Comic book collecting and conservation channel with tips and tricks on how and what to collect, how to collect on a budget, how to improve the quality of your collection, the significance of key books and their context, picking up keys before they are discovered by everyone else, comic book speculation and investing.and other aspects of collecting.
Comic book conservation instructional videos including cleaning and pressing, wet cleaning, deacidification, bleaching, tear seals, staple conservation, slabbing, and any other aspects of comic book conservation.
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Thanks for sharing this, truly excellent content!
Thank you for the kind words, glad you enjoyed it!
Fantastic vid!!! Thanks a lot!
Glad you enjoyed it!
Great video, appreciate you sharing it!
I’m just happy to create content that is finding an audience. 👍🏽
Thanks a ton, this was super helpful!
Glad you enjoyed it!
Can't wait to start my collection
It’s a very rewarding hobby. 👍🏽
Loved the video!💕 Just started my comic book collection and found Toon Haven. They offer a huge variety of digital comics for every genre, and lifetime updates too!😍
Cool! Welcome to the channel. 👍🏽
Thanks a ton, this was super helpful!
Great show guys, thank you
wow, great video. thanks so much
Loved the video!💕 Just started my comic book collection and found Toon Haven. They offer a huge variety of digital comics for every genre, and lifetime updates too!😍
wow, great video. thanks so much
very helpful, worth the watch
ill definitely try that, thanks!
very helpful, worth the watch
Great video. I actually have a metal scraper That’s super thin. Will that work ?
@@chadmorris7891 most likely yes. Nothing special about the plastic.
Thanks for the shout out, even if it was about me in a bubble bath LOL
@@ShelbysComics you betcha!
do you think this will work on old banknotes?
@@adempozhari I’m not sure-I’ve been meaning to look into it though!
@DrPaulKosnik some of your tricks will work on old bankonotes for sure. Excellent videos, sir!
@@adempozhari looking forward to trying them out on some old bank notes I have!
I didn't catch how much pressure you were using with the dotting tool. I'm assuming it's moderate pressure not enough to move the book under the release paper.
@@VolkswagenGamer correct!
Now I need to know how Phil makes his resizing “paint”. Can I use methyl cellulose “glue” or does he brush on the resizing soln that Dr Paul provided the recipe for? Using the glue can cause the comic to stick to paper in a press sandwich, no?
The methyl cellulose is deluded down A LOT and let dry clear first before pressing. you can use silicone paper to prevent sticking.
Been doing this lately for silver age books. Messy as hell, but sooooo satisfying. 😂
This is the way!
Dear all, what a great show. Sorry I missed it. Like Dr Paul said, I was busy dunking witches in Salem, lol! I’m sorry to hear about Larry’s Batman #13’s ER disappearing staples. I haven’t had the same experience with most staples but have noticed considerable thinning of some after prolonged incubation. I use the liquid form of ER, by the way. Thank you again for your show. Very entertaining and informative! See you live on the next show!
See you there Peter!
I didn't get to my resizing bath for a few days after I mixed the 1% methly. The 1% solution I mixed now has a clear gel looking compound at the bottom of the container. Can thos still be used, or should I discard it?
Sounds like your MC came out of solution for some reason. I would not risk it.
Prob with people who collect comics are either you preserve a book because it will last longer through time or being brain washed by the masses who think restoration or conservation is a dubious thing to do to the book. As Cgc labels purple would I rather have a 1.0 blue looks like dog 💩 or 4-5.0 restored book? Yes il take resto everytime. Restoration is done to art work from the 16-17th century to preserve the painting so why don’t they just get a purple label and deem evil to the painting
You make great points! What I love about the hobby is there’s plenty of room for us each to enjoy it our own way. 👍🏽
Missed the live show, but awesome show as always!
Thanks brother!
Liberty Hill Comics do you think the Catwoman #39 is still a good investment?
Yes! Long-term I do not think you will regret buying this comic at current prices. 👍🏽
@@DrPaulKosnik what’s your opinion on the foil cover? It turns out that the foil cover is the one that the seller has for sale. But it’s signed a copy
Does a wash remove water staining and waviness?
