used to tag them too, but now I just microchip them, it's much less destructive than the tags.

 

You're not keeping track of their mating rituals are you?

[mrwoogieman]

My new LCS purchases always get bagged and boarded when they enter the comics preserve. I used to tag them too, but now I just microchip them, it's much less destructive than the tags.

 

You're not keeping track of their mating rituals are you?

 

You know, not many people can even tell a he-comic from a she-comic.

[blutobc]

My new LCS purchases always get bagged and boarded when they enter the comics preserve. I used to tag them too, but now I just microchip them, it's much less destructive than the tags.

 

You're not keeping track of their mating rituals are you?

 

You know, not many people can even tell a he-comic from a she-comic.

 

What an easy set-up line.

Do I give in and make a cheap shot about someone I really don't know?

Oh what the heck...in jest I say....

 

Ask Greggy He'll Know the difference

He Probably won't care which one it is. He'll love it the same.

[Jayman]

Hi,

 

I think CGC has been making a lot of us hyper critical of the condition of the comics we collect. With that comes the feeling that we HAVE to bag and board every comic we buy. I believe modern comics can stay in minty fresh condition with only a bag to protect them. For example, about ten years ago I put this Uncanny X-Men comic into a polyethylene bag and stored it in a long box with other comics.

The point is that you don't have to spend a ton of money on supplies to keep your comics nice. Anyone else agree or disagree? Lets hear it!

 

It really depends on what and how you collect. Meaning if what you collect is older books and just pick up moderns to read, just bag and board the older books and to heck with the new ones. But if you are seriously collecting every book you purchase it does make sense to put a board in the bag. It is so easy to put a spine crease on a book if picked up improperly. I know you're saying "I'm really careful!" but accidents do happen. A board really helps the comic to lay flat and protects those precious corners!

 

By how you collect I mean if you buy/read the comic and put it away in a box not to be touched for like 10 years, then yeah, you could probably forget using boards. Although I still wouldn't recommend this as I've seen unboarded books develope spine rolls by slipping off to one side or another in a row of tightly packed comics in a box. Alternatively if you are often going back into that box to add new books, cull the collection, replace upgrades or just to inventory, there is more of a chance for damage to happen if there is no backing board.

[ninanina]

I mentioned some of the 20 year old moderns I had stored in bags with no boards...still in the 9.2-9.4 range. Jbud's (Jason) seen em', so I'm hoping he'll confirm.

 

There were some doubters when I mentioned it about 3 years ago on the forum.

 

The secret is, put them in the bag and don't touch 'em. It's the handling that will give you the defects over time. The boards give more protection during whatever handling the comics endure. process. If the comics are handled quite a bit ... definitely go with the boards.

[Sabertooth]

The secret is, put them in the bag and don't touch 'em. It's the handling that will give you the defects over time. The boards give more protection during whatever handling the comics endure. process. If the comics are handled quite a bit ... definitely go with the boards.

 

Yep. Sitting still is good protection for comics.

[jbud73]

I mentioned some of the 20 year old moderns I had stored in bags with no boards...still in the 9.2-9.4 range. Jbud's (Jason) seen em', so I'm hoping he'll confirm.

 

There were some doubters when I mentioned it about 3 years ago on the forum.

 

The secret is, put them in the bag and don't touch 'em. It's the handling that will give you the defects over time. The boards give more protection during whatever handling the comics endure. process. If the comics are handled quite a bit ... definitely go with the boards.

 

Yes Herb's collection is in great shape and displayed really well too I agree there are so many things that can go wrong in the handling. Herb another point I think that the boards are better suited for comics that are boxes - no boards on boxes can spell disaster as the comic box can harm as much as help. Your collection displayed as it is does not have this as an issue, if you books were in comic boxes I think that you storage method would need to encorporate boards.

[jbud73]

My new LCS purchases always get bagged and boarded when they enter the comics preserve. I used to tag them too, but now I just microchip them, it's much less destructive than the tags.

 

You're not keeping track of their mating rituals are you?

 

You know, not many people can even tell a he-comic from a she-comic.

 

What an easy set-up line.

Do I give in and make a cheap shot about someone I really don't know?

Oh what the heck...in jest I say....

 

Ask Greggy He'll Know the difference

He Probably won't care which one it is. He'll love it the same.

 

[Kermit the frog]

i bag all the moderns, putting them 2 per bag (saving a lot on bags and offering an extra/important protection - lamost the same has having a board, but i end up saving one bag and one board for each 2 comics...not bad).

 

i bag and board the moderns i really like or have gone up in value, for ex: 30 days of night 1st print, USM nº1-7, etc... mostly i also love to see one comic individually bagged/boarded, but that's extremelly expensive if you have more than 4 hundred comics...but the majority of my coll. is bagged/boarded since it's build up a lot from silver and bronze age...

 

i would be out of my mind to not have a bag/board on my complete B.Smith Conan's run, or on my marvelous FF run (almost complete from nº50-300), the same with U X-Men and Spidey (how would it be possible to nnot bag/board nº121,122,129, etc...).

 

and again it ain't just the money they're worth, but the love/pleasure i have on owning and sharing them...

 

regards, Pedro.

 

ps- anyone knows if putting 2 comics per bag can harm them at long therm?

[blutobc]

"ps- anyone knows if putting 2 comics per bag can harm them at long therm?"

 

Years ago I would put two comics per bag. They were placed back to back with no board. After a few years I started noticing that ink transfer was occurring with the back covers. Nothing on a grand scale but enough to lessen the attractiveness of the back covers. All my books are now individually bagged and boarded.

[Darthdiesel]

The secret is, put them in the bag and don't touch 'em. It's the handling that will give you the defects over time. The boards give more protection during whatever handling the comics endure. process. If the comics are handled quite a bit ... definitely go with the boards.

 

 

100% agree with this - if you are not planning on rereading them or just going to let them sit in a closet for years - then no bags would be ok

 

 

but if you are constantly looking to fill peoples run's, take them to shows, show them to friends, doing something with them on a weekly basis - inventory, sort, etc - use bags and boards

[Reno McCoy]

I bag and board with mylite 2s and acid free boards from E. Gerber. That means every book, even the ones I bought just yesterday at my LCS. Is it "worth" the extra money? Perhaps not when it comes to reselling them down the road. But I don't care about that. I love the way they look in mylar. I love looking through my books and pulling out a cover I remember loving but had forgot in the months since I pulled it out to look at it.

 

So for me, it's all about aesthetics when it comes to my collection.

 

For my "valuable" books, I put those in mylar/board with a top loader.