Slabbing for preservation???

[Hobgoblin]

Great. Thanks OldGuy, that's some well appreciated advise.

[OldGuy]

Go for it. Send some books to CGC if you want to. If you don't mind spending the money and just want to get a "feel" for the "CGC thang" then more power to you. If all you want to do is offer protection to your books then there are more economical, and many will argue more effective, ways of doing it. Bottom line, do what makes you happy. That's what this hobby is about. If you're happy then you're doing "it" right and can't lose.

[skybolt]

Old Guy. Again, I'm new to this grading idea, even if it has been around for a while, but I've been out of the comics industry for a decade.

 

I thought I'd grade and slab some books now, while it's affordable to do so for the modern books. Then hold on to them. Lets say I wanted to sell them in 40 years, kept them in the same shape they are now (knock on wood), then wanted to slab them for resale, it might cost a helluva lot more wouldn't it?

 

I would say educating yourself in grading and the overall market is the best way to make a small buck in the future. If sending a couple of books to CGC will help you increase your knowledge in the comic book collecting and grading business, then go for. Remember, 30 years from now CGC or other grading companies or standards may not be around to help you justify selling your book at a premium price. Go back and read some of the threads posted on these boards over the past year and you will become more educated in the grading business.

[THE_BEYONDER]

As for the SCS, I'll say this as someone who has personally encountered it twice: it seems to be a phenomenon, at least in my experience, limited to the older well and case design. I could be wrong, but I haven't seen it affect books with the newer label.

Select a thumbnail from the left to zoom. [/b] Image #1 [/b] Image #2 Image hosting and Zoom Gallery by VillagePhotos.com

[The Brain]

it's tough to be a mylar bag and a nice board.

 

 

But what if I wanted to BE a Mylar really, really bad.. are you saying it is THAT tuff?

 

Or just that you cant be a Mylar... AND a nice board at the same time?

 

 

 

Ze-

 

Oh yeah, you and The Brain should get together and start a Forum Spell Check Task Force!

 

LOGAN HOW DARE YOU!!!!! THAT JOB IS FFB'S (AT LEAST AS IT APPLYS TO ME)

[Illiterati-migration]

[The Brain]

YOU ARE MAJORKHAOS YOU ARE BEYOND SPELLING

[Harvey Dude]

YES I have read the previous posts on micro chamber and SCS but I would still slab a select few of my low dollar high grade books. Trapped (1951 Harvey giveaway) is one of the cheap books I will slab for my collection. Great book at a cheap price but since a lot of copies surfaced in the early eighties, prices have been held down. With that said, I will not be reholdering them every seven years. For me the pros outweigh the cons. I like to display my books and the CGC shell may offer that extra layer of protection. Heritage recently sent me an email that they dropped one of my slabs with no damage to the book so it is getting reholdered. If the damage was enough to crack the slab, I shutter to think what would have happened if the book was just protected with Mylar and backing board. Also, slabbing is great for tracking purposes. I do hope that CGC redesigns the slab to mitigate SCS.

[divad]

No double-No No-No and No

 

BTW, No!

 

(although I have slabbed some of my lower grade keys precisely for that purpose)

[BradleyX2]

I'm going to try to sum up alot of the info here for you, Nightcrawler-

 

Slabbing for the purpose of preservation is fine. Just be aware of the potential problem of SCS (or SSS) "Shaken Comic/Slab Syndrome". SCS appears to be a problem mostly with slabs that have been shipped from place to place, buyer-to-buyer. If you plan on letting your comics sit in your closet for years, however, there's less reason to worry. There's always a chance, however, that your books will be sent to you directly from CGC, and already have slab damage. Fantasyfootballbono (Scott) seems to suffer from this problem more than anyone else.

 

The microchamber paper that CGC includes within the slab with your comic will lose it's effectiveness in approximatly seven years. It will *not* start to harm your comic after that period, it just won't be protecting it anymore.

