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Do any of you guys press moderns?

Started by LarrysComics,

507 posts in this topic

Underground44

Underground44

Posted
Posted
This whole thread makes me wonder how many WD #1s or New Mutants 98's were real 9.8s or 9.9s without being pressed since there's no way to tell once the book's been slabbed. Since CGC doesn't recognize it as altering / restoring, I'm not gonna argue against the benefit of turning a 9.4 book into a 9.8 for maximum profit, though it technically is a restoration

 

A 9.8 is a 9.8 as long as the magic number is on the case that's all that matters to most people.

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accessndx

accessndx

Posted
Posted

So I had no idea this thread existed. I've seen my share of pressing threads and like Larry have used both professionals and have dabbled myself to gain a better understanding of both the art and science that pressing is.

 

Here's some stuff that I didn't see included in the discussion so far:

 

1) An emphasis on cleaning the covers of comics prior to pressing.

 

This is something that I didn't initially do and I learned through trial and error that you'll just end up pressing dirt, grime and other nonsense right into the cover that'll never come out. Now I have a better understanding of the tools involved in cleaning the covers. We can discuss that in a bit.

 

2) An emphasis on cleaning the press surfaces.

 

Yet another thing I had no idea about when I started dabbling. There were times where I'd miss a single hair on the cover and after pressing it'd look like a snake had slithered all over the cover. Of course a press again can rectify that sort of thing. I saw some 'divits' and 'pebbling' on Larry's press jobs that he acknowledged.....

These things happen when the surfaces aren't clean or even. Compressed air cans, paint brushes, dry sponges work well to clean those sorts of things.

 

3) I see folks using silicone release paper. It appears to be a standard, but there's MUCH better stuff out there that's worth the investment. For example: TEFLON release paper. I can drop some links, but a quick google for that will result in tons of hits.

 

4) I saw that post about water baths and moisturization. I truthfully have never used that sort of setup myself but it doesn't appear to be necessary at least with the moderns.

 

5) I see you're pressing books for 140 seconds on each side. Truthfully when I started folks encouraged me to press for ALOT longer. I had individuals tell me "I leave the book in the press for 10 to 30 minutes without an issue".

I took their word at face value and for the most-part I find that the longer duration presses do not have any negative impact on the comic. It's fairly difficult to damage a modern comic at the temperatures previously cited with pressing times even up to an hour. That's just been my experience, not saying it's gospel. On the other hand, there have been books that have strange ink and paper that get fried in a few minutes...so you've gotta know what's what before sandwiching and heating.

 

6) I see you've used some sort of internal support paper or board. I learned that trick after crushing the covers into the staples and vice versa. I tried using comic backing boards, but now I always insert one or more REGULAR COPY PAPER leafs in between the front cover and the first page, as well as the back cover and the last page. The copy paper is flush with the inside and lays above the staples. It goes A LONG WAY to prevent staple impaction and it does not have an adverse affect on the comic. IF a line develops or any mark develops for whatever reason with whatever insert or support I place, a quick REPRESS without it fixes the problem. I've had to do this sometimes just to work out some tough wrinkle or crease. So the spine lines are not really a big deal, they come with the territory and are just as easy to knock out after the fact.

 

7) Cold pressing: I don't leave my comics in the press to cool down. I take them right out and put them under another press that's cool. I have never seen any deleterious impact from doing this. I don't see shrinking, curling, whatever. Not saying this doesn't happen, but I haven't seen an issue with going from hot to cold.

 

I'm sure I've got more to spout, but onto cleaning for now:

 

In the last coupla months I got clued into some neat cleaning tools that every presser should have access to:

 

1) Absorene

 

This stuff cleans the spoon outta your covers. Like Silly putty that has a hunger for dirt.

http://www.absorene.com/absorenecleaners.html

Youtube video showing the use of it:

 

2) Document cleaning pad

http://www.amazon.com/Lineco-Document-Cleaning-Pad/dp/B002E4Z302/ref=sr_1_1/191-5358083-2938422?ie=UTF8&qid=1415303740&sr=8-1&keywords=document+cleaning+pad

Here's a youtube video showing the use of it:

 

3) Smoke sponge

http://www.ebay.com/itm/180687705935?_trksid=p2060778.m1438.l2649&ssPageName=STRK%3AMEBIDX%3AIT

 

All that stuff will help you clean the nonsense off your comic covers. I'm sure there are other methods, but those are some foundational dry cleaning tools.

