The products I use to clean and press are listed on my website at improvecollecting.com/recommended-comic-book-collecting-supplies/ Be sure to sign up for my newsletter while you are there! I am developing tools to make collecting better and will be announcing it to my email subscribers in the future.

If you don't have access to chamfered edge board you can also accomplish this with three pieces of plain copy paper. I put one page under cover and then one under the next two pages. Great video!

@ImproveCollectingComics

Жыл бұрын

Much appreciated, thanks for the tip!

Like the tac iron holder on side of table!

@ImproveCollectingComics

2 ай бұрын

Thanks! Here is the Amazon link to it: amzn.to/3WldH0q I need to add it to my website

That fold in the middle is killing me! Haha

I told you you'd love those chamfered boards from Immaculate comics! Use them all the time. They work great under the covers in the press machine at a lighter press setting to take out a ton of tics and really smooth the spine. Careful with old books with weak spines or staples though. And do a bit of humidity prior. Low heat too. Thanks for sharing! Cheers!

@ImproveCollectingComics

Жыл бұрын

I haven't pressed with them yet, but plan to try it. Thanks for the tips!

Great video. Thanks for adding you equipment/supply list.

Great video, very helpful!

Great video as always. Thank you for information. You are correct when you state the book is good but so is a video tutorial.

Amazing job

Love the content as a comic book fan and very helpful guides you've put out for the average Joe. Throwing you a huge SUB!!!

@ImproveCollectingComics

Жыл бұрын

Cool thanks!

Thank you for doing this video, really helps.

@ImproveCollectingComics

Жыл бұрын

Great, thanks for letting me know!

Thanks for the tutorial, this was very helpful for beginners like me.

@ImproveCollectingComics

Жыл бұрын

No problem! GL in the hobby!

This is great work, especially one-handed! thanks for the shout-out. I really like your tacking iron holder too, great idea. I use a potentiostat to control the temp of my tacking iron, just FYI. thanks again!

@ImproveCollectingComics

Жыл бұрын

No problem, thanks for the comment! Love your channel, learned so much from you. I will look into the heat control, never heard of that one.

Thanks. good to see captain mike’s technique in action

@ImproveCollectingComics

Жыл бұрын

So glad he took the time to put his info out there, saved me a ton of headaches!

Now in days I'm starting to look at pressing as restoration

@ImproveCollectingComics

Жыл бұрын

The simplest definition is that restoration adds something to the book: Color, Paper, etc. Renewal/repair/pressing only removes defects that have accumulated, making the book return to what it was before the defects were added.

Always more than one way to skin a cat when pressing. Been pressing for 7+ years now...and im always looking for new techniques. Hear many pressers use back boards for isolating the spine and other parts of a book when pressing....and I've never had any luck. I use SRP exclusively for the whole book. Just works great for me. Awesome content and may have to try some of your techniques. Take care.

@carlonbasscomix3387

Жыл бұрын

So you only put only SRP paper inside the centerfold and inside the covers when you press? Curious as I haven't seen this before. Thanks.

@chadnelson1150

Жыл бұрын

@@carlonbasscomix3387 yep. I utilize 12 to 14 SRP sheets for the centerfold. Depends on how the staples look- flat to curved makes a difference in how much SRP I will use.

@carlonbasscomix3387

Жыл бұрын

@@chadnelson1150 I see. Will have to try it! Thanks for the reply.

Awesome video as always! Have you ever tried to do this process on a foil covered comic? Like a venom lethal protector #1

@ImproveCollectingComics

Жыл бұрын

I haven't yet, but need to try that sometime.. I think KaptainMyke has guidelines for that. I'm sure that book will eventually cross my desk

Thanks for the video! I have now pressed a few books with my new press. So far so good! I've made my crappy practice books look almost respectable. I definitely need to add this technique to my repertoire though. It's unfortunate I cannot seem to find one of these tack irons to order. Keep up the great work!

@adamadrian3487

Жыл бұрын

Check his website. I believe it sends you to ebay

@ImproveCollectingComics

Жыл бұрын

It seems they are sold out everywhere, but I did find this one that might work: I found this one that might work.. amzn.to/3VTaCRQ I might buy a few different models and test them sometime

I love your videos as they are very informative on cleaning and pressing. For modern books that have light spine tics that do not break color, I know that light moisture can mess with the inks before you use the SRP paper and tac. Do you have any suggestions? Also, do you have any videos where you show the best way to remove a crease off of a book that was in a polybag? Those seem to be quite a learning curve for me. Thanks again!