Not all stains, but many can be removed with this method. Also easy to remove waviness but not always necessary to do a full wet clean to remove waviness.
What affect does this have on the gloss level?
When done properly, should not affect gloss at all. 👍🏽
Not going to get a 7.5 with all that ink lost. I think it would be 6.5 purple label now.
If I send it in for grading, I’ll post results here. No reason for a conservation wash to trigger Restored label though, right?
Came from a sponsored post within KZread. Good work.
Thank you, glad you enjoyed it!
It's been reprinted, by my count, about 6-7 times, not including trade paperbacks, etc. Printings 1-4 by Warp (4th was incomplete). Then by Marvel, then by Warp again with the wolf-head logo in upper left, then by Dark Horse. If you include fantasy quarterly #1, then 8 times maybe.
Everyone is sleeping on the 2nd appearance, Warp Elfquest #2, IMHO. I'd rather own that than Fantasy Quarterly #1. Much harder to aquire (1st print). Lots of 2nd & 3rd printings, but they are almost always VF- or worse condition. Richard Pini once said there were 10,000 copies printed of Elfquest #1, but i don't know if that includes 2nd and 3rd printings, but I bet it does, considering how rarely they show up on Ebay.
All of the first print Elf Quest material is undervalued in my opinion!
Nice video very informative however that's way too much work only to get a conserved label
Thank you for the kind words. Unless there is other conservation work, in my experience, this is going to receive a Universal label from CGC.
One of these days I'll tune in live but love the informative medium. Keep it up guys!
Thanks Dagny!
Thankyou for this video. I like your idea of varying the stack of inserted paper sheets based on the individual needs of the book -this makes more sense to me than having a pre-existing shim on the outside of the book. I haven't seen a video here about removing covers from square-bound books -is this something you won't do?
Thank you. I never say never but that is not something I’ve yet found the need to do!
tap water?? i would never do that
Jon that’s what makes me me and you you!
Personally, I think a conserved copy of a book ought to be worth more than an unconserved copy - I would be much more comfortable leaving a conserved book to my 10 year old son
There are some who are in that camp, and I get it. It will be interesting to see how the market prices them over time…
I like the light-box trick! The book looks magnificent -have you had a grade yet?
Not yet Mark. I’m a bit of a penny pincher so I like to send in a large lot together in my CGC submissions. I’ll definitely put a video out on the grade when I get it back.
Dr Kosnik, thankyou for sharing this. Your channel is incredibly eye-opening - I never imagined a poultice could be used this way. Just a quick thought: do you think there could be any advantage to interleaving a layer of Hollytex between the poultice and the paper? I wonder whether that would make removal of the poultice simpler...
Mark, I would be concerned about using Hollytex for this because the adhesive we are dealing with here is not like wheat paste or methyl cellulose. You may end up gluing Hollytex to your page! The paper conservation literature suggests the poultice as a viable option for removing the adhesive left behind after tape carrier removal which is why I tried this, and I think it’s good to know about all the tools and methods available to you as a conservationist, but I mostly scrape adhesive away now similarly to Kenny Sanderson has shown on his IG account for Sanderson Studios. 👍🏽
@@DrPaulKosnik thankyou yes, I see your point! Do you prefer to use any particular thickness of Hollytex by the way?
@@DrPaulKosnik you also have me thinking about whether a poultice is a safer way to draw ink stains up, with the minimum sideways spread..
Just a thought, Dr Kosnik, but I wonder whether your re-sizing aqueous treatment would help deposit a homogeneous finish over the book? I realise this is not removal of the varnish -but it seems to me that attempting to remove varnish could be very dangerous without knowing precisely the varnish's chemical composition -so maybe the only option is to reduce the impact of the original treatment...
That might be the only reasonable option available to me at this point Mark. As you say, non-destructive removal of the applied gloss is unlikely to happen.