 

Oh, one other thing. That absorene stuff may leave some residue. As per another presser on the boards here this stuff gets that residue off:

 

Webril Handi-pads:

http://www.ebay.com/itm/301353434887?_trksid=p2060778.m1438.l2649&ssPageName=STRK%3AMEBIDX%3AIT

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accessndx

accessndx

Posted
Posted

Larry: Thanks for creating this trial and error, open and free atmosphere for pressing info.

 

BTW: I have to say I have nothing but the utmost respect for all the professional pressers out there like Joey.

I still heavily rely upon him and individuals like him to help me handle the really tough stuff.

I'm not even a padawan noobie at pressing, but I feel like I have a modicum of knowledge that may grow given a number of years.

I've had trials and errors, I've fixed some and fuct some up badly.

 

Practice, practice, practice, practice and more practice is the recipe for success.

 

All that being equal, there's a reason that the folks with the reputation have said reputation....they're really good at what they do. That's not to discourage anyone from attempting any of the techniques found here or elsewhere...it's just to give credit where credit is due.

 

I completely understand also their need to keep their proprietary secrets just that: a secret. Nobody calls up the Col. and asks him for the skinny on Fried Chicken.

 

I'd have no compunction still sending the vast majority of pressing work to the professionals. It is fun however to fool around with the tools of the trade and transform some moderns or some beater comics into something a bit more visually appealing.

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snowman28

snowman28

Posted
Posted

 

So I had no idea this thread existed. I've seen my share of pressing threads and like Larry have used both professionals and have dabbled myself to gain a better understanding of both the art and science that pressing is.

 

Here's some stuff that I didn't see included in the discussion so far:

 

1) An emphasis on cleaning the covers of comics prior to pressing.

 

This is something that I didn't initially do and I learned through trial and error that you'll just end up pressing dirt, grime and other nonsense right into the cover that'll never come out. Now I have a better understanding of the tools involved in cleaning the covers. We can discuss that in a bit.

 

2) An emphasis on cleaning the press surfaces.

 

Yet another thing I had no idea about when I started dabbling. There were times where I'd miss a single hair on the cover and after pressing it'd look like a snake had slithered all over the cover. Of course a press again can rectify that sort of thing. I saw some 'divits' and 'pebbling' on Larry's press jobs that he acknowledged.....

These things happen when the surfaces aren't clean or even. Compressed air cans, paint brushes, dry sponges work well to clean those sorts of things.

 

3) I see folks using silicone release paper. It appears to be a standard, but there's MUCH better stuff out there that's worth the investment. For example: TEFLON release paper. I can drop some links, but a quick google for that will result in tons of hits.

 

4) I saw that post about water baths and moisturization. I truthfully have never used that sort of setup myself but it doesn't appear to be necessary at least with the moderns.

 

5) I see you're pressing books for 140 seconds on each side. Truthfully when I started folks encouraged me to press for ALOT longer. I had individuals tell me "I leave the book in the press for 10 to 30 minutes without an issue".

I took their word at face value and for the most-part I find that the longer duration presses do not have any negative impact on the comic. It's fairly difficult to damage a modern comic at the temperatures previously cited with pressing times even up to an hour. That's just been my experience, not saying it's gospel. On the other hand, there have been books that have strange ink and paper that get fried in a few minutes...so you've gotta know what's what before sandwiching and heating.

