Does anyone use the plastic comic boxes? 0

[Antpark]

How much market would there be for high-end all-wood comic boxes?

 

Either Norm Abrams or that kitchen company in the UK could really wrap that market up.

 

::

 

-slym

 

Seems to be enough to keep these guys in business:

Geek Chic - The League

Geek Chic - The Alexandria Codex

Comic Book Storage Chests

Comic Cubes

 

Unfortunately, I still have too many books on my Wish List to think about dropping that kind of cash for storage.

 

Maybe someday, though

[heliosten]

Plastic seems like the only option. What do you guys think?

 

In the last couple of years I've made the transition to Gerber Mylite2 Golden/Silver w/ a Fullback and the box made for these. I love this setup! Books have plenty of room and the Fullbacks are great. Yeah, they are expensive, but I love my books.

 

As far as the plastic boxes go, I use the corrugated plastic boxes from Bags Unlimited for my CGC books. I got tired of the cardboard boxes falling apart due to the heavy weight of the slabbed books. I've had NO problems with the plastic boxes from BU and recommend them highly.

[newshane]

Plastic seems like the only option. What do you guys think?

 

As far as the plastic boxes go, I use the corrugated plastic boxes from Bags Unlimited for my CGC books. I got tired of the cardboard boxes falling apart due to the heavy weight of the slabbed books. I've had NO problems with the plastic boxes from BU and recommend them highly.

 

+1

 

I exclusively use the corrugated plastic boxes from Bags Unlimited. I've been very happy with them.

[kerplunc]

I built a set of heavy duty road cases to hold my drum set and various accessories. Turned out to be much easier then I thought, so I'm planning on building a "road case" for my slabs. It'll be a fraction of the cost of those wooden comic chests, and I think it'll look much cooler.

 

Something similar to that, for those who are wondering.

[GeneticNinja]

Plastic seems like the only option. What do you guys think?

 

In the last couple of years I've made the transition to Gerber Mylite2 Golden/Silver w/ a Fullback and the box made for these. I love this setup! Books have plenty of room and the Fullbacks are great. Yeah, they are expensive, but I love my books.

 

As far as the plastic boxes go, I use the corrugated plastic boxes from Bags Unlimited for my CGC books. I got tired of the cardboard boxes falling apart due to the heavy weight of the slabbed books. I've had NO problems with the plastic boxes from BU and recommend them highly.

 

The plastic boxes I have are from Bags Unlimited. Those E Gerber boxes are only 15" long according to the site. The plastic boxes are 20". I have the smaller plastic ones now. I guess I'll go with the longer plastic.

 

Also does anyone here put two comics per Mylar? One front and one back? I'll probably do that for the low cost runs.

 

 

[Bookery]

Years ago there was a company in Canada that produced excellent plastic boxes. We still have them throughout our shop after 20 years, and they are great, solid, with rounded edges that don't cut into your hands, and were available in multiple colors. I don't recall their name, but they are long gone now, unfortunately.

 

All of the plastic boxes I've come across today are definitely inferior... the long boxes buckle after awhile and are actually dangerous for transporting comics, as they bow in the middle when carrying. I would pay decent money to have those old boxes available again, though.

 

 

[PBK78]

I'm looking to go book in front book in back in one mylar for my cheaper books. Any ideas, I'm all ears.

[GeneticNinja]

All of the plastic boxes I've come across today are definitely inferior... the long boxes buckle after awhile and are actually dangerous for transporting comics, as they bow in the middle when carrying.

 

Are you talking about the new Bags Unlimited long plastic boxes? My small plastic box seems really strong.

 

I'm looking to go book in front book in back in one mylar for my cheaper books. Any ideas, I'm all ears.

 

I'm going to use either a 2 or 1.43 mil Mylar from E Gerber for the back to back. I'm going to do it both to save money and space. Since going from a 27" long normal box to a 20" long plastic box will add boxes around my place. My concern is the weight of the boxes doubling up on the comics in the bags. But I did place TPB and HC books in my long normal comic boxes at one point. So it shouldn't be that much of a problem for the plastic boxes. At least I hope it isn't.

[Bookery]

Are you talking about the new Bags Unlimited long plastic boxes? My small plastic box seems really strong

 

I order a lot of stuff from Bags Unlimited, but I don't believe I've ordered plastic boxes from them. I assumed they were the same ones everyone is carrying (it seems there is only a single manufacturer of these, though different distributors call them different things). BU boxes have the same (similar?) oval hand-holes the other problem boxes have had.

 

The old ones from Canada had more rectangular hand-holes, had rounded edges (not the sharp rough-cut edges along the top), and were a heavier plastic. But if BU has a new product, I'm willing to try it. Anybody with experience with their long boxes?

