Is pressing really worth the time and money?

[towards2112]

So, I've never had a book pressed by anyone other than CCS, and I've heard some negative things about their services, but It really hasn't bothered me too much until recently. I've really started to wonder if books (especially moderns) benefit at all from pressing. Yes, gold, silver, bronze books that are printed on the old paper can present better with a press, but even then, most of the condition issues with those books are color breaks or missing pieces, so is pressing worth the time or money? I'm finding this hard to answer because I think regardless of the pressing results, you're still at the mercy of the graders and their opinion. So does this make pressing irrelevant?

 

Just a question rattling around my head at 4am.

 

Pressing is not magic. It is a process that will remove some bends, indentations and non-color breaking creases. It does not fill in pieces. It does not put color where color has been lost. It will not add gloss. It will not turn a piece of bull***t into a piece of bullion.

 

It will not make you more attractive to the opposite sex. It will not build neuroreceptors to make you smarter. It will not teach you how to grade. It will not get you a subscription to GPA. It will not replace decades of grading comics. It will not simulate the smell of hundreds of pounds of pulp paper. It was never "Still only 25 cents!" It can't fit on a spinner rack. It is the application of heat and moisture to an item that inexplicably has the ability to make grown men feel 12 years old again.

 

In the running for best post I've seen this year.

 

That's just Sean, he has a whole box of these witicisims under the desk.

Brings them out when he feels it's necessary. Lawyers are like that.

[Chip Cataldo]

I just think it's sad that so many people are so obsessed with money that they feel the need to press every book they can lay their hands on.

Some people need money. We can't all be well-off enough to pay all the bills, take care of the family and still drop $5k every week at Heritage.

 

Why would someone drop $5k/week on comics if he/she is struggling to fulfill his/hers financial obligations? I don't see anything wrong with getting a regular paying job.

I don't think you read my post correctly.

[dupont2005]

If it wasn't worth it people wouldn't do it

[prez]

I just think it's sad that so many people are so obsessed with money that they feel the need to press every book they can lay their hands on.

Some people need money. We can't all be well-off enough to pay all the bills, take care of the family and still drop $5k every week at Heritage.

 

Why would someone drop $5k/week on comics if he/she is struggling to fulfill his/hers financial obligations? I don't see anything wrong with getting a regular paying job.

I don't think you read my post correctly.

I was referring to those "some people" as well....

[VintageComics]

I just think it's sad that so many people are so obsessed with money that they feel the need to press every book they can lay their hands on.

Some people need money. We can't all be well-off enough to pay all the bills, take care of the family and still drop $5k every week at Heritage.

 

Why would someone drop $5k/week on comics if he/she is struggling to fulfill his/hers financial obligations? I don't see anything wrong with getting a regular paying job.

I don't think you read my post correctly.

 

I did. You're lazy, you kick puppies and you want it all and want it now.

 

 

[VintageComics]

So, I've never had a book pressed by anyone other than CCS, and I've heard some negative things about their services, but It really hasn't bothered me too much until recently. I've really started to wonder if books (especially moderns) benefit at all from pressing. Yes, gold, silver, bronze books that are printed on the old paper can present better with a press, but even then, most of the condition issues with those books are color breaks or missing pieces, so is pressing worth the time or money? I'm finding this hard to answer because I think regardless of the pressing results, you're still at the mercy of the graders and their opinion. So does this make pressing irrelevant?

 

Just a question rattling around my head at 4am.

 

Pressing a book is not black and white and while it can improve the grade on good candidates but not all books are pressing candidates.

 

The chances of books getting damaged also increases for several reasons.

 

Books can and do get damaged during the pressing process in various ways (the book doesn't have to be brittle to get damaged, paper is delicate and very sensitive), damaged during handling with additional hands, damaged in transit because they are moving around the country, etc.

 

So yes, there is upside but it's not always for those that are conservative or risk adverse or those that want a virgin book.

 

Sometimes unpressed books fetch extremely strong numbers at auction and generally set GPA highs because the bidding pool is much larger - you have purists and pressers chasing a virgin book - some to collect and some to upgrade, so there is some value in not having a book pressed.

 

I'm going to paint it like it's 50/50 but there is always more risk involved in handling books than not handling them.

[VintageComics]

So, I've never had a book pressed by anyone other than CCS, and I've heard some negative things about their services, but It really hasn't bothered me too much until recently. I've really started to wonder if books (especially moderns) benefit at all from pressing. Yes, gold, silver, bronze books that are printed on the old paper can present better with a press, but even then, most of the condition issues with those books are color breaks or missing pieces, so is pressing worth the time or money? I'm finding this hard to answer because I think regardless of the pressing results, you're still at the mercy of the graders and their opinion. So does this make pressing irrelevant?