@ImproveCollectingComics

Жыл бұрын

Thanks for the kind words! Yes, moisture can be tricky with newer books. I spot-add moisture (hotshot?) to the defect. I also use very very light pressure and to repair ticks. Luckily, ultra-modern books are veyr easy to fix, normally. Oh, I don't really do this on dark/black spines. It can cause a weird haziness.. I just build up the spine a bit (2-3 sheets of copy paper or 1 sheet of 60 cardstock), spot add a tiny bit of light moisture to the ticks, and hope the press removes them. As for poly creases, I am actually doing a video showing my process. I took some out of a few Spider-Man 1 copies last year and am going to be featuring several Ghost Rider 28's this year. What I basically do is lightly apply distilled water along the crease down the entire middle of the book (with a makeup pad) right before putting it in the press... both inside and outside the cover. Make sure there is no excess moisture on the cover. Then, I leave it in the press for a few hours, check to see if the crease is gone. If it isn't, I repeat the process. If it is gone, I put the book back in for the final press and leave it 24 hours minimum. I hope this helps!

Enjoy watching your process and hearing the play-by-play. However, in this video, it was hard for me to see the after, as your camera was out of focus for the area you fixed… plus the glare from your worklight. This is where your before & after still images are very helpful. 👍

@ImproveCollectingComics

Ай бұрын

Finally finding time to go through comments (I read them all but I'm slow). I need to be better about my photos, sorry about that!

Also was curious what the specific purpose of the metal plates you have your website, Thanks!

@ImproveCollectingComics

Жыл бұрын

It's for the press machine. See KaptainMyke's book, website, or channel @kaptainmyke ... he explains it very well

Hey thanks for the tip👍🏽 I have a few questions if you don’t mind: Is there anyplace to purchase a tack iron beside online, like Home Depot? And second: I have a Cable first issue collectors edition. My spine tics are pretty bad in the back, I’m going to try this method. But what I’m really worried about is pressing the book. Because idk if you have the same issue of Cable, but parts of his name and other parts on the cover have that detail where it kinda bulges up, you know what I mean?? Anyways, I afraid to try and press it due to damaging that detail, any thoughts? Thank you for any feed back you might have!

@ImproveCollectingComics

11 ай бұрын

@immaculatecomics has an iron for sale now- immaculatecomics.com/shop/tacking-iron-for-spine-ticks/ I haven't had a chance to test it, I ordered one that should be here by end of week. I am not sure about the Cable book, I haven't worked on that particular comic. Is the writing raised on the book? If so, it probably can't be pressed.. but the spine could still be carefully worked with the iron. Hopefully I'll own that book at some point and can test on it.

Quick question, is there any reversion after you iron? Basically I have about 3 or 4 books I want to clean up and only a 1 book press. So I would like to tack iron the books at the same time when I have the time and then press one. My worry is that the ticks may start to go back before I can press. Thanks. Great info!

@ImproveCollectingComics

Жыл бұрын

Sometimes I notice a tick coming back slightly after a press and sitting in the cold press for a few days. I give them a second round and then wait a week or so to see if there's anymore reversion. It is a rare occurrence, though. If the ticks are especially severe, I will leave the chamfered board under the cover for a couple of hours to let it completely cool. This seems to really help stop reversion

What do you feel the hardest correction/repair without restoration to make on comics is?

@ImproveCollectingComics

5 ай бұрын

Thin gouges are tough.. like when someone writes on a piece of paper with a comic underneath. Those fine lines gouges into the paper are extremely hard to get out (sometimes impossible)

Is there another iron you recommend? The Hanger 9 pro trim sealing iron hasn't been available for months. I am guessing the company went under? The only sites that seem to have it are highly suspect.

@ImproveCollectingComics

11 ай бұрын

I am currently trying to find an alternative. I did a ton of looking but can't seem to find anything with the right temperature. It's really frustrating. I'm going to try and figure out who makes the Hangar 9 and reach out to them

excellent video and good information. the tack iron you link on your website is out of stock and backordered most places. do you know of a comparable product?