 

6) I see you've used some sort of internal support paper or board. I learned that trick after crushing the covers into the staples and vice versa. I tried using comic backing boards, but now I always insert one or more REGULAR COPY PAPER leafs in between the front cover and the first page, as well as the back cover and the last page. The copy paper is flush with the inside and lays above the staples. It goes A LONG WAY to prevent staple impaction and it does not have an adverse affect on the comic. IF a line develops or any mark develops for whatever reason with whatever insert or support I place, a quick REPRESS without it fixes the problem. I've had to do this sometimes just to work out some tough wrinkle or crease. So the spine lines are not really a big deal, they come with the territory and are just as easy to knock out after the fact.

 

7) Cold pressing: I don't leave my comics in the press to cool down. I take them right out and put them under another press that's cool. I have never seen any deleterious impact from doing this. I don't see shrinking, curling, whatever. Not saying this doesn't happen, but I haven't seen an issue with going from hot to cold.

 

I'm sure I've got more to spout, but onto cleaning for now:

 

In the last coupla months I got clued into some neat cleaning tools that every presser should have access to:

 

1) Absorene

 

This stuff cleans the spoon outta your covers. Like Silly putty that has a hunger for dirt.

http://www.absorene.com/absorenecleaners.html

Youtube video showing the use of it:

 

2) Document cleaning pad

http://www.amazon.com/Lineco-Document-Cleaning-Pad/dp/B002E4Z302/ref=sr_1_1/191-5358083-2938422?ie=UTF8&qid=1415303740&sr=8-1&keywords=document+cleaning+pad

Here's a youtube video showing the use of it:

 

3) Smoke sponge

http://www.ebay.com/itm/180687705935?_trksid=p2060778.m1438.l2649&ssPageName=STRK%3AMEBIDX%3AIT

 

All that stuff will help you clean the nonsense off your comic covers. I'm sure there are other methods, but those are some foundational dry cleaning tools.

 

Oh, one other thing. That absorene stuff may leave some residue. As per another presser on the boards here this stuff gets that residue off:

 

Webril Handi-pads:

http://www.ebay.com/itm/301353434887?_trksid=p2060778.m1438.l2649&ssPageName=STRK%3AMEBIDX%3AIT

 

 

Great info, thank you accessndx

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CBT

CBT

Posted
Posted
I press all the moderns I sub. Better safe than sorry! Only 1 9.6 so far and I'm not sure why....

 

i know i gave a funny reply about saving pride and resubbing it when you posted that originally. But in all seriousness, I would assume if the exterior is 9.8 worthy, it will be something interior.

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Gunnz

Gunnz

Posted
Posted
I press all the moderns I sub. Better safe than sorry! Only 1 9.6 so far and I'm not sure why....

 

i know i gave a funny reply about saving pride and resubbing it when you posted that originally. But in all seriousness, I would assume if the exterior is 9.8 worthy, it will be something interior.

 

It would be great if we had FREE graders notes to explain the grades. I have a 9.6 I pressed twice. Still 9.6. No clue why. Let's reopen that other thread and rag about graders notes again. I like that one.

 

Is there a tutorial on pressing? I'd like to give it a try.

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LarrysComics

LarrysComics

Posted
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Posted
Read all 49 pages of this thread, made work go by so much faster. Thanks to all that posted. Some very informative insights/comments from both sides of the debate about pressing.

 

I have made some progress.

Still in the take a 9,4 modern to a 9.8 range. ( beyond that ,I'll hire a pro )

I can take a new book with spine tics & press it to a 9.8. easily

 

No color breaks, it's easy.Simple really. ( maybe that's why panties get bunched )

 

That's all I need to accomplish for my business at this point.

 

You guys still want a video?

 

right?

 

 

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accessndx

accessndx

Posted
Posted

Something else I forgot to say previously....and this might really help Larry's experiments:

 

For presses with rubber bases that only heat from the top, I use a hard wooden board over the rubber so there's more uniform compression from top to bottom.

Pressing with the comic on top of the rubber base will still work, but you'll have to use more heat for a longer duration of time.

 

The boards I'm using are the ones I received when buying original artwork. Jjeanus is the guy that always packs art with this stuff and it's awesome. I'm sure others have seen what I'm taking about....

