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View Full Version : Storing Cards, Dust, Sleeves and Card Condition



Cavius The Great
01-19-2007, 11:46 AM
I recently started a thread which I can no longer find. The thread was about the Legend card sleeves as you all know. I have an urgent concern that I would like to discuss when it comes to conditions of cards and how they become affected by dust. Every time I examine one of my near mint condition cards, there seems to be dust particles on the exact vicinity of the card. I usually brush the dust off and it's fine, but that's not always the case. These little dust particles are somehow being imprinted onto my cards leaving unattractive white "spots" on the back of the card surfaces. This makes me really concerned. I've never had this problem before, to my knowledge, or maybe it's something I've just noticed recently and got infatuated with, I really don't know.

Important-Please follow instructions: As a helping tool, after reading this thread, go to five different cards that you own (sleeved) that you think are near mint and look at the backs and tell me if you notice any white spots. When you come to a conclusion as to the condition of the card, please post your results and let me know if you noticed any gray or whitish spots on the back of your cards. Analyze the cards very carefully because the spots can be small but spots nevertheless.

These spots just randomly appear. I actually bought 4 playsets of Duress all in near mint condition. A week later they were all blotchy with white spots on the borders of the card. I was able to scratch some of the "residue" off but most of the damage done was permanent. This really concerns me, as should anyone else who has a valuable collection of cards and wishes to keep them in mint condition.

Now, I really don't know what could be causing this "white spot" phenomenon, but I think you guys can help. If you haven't already, please follow the instructions in the center of this thread in bold and maybe we can all come to a conclusion as to what causes this problem. If you guys have any ideas on what could cause this, please share your thoughts. Whether it be storage boxes, cardboard box dust particles, the sleeves itself, ventilation and heating causing dust or shuffling issues it's all a possibility as to what might cause it. I hope we can get to the bottom of this situation and resolve it efficiently. Please share your thoughts, thanks ahead of time.

xsockmonkeyx
01-19-2007, 12:01 PM
These spots just randomly appear. I actually bought 4 playsets of Duress all in near mint condition. A week later they were all blotchy with white spots on the borders of the card. I was able to scratch some of the "residue" off but most of the damage done was permanent.


1) In the example above are you saying that it was 4 different types of sleeves? If so what were the brands?

2) Do you use a playmat?

3) What kind of environment do you play in? (Consider things like, If at home then do you have any pets?)

4) Never scratch to remove anything.

Cavius The Great
01-19-2007, 12:32 PM
1) In the example above are you saying that it was 4 different types of sleeves? If so what were the brands?

They were all stored in my binder with clear sleeves and never saw play.


2) Do you use a playmat?

No, I don't. but that shouldn't matter because the cards in question never saw play. I've kept them in sleeves ever since I purchased them.


3) What kind of environment do you play in? (Consider things like, If at home then do you have any pets?)

No pets. The only real concern I have is the ventilation system.The filter inside the heating vent has to be changed every year because of general dust issues. They accumulate so much dust in one year the filters need to be changed. That might present itself as the issue, but I do not know.


4) Never scratch to remove anything.

Even gently scratching? What do you suggest then? a moist paper towel maybe?

And you forgot to do my test Monkey. :tongue:

Complete_Jank
01-19-2007, 07:51 PM
The only real concern I have is the ventilation system.The filter inside the heating vent has to be changed every year because of general dust issues. They accumulate so much dust in one year the filters need to be changed. That might present itself as the issue, but I do not know.

Sounds like that is a little more of a problem than just your cards. That might not be healthy, and should be checked.

xsockmonkeyx
01-19-2007, 09:18 PM
Even gently scratching? What do you suggest then? a moist paper towel maybe?




Im stumped as far as the white dots go. Ive never ever heard of this problem and certainly never seen it happen. Especially since the cards didnt even see play. Seems like a groovey mystery for the scooby squad.

Yeah, moist paper towel is going to be your best bet. If you can squeeze a drop of water out of the towel still then its probably too wet though.

Yeah, I was too busy to do your test. Eat me.:tongue:

Edit: What is the experiment again? Im confused. What's the control?

Cavius The Great
01-20-2007, 05:47 AM
Edit: What is the experiment again? Im confused. What's the control?

