Rune

Thanks again, my dear wife said something a lot more unpolite about the nerd factor being off the chart or something "passionate collector" - I like those words much better, thanks

Thanks and yes, currently there are only 3 #12 in 9.8 and none better. CarlD (who has the number one collection and all three 9.9s) was lucky to grab the #12 9.8 Suscha News WP at Metropolis Collectibles in 2012, before I saw it. At the same time he also got the single #11 9.8 (it's also Suscha News WP) - he has mentioned that I could get pictures one day, if so I will be happy to upload those (with his permission of course). The most scarce 1 - 24 CGC 9.8+ books are: #11 - only 1. #12 - only 3. #18 - only 4. #14 - only 6. So a bit strange that #18 OW-W sold for just $825 at CConnect a few days ago - the same book sold for $ 2500 at CLink the last time, guess someone got lucky Although it's OW-W, it is the most perfectly centered of the 4:

PS. I will of course try to keep the library constantly updated - just added the new #16 one day ago. Sincerely, Rune

Over the years I have collected a substantial amount of Conan cover photos/scans, although restricted to the first 24 issues and Annual #1 (=the Barry Windsor-Smith issues). The collection is not complete, of today's 357 Conan the Barbarian #1 to #24 plus Annual #1 books I have pictures of 268 (= 75 %). Because not all books are ever offered for sale, and of course I may simply have missed some, the list can never be expected to be complete. But no more sleepless nights! - Now you can FINALLY get answers to your questions: 1. What do the three 9.9 books look like? (#2, #7 and #21)? 2. Is there an #4 with perfect cover orientation/alignment? 3. I've never seen an #12 9.8, must been an error in the CGC Census, right? 4. In this short human life, will I ever see the single #1 9.8 belonging to the Signature Series? And so on... ;-) You can find it all here (let me know if I can improve on anything): http://s1270.photobucket.com/user/runesr2/library/ See more journals by Rune

I guess this post proves that CGC books are not water or air tight - actually CGC books may be quite susceptible to humidity and water: http://boards.collectors-society.com/ubbthreads.php?ubb=showflat&Number=2794764&fpart=1 I tried to check the cert numbers, but they have been removed from the Census - just to see when these books were encapsulated - but I guess CGC has not changed procedures over the years... The evidence above may be further strengthened by observations that placing CGC books in fire proof safes exposed them to high levels of humidity and resulted in rusted staples: http://boards.collectors-society.com/ubbthreads.php?ubb=showflat&Number=1140967&fpart=1 Thus it may be a good idea not to use fire proof safes, or to be very careful with controlling the humidity when using such safes, and to place CGC books into closed Mylar bags (or similar solutions). Although using such Mylar bags will probably not provide 100% protection against water or air, it may restrict influx, which may reduce any impact of transient high or low humidity. Regarding my first post in this thread, since Mr. Rodel did not observe water damage when testing a few books, maybe he did not submerge the books long enough to see any effect - but I am just guessing.

Furthermore, do not expose your CGC books to more than about 100 degrees Celcius (=200 degrees Fahrenheit), and at 100 degress C do not bake the book for more than about 5 min: http://boards.collectors-society.com/ubbthreads.php?ubb=showflat&Number=1951063&fpart=1 (it is an old thread, but still interesting ) 250 F = 120 C, if anyone should wonder about this conversion.

Thank you for your comments, as you probably know the first post in this thread was just a copy of a Journal Entry at Collectors' Society (CS). So my thoughts were primarily to associate some of my key interests to my CS profile. I will consider making a new thread in Comics General.

You're welcome, thank you Much of the info was collected during the last years, so I thought it could be a good idea to share it all in a thread. BTW, for more inspiration Don Rosa is known for his skills in preservation and has used a special comic book "vault" for years: "Accumulated by world-renowned and Eisner award winning comic book artist, writer, and historian, Keno Don Rosa, this collection contained every comic book and magazine issued from every publisher from 1966 to the late 1980s. Rosa began collecting in earnest in 1962, as he purchased each comic from the newsstands, read them only once, and carefully tucked them away in optimum storage conditions, using archival boxes and a climate controlled "vault." Because they were stored in such an environment with no use of polybags, each book exhibits a brilliant sheen, deep ink reflectivity, sharp corners and a fresh newsstand appearance". Source: http://scoop.diamondgalleries.com/Home/4/1/73/1012?articleID=54089 A tour of his "vault" is given here: Several of his CGC books did not maintain those pure white pages (many OW-W), so I guess Mylar with acid free backing boards may be a better option than "no use of polybags"...