 

[GeneticNinja]

Are you talking about the new Bags Unlimited long plastic boxes? My small plastic box seems really strong

 

I order a lot of stuff from Bags Unlimited, but I don't believe I've ordered plastic boxes from them. I assumed they were the same ones everyone is carrying (it seems there is only a single manufacturer of these, though different distributors call them different things). BU boxes have the same (similar?) oval hand-holes the other problem boxes have had.

 

The old ones from Canada had more rectangular hand-holes, had rounded edges (not the sharp rough-cut edges along the top), and were a heavier plastic. But if BU has a new product, I'm willing to try it. Anybody with experience with their long boxes?

 

Maybe I should not have called them new. But they are fairly new to me. But they do have the oval holes.

 

I was just looking in one of my long boxes with older comics. I forgot I put acid free paper on the sides of the box. It's probably going too far.

 

The E Gerber ones are probably the best but I just can't pay their more expensive cost for smaller boxes compared to the Bags Unlimited plastic boxes. Unless the plastic boxes are really bad. Which my small plastic boxes have no problems.

[DrawerBox]

While this may be an older thread, since Google keeps bringing it up in searches, it's probably worth correcting some misunderstandings.

Plastic boxes (a.k.a. Corplas) are more water resistant that corrugated, however, there are some significant "Yes, buts" in that answer.  The operative word is resistant.  It is true water will not penetrate the material, whereas corrugated will absorb or wick water over time. But all corplas boxes are made of a flat sheet and use a fold over design to form a box. This means there are open seams on every corner that water will readily leak through.  If you worry that water may come from above, such as from a broken pipe, then they offer some limited protection.  But they offer no protection from water from flooding.

Another characteristic of corplas is it is less rigid that corrugated.  This means the material is subject to flexing and will not support much weight.  If you anticipate stacking boxes at all corplas would be a poor choice.  One of the advantages of corrugated is it can be made with different weights of papers and fluting to increase strength, both stacking and tear resistance. If you had problems with corrugated tearing, it is likely a cheap grade of cardboard.  Avoid any boxes that use 200# or 250# test cardboard.  That is a low grade which, unfortunately, is used by most comic box manufacturers.

Another common misunderstanding mentioned in this thread is the need for acid free.  The source of most acidity that yellows comic pages comes from the lignin in the newsprint.  Since acidity migrates from more acidic to base, typically the boxes are more in danger from acidity than the comics themselves.  Where this becomes really important is in your choice of backing boards since they are next to the comics.  Most, including "acid free coated", can be a source of problems. There is a study about this posted in the preservation blog at www.CollectionDrawer.com.

[Jonesin4Comics]

Can someone try spraying the inside of a regular comic box with Flex Seal and report back? Thanks

[GeneticNinja]

On 4/15/2019 at 10:59 PM, DrawerBox said:

While this may be an older thread, since Google keeps bringing it up in searches, it's probably worth correcting some misunderstandings.

Plastic boxes (a.k.a. Corplas) are more water resistant that corrugated, however, there are some significant "Yes, buts" in that answer.  The operative word is resistant.  It is true water will not penetrate the material, whereas corrugated will absorb or wick water over time. But all corplas boxes are made of a flat sheet and use a fold over design to form a box. This means there are open seams on every corner that water will readily leak through.  If you worry that water may come from above, such as from a broken pipe, then they offer some limited protection.  But they offer no protection from water from flooding.

Another characteristic of corplas is it is less rigid that corrugated.  This means the material is subject to flexing and will not support much weight.  If you anticipate stacking boxes at all corplas would be a poor choice.  One of the advantages of corrugated is it can be made with different weights of papers and fluting to increase strength, both stacking and tear resistance. If you had problems with corrugated tearing, it is likely a cheap grade of cardboard.  Avoid any boxes that use 200# or 250# test cardboard.  That is a low grade which, unfortunately, is used by most comic box manufacturers.

Another common misunderstanding mentioned in this thread is the need for acid free.  The source of most acidity that yellows comic pages comes from the lignin in the newsprint.  Since acidity migrates from more acidic to base, typically the boxes are more in danger from acidity than the comics themselves.  Where this becomes really important is in your choice of backing boards since they are next to the comics.  Most, including "acid free coated", can be a source of problems. There is a study about this posted in the preservation blog at www.CollectionDrawer.com.

I think I posted about old boards once that were changing color around the edges. The part that the comic wasn't in contact with. I just try to use all acid free materials. The last thing I need is stuff migrating among the other comics.

Someone posted comic drawers in one of the collection room posts. That's my ultimate goal. The comic boxes are just temporary storage and for transport.

[RCheli]

I've noticed some other dealers bringing their con stock in these plastic boxes and I'm considering doing the same. All that loading and unloading takes a toll on cardboard.