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Are "acid-free" backing boards truly acid-free? Time to pH test & find out!
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443 posts in this topic

Many thanks for conducting these invaluable tests. I was in the process of searching for methods to actually test the boards I just started using, myself.

 

Your test results are no surprise to me, at all. These are all made in china. Say no more?

 

I'm fortunate that my books spent decades in unboarded bags. I just started using boards a few weeks ago, and as such, your tests confirm my suspicions all along.

 

Unless I see some tests that contradict yours, mschmidt, the boards are all being permanently removed.

 

Thanks again for providing such a thorough test.

 

 

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This is great!!!

 

I think this pretty much proves that E. Gerber products are the best.

 

I think this is great information for the high end collector, but what does someone like myself with a small not too valuable a collection do.

 

My question is at what point is my comic collection worthy of being Gerberized. Most of my comics are coppers and early 90's drek. I have maybe 200 comics worth over $5 bucs, 100 over $10 and maybe 30 comics over $20(of about 1000 in total). What's worthy? Granted my collection is small enough that i can Gerberize everything over $5. (you serious collectors stop laughing at me...lol)

 

Another question, is it the board acids that interact with the comic of the acids that the inks and cheap paper in the comic that interact with the boards? Seems to me whether you board or not, the comic itself is probably releasing more acid than the board. Eight years ago I purchased new boards to replace the old ones. I only got around to doing about 100 or so and still had an open pack of boards that remained unused for nearly eight years. To my surprise, the boards remained relatively white compared to the ones that were used eight years ago.

 

I've spent the last couple of weeks rebagging and boarding my comics and came up with some conclusions. I would rather have them in bags than not in bags. I would rather have them supported with boards than not with boards and store the comic to the coated side rather than to the uncoated dull side. Of course, it seems prudent and wise to rebag/board every few years. Call me ignorant, and i'm sure you will, but for my personal collection, I've seen little side effects leaving them in the same bag and board for 10 years or more.

 

As a matter of fact one thing that disturbed me was the one comic in my collection that was stored in a mylar and was maintained in the same mylar for the last 15 years had tanned somewhat. It was a mylar without the folding flap, it was open ended. The top of the comic had started to brown/tan and the top of the pages of the comic had also tanned. I think air might have something serious to do with tanning pages more so than the board.

 

This was my recent experience rebagging about 1/2 of my small collection.

 

 

 

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Discussions about the safety of various comic book storage supplies seem to crop up on this board relatively frequently, so I figured it was about time to put on the science googles...

 

Great report but those science googles are a bit strange! :baiting:

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