 

Most people here feel that slabbing moderns isn't worth it unless they are "key" books (e.g. ASM #300, Uncanny #266, Power Pack #27) and/or they'll be graded 9.8 or more. Just remember to spend your money on whatever'll make *you* happy. For instance, I got graded and slabbed a copy of Fantastic Four #371. You can buy a copy unslabbed ("raw") from milehigh for $1, and although it was graded 9.8, I probably won't get offered more than $20 for it for years if I wanted to sell it. But it's my favorite "gimmick" cover from the 90's, and I think it just looks dang cool sitting in a slab:

 

[Forbush-Man]

Nightcrawler1978,

 

If I were you, I would buy 2mil mylites and high-quality backing boards (there are some which have charcoal centers) for the majority of books. If you have an extremely pricey book, and I mean VERY pricey, see if you can find an old Fortress.

 

If the majority of your books are from 1980 or later, the mylites & good quality backing boards will do just fine. Just MHO.

[Hobgoblin]

Nightcrawler1978,

 

If I were you, I would buy 2mil mylites and high-quality backing boards (there are some which have charcoal centers) for the majority of books. If you have an extremely pricey book, and I mean VERY pricey, see if you can find an old Fortress.

 

If the majority of your books are from 1980 or later, the mylites & good quality backing boards will do just fine. Just MHO.

 

Yeah, no Old Fortress is necessary for my collection, that's for sure. My entire collection isn't worth much more than a 1983 Ford Taurus, including my Silver Age Superman's.

[Norrin_Radd]

If you have an extremely pricey book, and I mean VERY pricey, see if you can find an old Fortress.

 

Fortress of Solitude

 

[comicwiz]

If you have an extremely pricey book, and I mean VERY pricey, see if you can find an old Fortress.

 

Fortress of Solitude

 

 

Anyone know where I can get a few of these in good shape (minimal scuffing/scratching) for a decent price?

[Hobgoblin]

If you have an extremely pricey book, and I mean VERY pricey, see if you can find an old Fortress.

 

Fortress of Solitude

 

 

IF I had anything that I thought needed to be in a case like that, I'd probably place it flat between two very large picture books about Ireland, and seal it away in a vault 20 feet underground.

[Forbush-Man]

Nightcrawler1978,

 

If I were you, I would buy 2mil mylites and high-quality backing boards (there are some which have charcoal centers) for the majority of books. If you have an extremely pricey book, and I mean VERY pricey, see if you can find an old Fortress.

 

If the majority of your books are from 1980 or later, the mylites & good quality backing boards will do just fine. Just MHO.

 

Yeah, no Old Fortress is necessary for my collection, that's for sure. My entire collection isn't worth much more than a 1983 Ford Taurus, including my Silver Age Superman's.

 

I didn't think so. Mylites & good backing boards will do just fine & dandy for you!

 

It's nice to see though that there is a degree of repsect for the good old "Fortress"!

 

It's still the ultimate form of preservation, IMHO! I too would like to find a few for some of my books.

[shrunkenhead]

Heritage has auctioned off lots of those fortresses from time to time....was tempted to bid, but passed myself.

[Forbush-Man]

What was the going price?

 

They are such good storage units! Like a Sumo !

[Silver Surfer]

I disagree with the "No" statement

 

1) If you are getting it slabbed and then not moving it around, "Shaken Slab Syndrome" which I believe to be overblown hysteria won't happen.

2) NO OTHER product will provide the kind of protection a slab does from bending, dropping, having your 8 year old pick it up, etc etc.

3) The "microchamber" paper thing is also overblown. OK, so in seven years you need to replace it. Big deal. I rebag comics. That's essentially the same thing.

 

I agree with Donut on this one and I would even go on to question if its really necessary to change the microchamber paper at all. Does the paper just stop working and remains inert after a certain period of time or will it begin to have a negative effect at some point? Other than that I would weight the cost of slabbing your BA books. Unless they are in ultra high grade condition, in most cases you can minimize the wait time, guess work and costs associated with sending in books to CGC, praying for a certain grades in return, by simply purchasing them on EBay. I have been looking at some Simonson Thor in 9.8 and I could probably buy them for $35 a pop but if I did it myself it would cost me almost double.