One may of course also seek a more elaborate explanation to the deterioration of paper, explaining why it is so hard to keep the pages pure white especially in older comic books (and why many will pay a premium to avoid OW-W, O-W or worse page qualities). Although I could not find any info on the author, the following descriptions do seem to represent current knowledge: Borrowed from: http://www.hoboes.com/pub/Comics/About%20Comics/Technical%20Issues/Protecting%20Comics%20Guide%201%20of%202/ Paper and its Deterioration "Paper is generally made from wood pulp that is suspended in water and matted into sheets. This can be done in one of two ways. The first way is take logs, shred them, and form pulp. This is the cheaper of the two ways and is thus used most often in newsprint and comic books, but it leaves impurities in the paper. Up to one-third of the paper can be composed of these impurities such a lignin, a complex woody acid. Lignin breaks down in the presence of oxygen and ultraviolet light. This light-induced oxidation of lignin is what turns newsprint yellow. The second method has the wood fibers being prepared by digesting wood chips in chemicals. During this process, much of the lignin and other impurities are removed. This process is more expensive and is thus used most often in stationary and hard cover books. Other ways paper can deteriorate, other than light-induced oxidation of lignin, is by oxidation of cellulose and acid hydrolysis. Oxidation of cellulose occurs when oxygen molecules in the air attack the cellulose fibers in the paper causing the paper to darken and increase in acidity. Acid hydrolysis is a reaction involving heat and acids. The acids can come from the lignin, the air itself, oxidation by-products, &c. Finally, there is evidence that links light to the start of biological processes that lead to brown or rust colored spots, more commonly known as foxing. Acidity and alkalinity are measured in units of pH on a scale from 0 to 14. A pH of 0 is the most acidic; a pH of 7 is neutral; a pH of 14 is the most alkaline. The pH scale is based on powers of ten, thus a pH of 3.5 is 10 times more acidic than a pH of 4.5. Newsprint usually has a pH of around 4.5 when it is new while degraded paper may have a pH of 3.5. Although some paper today is being made acid-free, the paper from which comic books are currently being made are not." So eventually all comic books printed on cheap newsprint paper may deteriorate, and the real challenge may be to keep the books as high as possible on this truly terrifying scale: 1. White 2. Off-White to White 3. Off-White 4. Light Tan to White 5. Light Tan to Off-White 6. Light Tan 7. Pink to White 8. Pink to Off-White 9. Pink to Light Tan 10. Pink 11. Cream to White 12. Cream to Off-White 13. Cream to Light Tan 14. Cream to Pink 15. Cream 16. Tan to White 17. Tan to Off-White 18. Tan to Light Tan 19. Tan to Pink 20. Tan to Cream 21. Tan 22. Dark Tan to White 23. Dark Tan to Off-White 24. Dark Tan to Light Tan 25. Dark Tan to Pink 26. Dark Tan to Cream 27. Dark Tan to Tan 28. Dark Tan 29. Slightly Brittle 30. Brittle The list above should correspond to CGC's current practice when estimating deterioration of paper in comic books (source: http://www.bipcomics.com/showcase/CGCWhiteness/ ). It may be noted that pink pages probably should not be on the list, since this page color in many cases seems to originate from the manufacturer (in female comic books) and thus is not necessarily a sign of paper deterioration. So there may be more to the world than this crude scale, but of course the continuum from white to brittle can be separate into many arbitrary forms:

Some years ago, CGC recommended reholdering books every 7th year to replace the microchamber paper, but I do not see that recommendation anymore. So I am guessing that there was some truth to the statement from this member: "I spoke with a gentlemen that was involved in the testing and creation of conservation resources microchamber paper. I talked to him when I placed my last order with CRI. I told him what CGC said about the 7 years inert thing. He laughed, and told me that microchamber paper was designed to protect valuable ephemera collections in the most polluted environments in the US... like the library's in our biggest cities. ie: New York, Washington DC etc..... He told me the amount of pollutants and acids they pushed thru these papers during testing was staggering, and that realistically it could be 50 years before a sheet loses its acid nuetralization qualities.... If he wanted to sell paper he could have told me somthing different, so I tend to believe him. Real nice guy, and passionate about conservation. He told me that CRI loves comic collectors, they are quirky and different from the usual conversations they have with library archivest's". Source: http://boards.collectors-society.com/ubbthreads.php?ubb=showflat&Number=240579&fpart=7 This is actually quite an interesting article, if the results are true: http://www.conservationresources.com/Main/S%20CATALOG/MicroChamber.htm Thus I am guessing that the microchamber paper will last at least a lifetime (in human years ;-) Gotta write in my testament that my grand-grand-grandchildren must replace it in 2100!

Never thought of such an original solution - maybe the best of both worlds, if you want to have your cake and eat it too Or just buy two - one for the dark, one for display!

UV light (i.e. direct sunlight) may of course be the worst kind of light causing rapid damage to comic books, but it seems that visible light also causes damage, although it may take much longer exposure: "What specific problems does lighting cause to collections? The most common problems from light exposure are: Infrared radiation heats materials, leading to their accelerated aging and embrittlement, as well as their yellowing. Ultraviolet radiation causes materials to disintegrate or become weak, while also causing pigments or dyes to change color, and lignins in paper, as well as resins, starches, and glues to yellow or darken. Visible light fades the colors of collections items, as well as causing darkening and yellowing of some collections items, as well as color shifts in dyes and pigments." Source: http://www.loc.gov/preservation/care/light.html Thus, even behind UV filters many years of exposure to visible light may not be a good thing (probably mostly a concern for very expensive books).

Unfortunately I forgot that I had changed my forum password, so this journal entry was not attached to my forum account, hopefully Gemma can help... The above info was collected during a few years, just hoping that these considerations could be of benefit to other collectors. And regarding Mike's comments - yes, it is not easy using flat storage - quite a hassle getting to the bottom books, and I would be careful not to stack more than 15-20 books due to the weight impact on the bottom book that potentially could damage its holder (ok, guess you need more than 50 books to do that, but I have not tested this hypothesis). Flat storage is probably best for books you do not take out often. I do not think that CGC has made any statement regarding the inner holder being airtight, at least I have not read any, I know some collectors think that airtight is bad for CGC books, due to an idea of harmful gasses accumulating that cannot escape - but according to Gerber access to fresh oxygen may be worse. And airtightness will limit the influences of humidity fluctuations (it should be noted that relative humidity increases as temperature decreases, so even in an airtight environment humidity can be a problem, especially with large temp fluctuations - this is also why freezing CGC books is not a good idea, as humidity will become quite high close to the freezing point and may cause condensation = book damage). I have put my books in Mylar bags, adding an extra layer of protection - thus if they are not fully airtight, this must be very close ;-) I remember some CGC books being submerged after flooding, only the CGC label was damaged, indicating similar results as Rodel observed, so the inner holder does seem watertight. (I never could get myself to sacrifice even an inexpensive book to test how airtight the inner holder is). Best, Rune