@@DrPaulKosnik thanks for the quick reply! And thanks so much for sharing your knowledge - your channel has completely revolutionised my thinking about this topic. I have tried some H2O2 BLED treatments, but was puzzled by the change in texture of the paper -after watching your videos I now realise I overtreated the books. I hope that a CaOH treatment will rejuvenate them a bit. Right now I'm watching the series about Superman #9. I have a copy of Fantastic Four #48 with a lot of tape on it. Once all my new equipment arrives, I'll give it a go!
Would you still get a blue label from cgc doing this? Also, could you just put some solution on the small stain and not soak the whole book?
If done correctly most likely blue label. Regarding “spot cleaning”, generally no. The stain will just get moved into the adjacent paper, leaving a tide line. Best practice and outcomes occur when you wet the entire page in my experience.
I feel like this could get a 4.0 with a press and then you get the nice new label!
Definitely on my “to do” list! Too many projects and not enough time. 🤷♂️
Hi Dr. Paul. I enjoy your videos and I am constantly learning a lot. I do have a question, and I hope you can provide some insight. I performed 4 aqueous baths using your methods with mixed results. I was really pleased with the results of two of the baths. The other two baths completely removed the gloss and some color on the front and back covers. There was also a white residue (powder like) remaining on the books after drying for 24 hours. I believe my Calcium Hydroxide solution is too strong but I am using the proper ml's for each wash. The covers also felt softer and a little brittle. Is there a way to reintroduce gloss back to the comic after the aqueous bath? I am also thinking of performing an aqueous bath with 500 ml of warm water and 5 drops of Triton X-100 only, and then repeat only with warm water. Would that be a recommended approach as well? I appreciate it. Keep up the good knowledge. Thanks, Jon-
Jon, thank you for the kind words. Sorry to hear you had some unfavorable results. Can you give more specifics about the exact solutions and conditions used, timing, and the specific comic books so that I might be able to help you troubleshoot your process?
@@DrPaulKosnik Hi Dr. Paul, Thanks for the fast reply. Below are the steps I take for the aqueous bath. I did not perform the steps for resizing though. I create a comic sandwich between two polyester fabric sheets and rock the solution at the 3 minute mark 3 or four times. The bath lasts for 5 minutes for 3 washes. Below are the solutions I use for each wash. Wash 1 Wet Clean and Deacidify • 400 ml Warm Water • 100 ml Saturated Calcium Hydroxide • 5 Drops Triton X-100 Empty out tray and perform Wash 2 Wash 2 Wet Clean and Deacidify • 400 ml Warm Water • 300 ml Saturated Calcium Hydroxide Empty out tray and perform Wash 3 Wash 3 Wet Clean and Deacidify • 400 ml Warm Water • 300 ml Saturated Calcium Hydroxide The two comics that had unfavorable results were silver age comics, Tales of Suspense #96 and The Amazing Spider-Man #62. There were two that I considered successes though. Amazing Spider-Man #72 and Thor #138. I must point out for each wash that I performed, the inside covers for each book looked amazing especially considering that there was quite a bit of staining/tanning on each book. Thanks, Jon-
Was the client happy with the outcome of this book? Just curious because I personally found the amount of color loss on the front cover to be a major bummer...when you look at the masthead area of the cover at the beginning of the video and compare it to the reds and purples at the end of the video the color loss is quite shocking (to me anyway) That being said, I get what you are saying, the process is designed to preserve the book , not necessarily improve it's appearance, which I applaud you for that and throughly impressed by this video...However if I received this book back, when I first saw all that white speckling that was now on the book's cover I think I would be quite depressed and mad at myself for doing that... (Just My Opinion - You are amazing and thanks for sharing the video !!)
