Info on Storing Graded Comics Upright 0

[J McKim]

Hello, long-time lurker, first time poster!  I have been collecting key graded comics for close to two years now.  I keep them in a constant acceptable temperature/humidity settings (most all are in CGC-approved HotFlips boxes upright).  I definitely understand how unacceptable ranges of temp/humdity could damage them.  It wasn't until surfing around on here, I encountered recommendations to store with the spine/staples down.  Some individuals said I guess the pressure/gravity could pull the staples out over time.  I'm curious if anyone actually has verified evidence of this?  Sorry if it's been answered elsewhere (I couldn't find anything exactly).  I don't really understand how storing upright could damage books, when most would've been upright for decades anyway (given they're older issues in a bag/board situation), and also in CGC inner wells the books are held pretty tightly in there (I guess mine are all the newer style CGC cases).  Any thoughts on this?  Thank you for your time!

Edited July 16, 2020 by J McKim
misspelling

[marvelmaniac]

Welcome To The Boards!!!

I do not have CGC graded books but found two answers that contradict each other so...

I have found that on forums where folks just look and do not answer that once someone replies others follow,

Let the debate begin...

http://www.thecgccomicshop.com/comic-storage-advice/4590505570

 

Edited July 16, 2020 by marvelmaniac

[Ryan.]

The theory that storing them upright will allow for gravity to pull down on the staples and damage the book over time doesn't really pass the logical physics sniff test for me. Unless we are talking thousands of years. 

[Galen130]

I've never heard of this either...sounds far-fetched.  I don't worry about my slabbed books, but I have storage books full of raws that are in a mylite bag with a backing board...and these boxes go back decades.  I've never seen anything like that and all my books are stored vertically.  Kinda interested in where this all got started. 

Edited July 16, 2020 by Galen130

[newshane]

The only thing I've heard is anecdotal evidence from very experienced and well-regarded boardie. 

I wrote a huge article on all of this several years ago (may already be linked). The CGC recommends storing them upright so......

Either way is fine. Some people would rather be safe than sorry. 

The only time I think it might matter is in the case of books with severe overhang.

[newshane]

For clarity, that "anecdotal evidence" from the boardie is in favor of spine down. 

 

[Galen130]

Interesting.  Well, all my slabs are stored upright...and in a cool, low humidity storage area.  Good thing I've only been grading comics about three years. 

[J McKim]

Thank you guys for the input!  I think I'll just take my chances with the books being upright.  I don't really want to spend more money figuring out how to store them sideways at this point.  I don't plan on worrying about the effect of upright storage in thousands of years anyway

 

 

[Ryan.]

4 hours ago, newshane said:

The only thing I've heard is anecdotal evidence from very experienced and well-regarded boardie. 

I wrote a huge article on all of this several years ago (may already be linked). The CGC recommends storing them upright so......

Either way is fine. Some people would rather be safe than sorry. 

The only time I think it might matter is in the case of books with severe overhang.

Where can I find this article. 

[newshane]

38 minutes ago, Ryan. said:

Where can I find this article. 

Hi friend! 

You can find everything by browsing the thread below: 

STORAGE

Edit: make sure to scroll up. I think I broke things down in three or four different posts. It's kind of like a metastudy. 

Edited July 17, 2020 by newshane

[Ryan.]

52 minutes ago, newshane said:

Hi friend! 

You can find everything by browsing the thread below: 

STORAGE

Edit: make sure to scroll up. I think I broke things down in three or four different posts. It's kind of like a metastudy. 

Good read! Thanks for the research. For the record I store my slabs in these:

 

[newshane]

21 minutes ago, Ryan. said:

Good read! Thanks for the research. For the record I store my slabs in these:

 

That's what I've moved to as well! 

I love them! 

[Ryan.]

Did we just become best friends? 

[J McKim]

Another question for you experts -- I keep my comics in a cooled room in a finished basement, right now I'm averaging 65-70 degrees F, and the relative humidity is 50-55.  Does that sound safe to you (I thought it was), or should I invest in a dehumidifier to bring down the humidity a little bit?  I'm asking because optimal RH seems to vary a great deal per some experts (some even say as low at 30 to 35%)?  Thanks for your help!  

[William-James88]

16 minutes ago, J McKim said:

Another question for you experts -- I keep my comics in a cooled room in a finished basement, right now I'm averaging 65-70 degrees F, and the relative humidity is 50-55.  Does that sound safe to you (I thought it was), or should I invest in a dehumidifier to bring down the humidity a little bit?  I'm asking because optimal RH seems to vary a great deal per some experts (some even say as low at 30 to 35%)?  Thanks for your help!  

For graded comics, yeah it's safe. Basically if you feel fine in that room, then your comics would too.

 

Speaking of graded comics upright, it kind of defeats the really cool stacking ability CGC does with their slabs in how they interlock together.

[J McKim]

10 minutes ago, William-James88 said:

For graded comics, yeah it's safe. Basically if you feel fine in that room, then your comics would too.

 

Speaking of graded comics upright, it kind of defeats the really cool stacking ability CGC does with their slabs in how they interlock together.

That's a good point.  They do stack nicely with the new design...

[joeypost]

They still interlock if stored spine down. 

The only reason I mentioned storing books spine down is based off of the many books I get in to CPR. I see many (not all) with very slight to moderate indentations from the inner well as the weight of the comic pushes it against the bottom edge of the well. I see this more in the thicker cases where the comic may have more wiggle room and are not held as tightly by the inner well. I couldn't find storage for my slabs as most cabinets aren't as deep as a slab stored horizontally, so I had custom cabinets made for my books. The bonus to storing the books this way is I can easily read the top label and figure out the location of a book, even if I don't store them numerically by issue number.

In the end everyone needs to do what's good for them. 

[rumrunner71]

On 7/16/2020 at 9:18 PM, newshane said:

That's what I've moved to as well! 

I love them! 

Noob question, but what do you find those cases? I've never seen them before.

[L.E. Gill]

Those are BCW plastic cases- they have short boxes for both graded and ungraded comics as well as long boxes for ungraded comics. I really like them for eliminating the cardboard. I can get about 25 new CGC cases in a graded box, more of the older style. Amount of raw comics will depend on your backing board thickness. They stack well, are easy to move, and I like that you can slide a trading card size label in on the sides. There's a slight learning curve on putting them together but be patient and you'll have no issues. You can get them at various online retailers. I've bought them from Amazon.

[Galen130]

5 minutes ago, L.E. Gill said:

Those are BCW plastic cases- they have short boxes for both graded and ungraded comics as well as long boxes for ungraded comics. I really like them for eliminating the cardboard. I can get about 25 new CGC cases in a graded box, more of the older style. Amount of raw comics will depend on your backing board thickness. They stack well, are easy to move, and I like that you can slide a trading card size label in on the sides. There's a slight learning curve on putting them together but be patient and you'll have no issues. You can get them at various online retailers. I've bought them from Amazon.

Those boxes are pretty nice, but since I rotate/sell stock regularly, it didn't make sense to spend the money.  I use BCW's cardboard boxes, which I can safely stack up to 3, fully loaded, with no problems.  They are upright, of course.