Comic Book Supplies, Necessities of the Serious Collector

If you want to keep your comic book collection in tiptop shape, comic book supplies will become part of your collecting life. As soon as a magazine is printed there are natural environmental forces going to work to try and destroy the ink and the paper. You have put in a lot of time, effort and enjoyment in acquiring all your comics. You don't want them to turn back to the dust and elements from which they came do you?

Elements such as humidity, temperature, pollutants, human skin oils and even the
chemicals of the printed materials themselves, will start to deteriorate and discolor your
comic books from day one. Tools that have been developed over the years to help us
combat these natural forces are de-acidification paper, polymer type storage bags, stiff
backing material, storage boxes and desiccants (dehumidification materials). Not only
will these comic book supplies protect your comics for your own enjoyment, they will
add to reinforce the future value of each comic book.

Most all of these supplies can typically be located down at your local comic book shop.
But as I have discovered lately, there can be a world of difference in preservation abilities
depending on what materials are used in the manufacture of comic book supplies. Quite
typically what you may find downtown will be of sufficient protective quality to protect
your comics for quite a while. Although, polybags, to put your comics into, are quite
common and fairly cheap, Mylar bags are definitely the way to go. They will protect for
100 years (that may be a little overboard) as opposed to 2 or 3 years for poly.

There has been a lot of elaborate science, particularly chemistry, which has gone into
preservation material manufacturing the last several years. MicroChamber material has
been developed that will increase preservation from de-acidification and environmental
breakdown for a vastly superior time period as opposed to typical materials available
today. Beware though, comic book supplies manufactured with this new material can
become quite costly. But if you have some serious collector's items, which you feel are
worth a significant amount of cash, isn't the investment worth it? It is also no secret that
CGC uses these materials in every comic book they grade.

I have created a page at my comic book site, which incorporates links to some rather
technical scientific articles on preservation and using MicroChamber materials. You can
read an in-depth discussion at http://www.comic-book-collection-made-easy.com/comic-book-supplies.html . Be forewarned though, You may need a moderate understanding of
chemistry and physics to completely follow some of the discussions. But the articles will
open your eyes to what is available in the comic book industry for preservation supplies
these days.

Now if you have a rather rare back issue that may well have a high dollar value, here is a
process worth considering. De-acidification products are usually used to neutralize acids
in the paper prior to storage of most paper products of a pulp nature. This is not to be
taken lightly, as it is considered by most to be an extensive form of restoration. The
current understanding of the process is that the staples are removed and the sheets are
submerged, film developer style, in a bath of de-acidification material. Then the entire
book is rebuilt with new staples. This process can cost around $50 per comic book, when
done by a professional, but will restore and increase the life expectancy of your comic
book by many years. This process, in my opinion, should only be considered for already
deteriorated comics that may have a considerable future worth if restored.

One final item to consider, especially if you live in a high humidity area is the use of
descants within your storage boxes. A desiccant is a chemical sieve for water, and is
available for industry use in small packets or in buckets. For our purposes an 8 oz can
(that looks like you'd keep a grasshopper in) can be simply put inside the box to absorb
moisture and indicates when it is full by changing from crystal colored to pink. These
same cans can then be reused by baking them for 3-4 hours in an oven at about 350 F.
Each canister can cost around $9-$10 from one supplier called GAYLORDMART. 1
canister per short box and 2 per long box should be sufficient. Another consideration is
the little packets typically found in a box of shoes. These are even more inexpensive, but
would require further research to insure no harm would come to each comic book.

So as you build your valuable comic book collection, you will want to put some serious
consideration into the comic book supplies that you will need. Materials and supplier
source will become important variables in your overall decisions. I will have more
interesting topics and sources from time to time at my site, so come on over and visit.
You may even want to bookmark it.

Dave Gieber, a former rocket engineer, has decided to take up residency on the Internet.

Comic Book Collector Questions

Many of us collected comic books as kids. As adults, we think back to a simpler time when our biggest worry was the release of the latest edition of our favorite comic. At the time, we collected comics simply because we loved them.

As we grew up, however, our interests changed. We became adults and too grown up for comic books. We might still have a stack of old comics in the attic, though, or we may have sold them at a yard sale years ago.

Some adults, though, remained proud of their cartoon book collections, and many turned that collecting instinct to profit, buying, and selling comic books to supplement their income.

If you are new to collecting for value, you may have some questions and concerns. This article will address the questions most commonly asked by new cartoon book collectors.

How do I grade my comic books?

You have two choices when it comes time to grade one. You may send it to the Comics Guaranty Company for grading, or you can grade the comic yourself.

The CGC will charge a fee for grading, and then seal your comic in a plastic sleeve. A CGC rating is the only purely objective means of grading and guarantees to a potential buyer that your cartoon does have a certain official rating.

However, since the CGC grading costs money, it is not worthwhile to have every comic graded that way. You can learn to grade the books yourself and for lower dollar value ones, this is the way to go. Remember to be objective when grading your own comics, as you do not want to cheat a buyer inadvertently.

For those that are in less than perfect condition, you will need to look carefully at each bit of damage or wear to determine which grade the comic book should receive. Online guides or cartoon book collectors' magazines often have reference sheets to tell you the specifics of each grade.

It may be best to work with a more experienced collector initially, until you are more familiar with how the grading system works. He or she can show you examples of various comic grades.

How can I properly store my comic books to decrease wear and tear?

First, individually bag each one in Mylar. These storage bags are available from any good cartoon book store. You will also want to use comic book boards to prevent bending or creasing.

Purchase these individually or in bulk at your comic book store. Remember to change out your boards every few years to prevent the breakdown of the board, which can have a negative impact on your comic. Finally, you will need storage boxes.

Comic book storage boxes are available in long or short size. Long boxes are better value for the money, but if your comics must be stored in tight quarters, short boxes will give you more flexibility.

Remember to store your them in a climate controlled environment. Extremes of heat, cold, humidity, or dryness could have a negative impact on your comic books.

So which ones should I buy?

The answer to that question really depends on your personal interests. Did you have a favorite comic book character as a kid or do you have one now? Seek out early editions of that character's comics or read the latest on what he or she is doing now.

If you see your book collection mostly as an investment, then you will want to carefully research and attempt to understand the market before jumping in. Spend time on online auction sites, visit shops, and talk to other collectors.

Find out what is consistently hot, what is hot right now, and what the future trends expect to be. Focus on collecting first editions, full sets, and vintage "finds."

My comic book collection is huge! How can I possibly keep up with what I have?

A variety of tracking software is now available to monitor your comic book collection. Sme programs are free; others charge a small fee. The complexity of the programs varies dramatically, from simple tracking forms to the ability to generate multiple reports based on many different criteria.

Alternately, you can create your own database or spreadsheet file using software that you already own. Any office software can track a comic book collection. Simply decide which information you want to include and set up a new worksheet.

What should I know before I sell my comic book collection?

Be sure that each comic in your collection is individually graded, either by yourself or friend, or professionally through the Comics Guaranty Company (CGC). Any especially rare or valuable comics should definitely be graded by the CGC prior to sale, as the official rating will often increase the price you can receive.

Once every comic is graded, check the average selling price for each comic. Decide whether to sell individually, in sets, or in bulk. Often you can receive a better price for low value comics by selling them in bulk or in a complete set, while particularly high-end comics may command the best price alone.