Instead of throwing that stuff away, it's great for pressing. One side is flat white, and the other side is brown. Pretty thin and really sturdy.

Makes a HUGE difference.

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thecopperagekids

thecopperagekids

Posted
Posted

 

What type of Press works best?

What type of modifications should be made?

What type of surface?

What type of release paper, if any?

In which cases should I use heat?

What temperature?

How long?

Should humidity be controlled?

What type of pressure?

 

 

My questions are endless,,

So are most collectors.

 

I'll drag it all into the light...

 

I use a dry mounting and laminating press. Jumbo 150

 

There are a few variations on them. Make sure you get one that has an on off switch.

 

Not really any modification but make sure the pad on the bottom is always fresh. I replace mine yearly.

 

You should always press comics between two dry mounting press boards that can be gotten at michaels or other art supply stores.

 

In addition to the boards, you should also use baking parchment paper as well.

 

The main thing that most never talk about is the humidity factor.

 

There are two ways to do this.

 

First is more time consuming and take a lot more effort but is safer if you are just leaning how to do this. Second is for once you have a good understanding of moisture application.

 

First being a humidity bath. Which consists of a large plastic tub with low sides.. The effed you want to create inside it would be liken to an island with a moat around it by taking a second smaller bin. On top of this second bin that is upside down in the middle you would place a cooking rack/drying rack on top of it, can be found in any store in the kitchen ware area. To create the bath, boil some water 6 cups or so. Place comic on the rack on the middle. Some like to open the book, some dont. I believe opening moderns is potential to cause more problems, we are just fixing non color breaking creases here. (Now dont pour the water yet until you are getting your press ready) But you pour the water in the bottom of the bin creating a nice hot moat around the center upside down bin. Cover the main bin with something like a large flat box that hasnt been made yet and make sure you slide it over to the side some to let steam escape. Time in bin is no more than a couple minutes.

 

Second moisture application that I prefer using is finding a very good hand held clothing steamer to apply moisture. The trick with these is that many of them have issues with water spritzing from the steam nozzel... DO NOT use a steamer like this. The one I have is an older one and I dont think they make it anymore but it's a My Little Steamer from Ingenious Designs. I use it to lightly apply moisture to the areas that are needed... with moderns this is mostly the spine area or areas of the book they have have a slight surface dent or something of that nature that a press can fix.

 

Something everyone should know about moderns when it comes to pressing. You have got to be careful with how long and how hot they get. The glossy pages in moderns are much more sensitive to pressing than books with newsprint pages. You can ruin a book if you forget and leave it in the hot press. Because the ink will melt and literally fuse the pages together.. and now you have a tile and not a comic book. Kinda neat if you wanted to create a wall of comics because they will be rigid lol

 

I have my press set at around 185. I turn it on about 2 minutes before I know I will be putting the comic in there. Once I place the comic between the parchment paper and dry mount boards and close the press, I let it set with the heat on no more than 30 seconds topps. That is the mistake many make with moderns, they dont need a lot of heat. Turn it off and just let it sit till the press plates cool to room temperature.

 

The reason you don't remove a comic from a hot press right away after say 15 minutes is basic science. At higher temperatures, molecules are spaced out and moving, and when they cool they shrink back into place. The shrinking causes the paper to curl and it's a sure sign of an amateur press.

 

The biggest thing I can say is practice, practice, practice. Learn how comics react to your press. Learn how different comics react to each phase of pressing.

 

Once you get it down you will be able to do it no problem but I warn you, in time you will have this HUGE stack, or multiple stacks of comics to be pressed that you never get to lol.

 

 

Great stuff!

 

PM me your address.

I have a "thank you package" to send out for ALL honest contributors to this thread,

 

I'll gladly accept a "thank you package", kind sir ;)

 

http://boards.collectors-society.com/ubbthreads.php?ubb=showflat&Board=30&Number=8302899&Searchpage=1&Main=366368&Words=&topic=0&Search=true#Post8302899

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