 

Just a question rattling around my head at 4am.

 

Pressing is not magic. It is a process that will remove some bends, indentations and non-color breaking creases. It does not fill in pieces. It does not put color where color has been lost. It will not add gloss. It will not turn a piece of bull***t into a piece of bullion.

 

It will not make you more attractive to the opposite sex. It will not build neuroreceptors to make you smarter. It will not teach you how to grade. It will not get you a subscription to GPA. It will not replace decades of grading comics. It will not simulate the smell of hundreds of pounds of pulp paper. It was never "Still only 25 cents!" It can't fit on a spinner rack. It is the application of heat and moisture to an item that inexplicably has the ability to make grown men feel 12 years old again.

 

Sean lost his calling. It's about the only time I'd ever call a successful lawyer a failure. If I was his parents I'd rip up his law degree and burn it and force him to be a stage comedian.

 

 

[jsilverjanet]

Would his stand up include memes ?

[MediumLover]

So, I've never had a book pressed by anyone other than CCS, and I've heard some negative things about their services, but It really hasn't bothered me too much until recently. I've really started to wonder if books (especially moderns) benefit at all from pressing. Yes, gold, silver, bronze books that are printed on the old paper can present better with a press, but even then, most of the condition issues with those books are color breaks or missing pieces, so is pressing worth the time or money? I'm finding this hard to answer because I think regardless of the pressing results, you're still at the mercy of the graders and their opinion. So does this make pressing irrelevant?

 

Just a question rattling around my head at 4am.

 

Pressing is not magic. It is a process that will remove some bends, indentations and non-color breaking creases. It does not fill in pieces. It does not put color where color has been lost. It will not add gloss. It will not turn a piece of bull***t into a piece of bullion.

 

It will not make you more attractive to the opposite sex. It will not build neuroreceptors to make you smarter. It will not teach you how to grade. It will not get you a subscription to GPA. It will not replace decades of grading comics. It will not simulate the smell of hundreds of pounds of pulp paper. It was never "Still only 25 cents!" It can't fit on a spinner rack. It is the application of heat and moisture to an item that inexplicably has the ability to make grown men feel 12 years old again.

 

In the running for best post I've seen this year.

 

That's just Sean, he has a whole box of these witicisims under the desk.

Brings them out when he feels it's necessary. Lawyers are like that.

 

Even so, that one was special.

[N/A]

It is the application of heat and moisture to an item that inexplicably has the ability to make grown men feel 12 years old again.

 

For the record...I was actually 15 and she was 16.

 

Late bloomer?

[VintageComics]

Would his stand up include memes ?

 

He'd pull a David Copperfield and make them appear out of thin air.

[Bomber-Bob]

So, I've never had a book pressed by anyone other than CCS, and I've heard some negative things about their services, but It really hasn't bothered me too much until recently. I've really started to wonder if books (especially moderns) benefit at all from pressing. Yes, gold, silver, bronze books that are printed on the old paper can present better with a press, but even then, most of the condition issues with those books are color breaks or missing pieces, so is pressing worth the time or money? I'm finding this hard to answer because I think regardless of the pressing results, you're still at the mercy of the graders and their opinion. So does this make pressing irrelevant?

 

Just a question rattling around my head at 4am.

 

Pressing is not magic. It is a process that will remove some bends, indentations and non-color breaking creases. It does not fill in pieces. It does not put color where color has been lost. It will not add gloss. It will not turn a piece of bull***t into a piece of bullion.

 

It will not make you more attractive to the opposite sex. It will not build neuroreceptors to make you smarter. It will not teach you how to grade. It will not get you a subscription to GPA. It will not replace decades of grading comics. It will not simulate the smell of hundreds of pounds of pulp paper. It was never "Still only 25 cents!" It can't fit on a spinner rack. It is the application of heat and moisture to an item that inexplicably has the ability to make grown men feel 12 years old again.

 

In the running for best post I've seen this year.

 

+1 I have to admit, this was a good post(Fingh's) !

[Bomber-Bob]

Regarding Moderns, especially new off the rack stuff, you should be able to pick out a 9.8 copy

as it stands raw. Getting a Modern book pressed 'just to be sure' is a waste of money.

[Chip Cataldo]

I did. You're lazy, you kick puppies and you want it all and want it now.

You only know I'm lazy because I told you so.

[Bomber-Bob]

Pressing is not magic. It is a process that will remove some bends, indentations and non-color breaking creases. It does not fill in pieces. It does not put color where color has been lost. It will not add gloss. It will not turn a piece of bull***t into a piece of bullion.