@ImproveCollectingComics

Жыл бұрын

I think any of the hangar 9 models would work, I just prefer the one with the smaller head

@ImproveCollectingComics

Жыл бұрын

I found this one that might work.. amzn.to/3VTaCRQ I will look into contacting whoever makes the hangar 9 models and see if I can get a deal on them for my audience

How hot should the heat temp be? Great video btw!

@ImproveCollectingComics

Жыл бұрын

Here are the specifications of my tack iron: www.horizonhobby.com/product/protrim-sealing-tool/HAN145.html I use the low setting, which ranges from 186 f to 215 f. I find that if the iron heats up and sits around for a bit without use, it gets a bit too hot. So, I make sure that I press it against a wet towel right before use to cool it down slightly before putting it on a book. Otherwise, it can make the surface appear hazy.. from heat damage. Ouch. My gut says that about 160ish is the ideal temp, but further testing is needed. I really want a tack iron that lets you pick an exact heat.

@brianvera3563

Жыл бұрын

Thank you for the info and link. Probably would be good to have a infrared thermometer gun to see what temp it reads.

I have a digital tack iron. What temp should I put it around to make sure it isn't too hot. Think it is between 212- 400

@ImproveCollectingComics

Жыл бұрын

Here are the specifications of my tack iron: www.horizonhobby.com/product/protrim-sealing-tool/HAN145.html I use the low setting, which ranges from 186 c to 215 c.

@markb1758

Жыл бұрын

@@ImproveCollectingComics thank you. I usually have my set to 213. It's the more wider tack iron that looks like a mini iron

Are you (or anyone reading) familiar with the Clover Mini Iron II? I couldn't find the Hangar anywhere online so I got this Clover. Seems to offer the same thing. This version has 4 or 5 interchangeable ends of different shapes and sizes, so that seems useful. I'm curious about the heat though. I looked in Kaptain Myke's CPR book and cannot find any recommended heat settings for using a tack iron. I looked in every related area in the book and cannot find it. This one has three settings for heat (Low = 220f, Mid = 390f, & High = 560f). Any thoughts on how this compares to your preferred heat setting? Had some success earlier on a very tan late bronze age book, although I did put two holes in the spine! Lol. I see that you have to really regulate the heat and give some heat relief on the spine as you go, almost like a "stick and move" type method. Thanks for any insight on this! Cheers. 👋

@ImproveCollectingComics

Жыл бұрын

I did find his recommended heat settings for the iron he uses, and it is comparable to the low settings of the Hangar iron. I plan to do an extensive video on this topic, where I test several different irons and recommend heat settings accordingly. I will dive in sometime in 2023. By the way, the Hangar box gives the settings, but it's kind of hard to find. I think these are the settings to his iron: www.stevensaero.com/download/pdf/HAN101.pdf He uses a 2 and 3 setting in his videos, so 234F and 280F respectively. Mine only has 2 settings, high and low. I only use low.. which is about 215F max. My gut says anything between 200 and 250 is optimal.. but am not 100% sure yet.

@ImproveCollectingComics

Жыл бұрын

Oh, here are the settings for my iron: www.horizonhobby.com/product/protrim-sealing-tool/HAN145.html

@carlonbasscomix3387

Жыл бұрын

@@ImproveCollectingComics Thanks so much for this info. This will be very helpful! 👋

is there a specific reason why you have to use a tac iron for spine tics that the normal pressing wont get out?

@ImproveCollectingComics

Жыл бұрын

I find that pressing really doesn't get spine ticks out that well, although it can clean them up. My opinion is to fix the ticks right before putting it in the press, and the press can help solidify the repair. Not sure if it actually helps, but that's my process

Do you use the low temp on the flat iron when removing spine tic?

@ImproveCollectingComics

Жыл бұрын

Yes, and I do talk about that in the video.. sometimes it gets a bit too hot even on that setting

@danfoley2442

Жыл бұрын

​@@ImproveCollectingComics Jim, in the video it looks like you have your tack iron shoe fully inserted into the handle. Per the Hanger9 instruction sheet, if you pull out the shoe by about 1 cm (to the engraved line on the shoe shaft) it'll reduce the shoe temp by about 30*F, to 186*F. Still well above the 130-140*F that Rick Morgan recommends, but still more manageable.

How about removing ink and water stains?

@ImproveCollectingComics

Жыл бұрын

KaptainMyke does cover that in his book. I will likely do videos on that topic, once I get better at the process