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raztaman420 Posts: 26
3/18/2017
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My comic shop owner told me that bags and boards should be replaced every five years or so, so that the acids don't affect the book and potentially discolor or deteriorate them. Is that true? I have a lot of books and it would be a huge chore, not to mention really pricey. Perhaps I should just go through them and pull the valuable ones...
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Biddle7819 Posts: 170
3/18/2017
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Hey, really depends on the quality of the bags and backing boards. Some look like they will last less than a year. Don't think you can go wrong with Mylar
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raztaman420 Posts: 26
3/18/2017
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I can't remember the brand name for the bags and boards, mostly bought in the early 90's, but they did say "acid free" and were made for preserving comics, of course. That's why I was wondering...why won't they be good for a longer time....like 30 years, for example.
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Defiant1 Posts: 720
3/19/2017
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raztaman420 wrote:
I can't remember the brand name for the bags and boards, mostly bought in the early 90's, but they did say "acid free" and were made for preserving comics, of course. That's why I was wondering...why won't they be good for a longer time....like 30 years, for example.
Everything is relative. I've seen B&W comics where the printing ink was acidic and yellowing the pages inside. Bags and board will not stop that. I've seen cloudy and yellowed mylites on comics I bagged with them in the early 80's.
Your retailer is right about changing bags and boards on most comics in 5 years if you are worried about some slight form of acidity. By "most", I mean that most comics were bagged in Polyethylene in the 70's and that transitioned to Polypropylene in the 80's & 90. Polypropylene is still the most common types of bags. Both of these materials start breaking down within 5 years and release acids.Is it going to destroy your book immediately? No. The comics will outlast me in those bags so I'm not horribly worried about the 5 year deadline for replacing them. Also, results will vary based upon temperature. If you store them in a hot room, the bags are the least of your concerns. If they are stored in a cool dark room, the life of them will be a little longer.
Mylites with acid free backing boards are the best way to protect the books. Mylar is an inert plastic suitable for archival storage. It is a band name and many collectors are too ignorant to know the difference between Polypropylene and Mylar. I've seen bag manufacturers use the name Mylar when their product is not Mylar. I'm even being told that Melinex (another archival plastic suitable for comics) is being substituted for Mylar.
If you buy Mylar from E. Gerber or Bill Cole, you are getting good stuff either way. Buy their backing boards too. The "acid-free" backing boards that most people use can become acidic over time also. Theirs should last longer.
Open the bags on your comics and take a whiff. If they smell acidic, I think you should swap them out. Personally, if I open a bag and the comic smells like it did when it came off the press in 1982, I'm not going to stress about swapping bags.
Defiant1
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rixmaxx Posts: 459
3/19/2017
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Mylar is definitely the way to go if your planning on keeping your books for a long time. Their cost is more (around 3X as much) but in the long run, well worth it. I've got about a quarter of my 6500 books in Mylar. (so far  ) Go with regular poly for your temporary or cheaper books.
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+1
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Oxbladder Posts: 487
3/19/2017
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Mylites and mylars are the way to go as long as you also use a Full or Half back. Regular boards are only buffered on one side or have a thin coating on both sides and that buffer is almost always spent by the time you open and use them.
Now polypropylene and polyethylene bags and regular boards can last a long time but it is going to depend a lot on your storage environment. If it is hot or humid the bags will need replacing far more often than a proper dry, dark, and cool environment. I swap bags as they are needed and that can vary widely from a few years to a decade or more.
The most important thing before worrying about bags is to have good control over the comic environment. If you don't give them a good storage environment it really doesn't matter at all what you store them in. Keep in mind some of the best old pedigrees were not stored in bags and boards for a good portion of their life. What they did have was good environmental conditions.
edited by Oxbladder on 3/19/2017
edited by Oxbladder on 3/19/2017
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+1
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sclingerman Posts: 157
3/20/2017
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Defiant1 wrote:
If you buy Mylar from E. Gerber or Bill Cole, you are getting good stuff either way. Buy their backing boards too.
rixmaxx wrote:
Mylar is definitely the way to go if your planning on
keeping your books for a long time. Their cost is more (around 3X as
much) but in the long run, well worth it.
Oxbladder wrote:
Mylites
and mylars are the way to go as long as you also use a Full or Half
back. Regular boards are only buffered on one side or have a thin
coating on both sides and that buffer is almost always spent by the time
you open and use them.
I WAS going to reply to this question, but they've already said it all. I buy E. Gerber's "Mylites2" bags and halfback boards.
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WaveWarrior Posts: 104
3/21/2017
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Some good advice here ... thanks! I replaced all my comics with new bags and boards. I plan to every 3 years, just in case.
____________________
Marciano Weber
CPG ID: WaveWarrior
Display Case: https://comicspriceguide.com/members/wavewarrior
____________________
edited by WaveWarrior on 3/30/2018
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Gilgandra Posts: 1246
3/21/2017
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Good subject and agree lots of sweet advice.
My deal is i can only afford the cheaper polys & boards. They work fine for me & have had no problems with them as of yet.
I live in a dryer area & keep them in comic cardboard boxes. I do remember the plastic bags from the 90's that one would come across & they where icky indeed.
I recently changed all my books over from that time to fresh ones & they should be good for another 6-8 yrs.
I wish to grab some you-beaut E. Gerber bags & boards one day for my better books but till then i'll stick with the el-cheapo's 
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sclingerman Posts: 157
3/21/2017
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WaveWarrior wrote:
Some good advice here ... thanks! I replaced all my comics with new bags and boards. I plan to every 3 years, just in case.
Rocky~
If you use the Mylars and acid-free boards you never have to replace them again. It's worth it in the long-run.
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quinnspuddinjoker Posts: 673
3/21/2017
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I use Mylar and fullbacks for the past 10 years and they are great. I need to rebag the books I had before those years though. Not looking forward to paying for it though😜
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