 

It will not make you more attractive to the opposite sex. It will not build neuroreceptors to make you smarter. It will not teach you how to grade. It will not get you a subscription to GPA. It will not replace decades of grading comics. It will not simulate the smell of hundreds of pounds of pulp paper. It was never "Still only 25 cents!" It can't fit on a spinner rack. It is the application of heat and moisture to an item that inexplicably has the ability to make grown men feel 12 years old again.

 

This is post is so good and so witty that the actual content may be dismissed. Everyone seems to think every book 'needs' to be pressed, maximize value, etc. When often, it doesn't matter. I remember being the next in line, behind Sean Fingh, to see Matt Nelson at a Chicago con.This was at a time when Matt was the only game in town. For a couple dollars per book Matt would advise you on a book's potential. Sean had a stack of Bronze books, I had a small stack of Silver, and Matt went through every book, explaining which books were good candidates and why. I think Sean, and I, learned a lot from these sessions. Matt did not simply take every book given. The game is different today where everyone presses everything, just in case. Vintage (Roy) makes some good points about incurring damage via a press. The more the book is handled, the more risk to damage.

[Logan510]

I think the bottom line for the OP is this: if you know what you're looking for, pressing can be worth the time and money

[Gunnz]

I think the bottom line for the OP is this: if you know what you're looking for, pressing can be worth the time and money

 

! 3 pages and this is the answer i like best. but my question was meant as a general question rather than a personal practice. like, is storing books upright or flat better. same thing.

[RockMyAmadeus]

I collect mostly GA, a tiny amount of SA, and even tinier amounts of BA, CA, and moderns.

 

I prefer unpressed books and will pay more for a book if I don't think it's been pressed. Of course, I can't always tell.

 

Pressing apparently causes cover shrinkage in some cases. Some of the worst examples have been SA Marvels, but I've witnessed it with GA as well.

 

This thread is worth a read in its entirety:

http://boards.collectors-society.com/ubbthreads.php?ubb=showflat&Number=7014308&fpart=1

 

One theory is that CCS increased temperature and/or humidity at some point in order to reduce cycle time in their process and that those changes exacerbated the cover shrinkage issue.

 

The "shrinkage" issue is mostly a myth, claimed by people who don't really understand the pressing process. Yes, I know, many respected people disagree with me, but the reality is that most of the "page stickouts" that people claim is the result of "shrinkage" isn't due to that at all. (For the purists: yes, there is *some* effect, but it is mostly negligible, and depends on the book, and how much water was used. It certainly doesn't account for the obvious differences that have been discussed.)

 

Even MstrCntrPrgrm (hope I'm getting his name right?) said that the shrinkage results he got from full submersion of disassembled covers were not significant.

 

Since the vast majority of "regular" pressing does not include disassembly and/or full submersion in water, then "shrinkage" isn't what is happening.

 

So what IS happening...?

 

Staples.

 

There is a tremendous amount of direct pressure applied to a book, even at the lowest pressure settings. Staples...especially offset staples...ESPECIALLY offset staples...are the highpoints of almost every cover, and thus get the direct weight of the pressure on them the most. If the staple is offset, not only is it going to be pressed DOWN into the paper beneath it...it is also going to be pressed OUT, and that is why you see the 1/16"-1/8" "extra" paper in "before and after" examples.

 

One must be INCREDIBLY gentle and careful around the staple areas, because this is obviously the place where most of the stress occurs. If you get the paper under or around the staple too moist...basic physics takes over, and you can end up moving the staple (and the interior paper with it.) In severe cases, you can actually completely tear the paper under the staple ("pop the staple"), and that is certainly true to an extent at the peripheral of the staple holes. Sometimes, depending on the orientation of the staples, this can result in the paper being pushed into the spine (we're talking fractions of millimeters, here), but usually it results in the opposite direction.

 

Even well centered staples can get "sunk" into the cover as the result of pressure. It's just basic physics in action. You must, must, must be extremely gentle with this process, or you damage the books.

 

There's no getting around it, either, without science-fiction-y type setups to avoid pressure on the staples.

 

This is, by the way, also an excellent way to tell if a book has ever been pressed. If the staples are offset, and they are level with the surrounding paper, with a small "puddle" of paper at the attachment point...it's probably been pressed.

[RockMyAmadeus]

To answer the question posed: as Buzzetta said, it depends on the book.

 

Almost every book can be improved by pressing. Almost every one, in some way or another. The question is..is it enough of an improvement to affect the numerical grade, which, as we all know, is really a range?

 

That's a question all (good) pressers must contend with.

[oakman29]

Shrinkage? I WAS IN THE POOL!