I'll quote it here to make it easier for you.


Important-Please follow instructions: As a helping tool, after reading this thread, go to five different cards that you own (sleeved) that you think are near mint and look at the backs and tell me if you notice any white spots. When you come to a conclusion as to the condition of the card, please post your results and let me know if you noticed any gray or whitish spots on the back of your cards. Analyze the cards very carefully because the spots can be small but spots nevertheless.

I just wanted people to do the test to give me some idea if this is a normal and why this is happening. I also want to come to some sort of conclusion as to what causes this, and I hope you guys can help.


Im stumped as far as the white dots go. Ive never ever heard of this problem and certainly never seen it happen. Especially since the cards didnt even see play. Seems like a groovey mystery for the scooby squad.

Monkey, I'm not sure if I'm just paranoid or this is a big issue. Some of the spots on my cards are so small that the normal person would not even notice it let alone disregard it. I also keep tabs on the conditions of my expensive cards to try to find out what causes this process and to find out if it's really happening. I'm pretty sure of it that it's caused by dust particles that somehow get "imprinted" onto my cards but I'm not sure. If I can get an expert to post on this thread with their thoughts and concerns that would help a lot. For those of you who are not quite experts, please do the test to give me a general idea as to what causes this phenomenon.

cdr
01-20-2007, 10:01 AM
Even gently scratching? What do you suggest then? a moist paper towel maybe?


At the card shop, we generally use paper towel + windex to clean cards, or even an eyeglass cloth rather than the paper towel if you want to be really careful. Be careful not to get the card too wet, obviously.

xsockmonkeyx
01-20-2007, 12:46 PM
Well, I got what you said before I just dont understand how that is testing them for the sleeves. I looked at some Harmonic Slivers that were right out of the pack and nothing like what you described was there. I also inspected some cards that were stored in binders for years and nothing out of the ordinary was there either.

Arsenal_Fan
01-20-2007, 09:42 PM
Something that is quite useful to "clean" cards is Goo Gone. Just remember to put it on a rag and then wipe the card because too much might ruin the integrity of the card.

cdr
01-21-2007, 12:20 AM
I would absolutely not use Goo Gone on cards. It's an adhesive remover and will be absorbed by and possibly damage the cardstock, especially at the edges or worn areas.

I haven't ever seen a card with something bad enough on it to warrant thinking about Goo Gone.

Deger
01-21-2007, 09:39 AM
I have never heard so much about sleeves before.. (not a bad thing though) Maybe just store them for the long term in a binder with the ultrapro pages.. go talk to someone at a Sports Card place since people have been storing those for like a hundred years seriously Honis Wagner played in like the early 1900's Sleeve up for a game then when you are not going to play the deck for a while store them right.. If it really matters that much... (i'm just suggesting here not trying to be a dick..) the real concern is I think as a general rule of thumb you should change your furnace filter every couple of months and more if you have pets or are a smoker... (which could account for the white stuff on the cards.. and even if you do sleeve up you cards will smell (not as much as if you didn't)) I have serious Vintage cards that have been in old black ultrapro deck sheilds for over 7 years and have no spots on them...

Namaste
Dave

Cavius The Great
01-21-2007, 03:02 PM
I have never heard so much about sleeves before.. (not a bad thing though) Maybe just store them for the long term in a binder with the ultrapro pages.. go talk to someone at a Sports Card place since people have been storing those for like a hundred years seriously Honis Wagner played in like the early 1900's Sleeve up for a game then when you are not going to play the deck for a while store them right.. If it really matters that much... (i'm just suggesting here not trying to be a dick..) the real concern is I think as a general rule of thumb you should change your furnace filter every couple of months and more if you have pets or are a smoker... (which could account for the white stuff on the cards.. and even if you do sleeve up you cards will smell (not as much as if you didn't)) I have serious Vintage cards that have been in old black ultrapro deck sheilds for over 7 years and have no spots on them...

Namaste
Dave

I don't smoke or have pets. Read the thread. I answered that question like a dozen times already. :rolleyes:

I also keep my magic cards in my backpack so I have no idea how dust could be affecting them. Do you guys think I should get an air purifier? I'm really thinking about it.