Greg, Thank you for the kind words and thoughtful analysis. I think you hit the nail right on the head of the issue--not everyone values different comic book flaws the same. Some can't stand missing pages, and would never buy a book with missing pages, while someone else might be fine with a missing page if it didn't affect the story. With regard to the loss of ink, as conservators we are trying to balance longevity and permanence of the paper with appearance. While i did notice the slight loss of ink, i think overall we improved this comic book dramatically and extended the life of the paper by decades or centuries. This book came to me a CGC graded 7.5, with grader's notes indicating the cover tanning. The grade was already held back by the severe tanning and frankly the comic was at risk of further paper degradation due to the acidic paper. We removed the acidic contents of the paper with an archival method preferred by library and museum conservators and left an alkaline reserve in the paper to preserve it and protect it against future acid-catalyzed hydrolysis of the cellulose matrix of the paper. By doing so, we improved not only the appearance of the paper, but the strength and longevity as well. I did not re-submit it to CGC, but I'm confident it would be awarded at least the 7.5 if not higher after our treatment. If there was a method to save paper this far gone and not affect the inks at all, i'd be all on board but to date, as far as I'm aware from my study of the paper conservation peer-reviewed literature, there is not a better known method, and there is no free lunch with paper this far gone. Use of hydrogen peroxide is considered an invasive method by paper conservators and reserved only for bleaching when no other methods can produce the desired results. It does little to remove acids from the paper matrix and does nothing to protect the paper long-term from degradation, so i only use it in very specific instances in which i need the bleaching qualities, and then never above 0.5%, and always with a basic buffer to overcome the acidic nature of pulp paper and stop oxidative damage to the paper from the hydrogen peroxide. All that said, it's a value judgement and not all of us are going to agree because there is not an objective right or wrong. The owner of this book was thrilled with the outcome, because he really hated the severe tanning to the cover and wanted to book preserved. And at the end of the day, that is what matters. I shared this, warts and all, to help inform others of what can be done; it's up to each individual to decide what should be done.
@@DrPaulKosnik Thanks Doc for that detailed and informative response, much appreciated !
Any info acquired about those anchor MP stamps on the comics. I know I've seen those too as well on all National/DC Comics. To my memory too. I started working at a comic bookstore too in June of 1971. By 73/74 I started being trained much more on condition and grading comics. Back then as from a poor-mint conditions.
No new info Mike. We did create a photo archive of images of copies we’ve found and will continue to build it as additional copies surface.
Still a buy?
Classic long-term blue chip in my opinion. Safe to buy and hold, especially at or above 6.0.
@@DrPaulKosnik only centerfold?
This video is 10 months old now, but I wanted to add a relevant comment. I tried using your triton X solutions recommended for golden age comics on a silver age Cap #106 and it was a disaster. Lots of ink flecked off of the cover. I wish I had rewatched this video before I attempted conservation. If, per chance, you would like to make a video out of my fail as a cautionary tale, I could provide you with before and after videos and pictures. I would benefit from learning what part of my procedure did the most damage. Thanks Dr. Paul.
Yikes sorry to hear that Jason! Feel free to contact me via IG or FB and send me your methods and pictures and let’s see if you can figure out where everything went wrong. Better yet, if you are on FB, join our FB group Comic Book Conservation Community, and post there for everyone to contribute to solving your issue. 👍🏽
That line on the back is on all of them
Good to know!
I have some books from the 60s that the interior pages have worn away from the staple so they are now loose. Taking the staple out and putting it back in won’t fix this as the hole in the paper is now bigger than the staple is. How would you repair the paper around the staple so the staple actually holds the paper. Tengujo paper?
Danny, yes, the traditional fix recognized by CGC as conservation rather than restoration is Japanese paper and wheat paste. These days most use Tengujo and methyl cellulose adhesive. I have many tutorials on the process here on the channel. 👍🏽
Cool.
Thanks Pat!
By any chance do you offer these services to fans? I just picked up a copy of Flash 139 (a book I’ve hunted for along time) for an insane price. The book has some damage and I do not trust myself to try and restore it 😂😂😂
Congratulations on the pickup! Sorry Mason I do not generally have time to work on other folk’s books as much as I wish I did. I suggest you find the Comic Book Conservation Community on Facebook. You should be able to find help there!
@@DrPaulKosnik I’ll check it out thank you!