That advice from a random guy at a con about bagging my comics turned out to be true

Back in 2018 at a small show in Portland, some older collector told me to stop using those standard bags and boards for my key issues. He said the plastic was too tight and would bend the corners over time. I ignored him for about 3 years until I pulled out my copy of Amazing Spider-Man #300 to sell it. The top corner was totally curled inward, dropped the grade from a 9.4 to an 8.0 maybe. He was right about using the larger Silver Age bags even for modern books... anyone else have a storage tip that saved their collection from damage?

2 comments

2 Comments

schmidt.willow3d ago

Heard similar advice from a guy at a flea market years ago about not stacking heavy books on top of each other. He said the weight can press the spines flat over time and make them look worn. I laughed it off until I moved my long boxes and noticed my bottom row of comics had this weird curve to them all. Now I always stand them upright with dividers every few inches so nothing gets squished. That simple change has kept my books looking crisp way longer than before.

wood.noah3d ago

Same thing happened to me with a stack of old paperbacks. Had them piled up for YEARS and the ones on the bottom got this permanent curl at the bottom of the spine. Switched to standing everything vertically with those cheap plastic dividers from the office supply store. Also started putting a silica gel pack in each box to keep moisture from making the paper wavy. Been doing it for about three years now and the difference is night and day, especially with my older issues.