Plus the white spots aren't showing up on all my cards. I have a near mint Force of Will in my binder in an ultra pro sleeve and it's been in the same near mint condition for several months now. I'm not sure why only a select number of cards are being affected. I'm pretty much stumped at this point.

In my last thread I made, I thought it was the Legend sleeves. Now I really don't know what it could be.

Arsenal_Fan
01-21-2007, 09:48 PM
Trust me on this Goo Gone does work and will not ruin your cards if used as I recommended. I have played since Revised and early on there were of course no sleeves other than ones for sports cards. Through shuffling and general play many of my Revised cards had "dirt" spots. I still have these cards and they look as new as they came out of the pack as I wiped down these cards. You do not saturate the card with Goo Gone, only wipe. Maybe in 20 more years it might ruin the integrity, but cardboard in general changes with age if exposed to light, pets, smoke, etc.

cdr
01-21-2007, 10:37 PM
The point is, why use a strong adhesive remover that is not meant to be used on paper when a little water or windex will do just as well?

You may get lucky and be fine, but why risk it?

Deger
01-22-2007, 07:23 AM
maybe it has something to do with the chemical composition of the ink???? Maybe different batches of ink will react differently to the chemcal composition of the sleeve.... maybe test it like get some pack fresh common's from different stores so that they are not from the same box... or different sets so they are not from the same run. Then throw them in the sleeves if some get spots and some don't thay maybe it is not the sleeves maybe it is the ink on the cards or the cardstock it's self.. it seems that maybe the the ink is not staying on the card.. maybe the sleeve has nothing to do with it except that being in the sleeve the air can't circulate much... I'll ask the Graphic Designer here at the office and she if she can offer any advice. we print mailers on thicker papers and cardstock all the time... maybe she has heard of this..

Namaste

Dave

Arsenal_Fan
01-22-2007, 11:39 AM
If I remember correctly, didn't Wizards print from 2 different locales? Perhaps the inking presses they have used are causing the spots. I believe that is the reason there is coloration differences in Ice Age or Mirage cards. I can not remember which set it was, however.

Nightmare
01-22-2007, 11:47 AM
Far more likely than Wizards' printing locale being the culprit is that he has some issue at his home. I've been playing and storing cards for 10+ years, and have never come across what you are experiencing, nor have I heard of any other people experiencing it. I'd say that it's safe to assume some issue on your end.

Complete_Jank
01-22-2007, 03:29 PM
Far more likely than Wizards' printing locale being the culprit is that he has some issue at his home. I've been playing and storing cards for 10+ years, and have never come across what you are experiencing, nor have I heard of any other people experiencing it. I'd say that it's safe to assume some issue on your end.

Same here.

thebadmagicplayer
01-28-2007, 03:47 PM
i thought they all just used the same or similar enough inks on all cards.

tivadar
01-28-2007, 05:31 PM
I also keep my magic cards in my backpack so I have no idea how dust could be affecting them. Do you guys think I should get an air purifier? I'm really thinking about it.

You have white spots on the cards... I'm going to blame friction. Backpacks bounce, if small particles of dirt/dust happened to get into some of the sleeves in your binder with the cards and you were carrying that backpack around even fairly regularly, the jostling could be enough to cause that dirt/dust to rub off a portion of the back of the card, possibly even embedding itself into the card.

Of course, this is probably more likely to occur at the edge of the insert of the card into the binder, where dirt is likely to get in after the card is in. But if your home is particularly dusty and a card you inserted had even some of that dust on the back, it's very possible that's your culprit right there.

Keep in mind, I'm just speculating here. Granted, I know you, and I've seen you carry around that backpack. I'm not entirely sure how regularly you do it though. The more often they get shifted around like that, the worse for them it's going to be. Also, carrying is much better than using a backpack (unless it's a framepack, which is probably overdoing it for magic cards...), as there's less bounce that way. Finally, if you are constantly removing the cards from the sleeves and putting them back in, that would probably cause even more friction on them.

These are paper, sure, it's pretty treated paper, but paper none-the-less, wear and tear will happen, especially in transit.

Cavius The Great
02-07-2007, 02:34 PM
I don't know what it could be to be honest. I've been collecting magic cards for over 10 years and this problem has just been happening to me recently. I've also been living in my current apartment for around 4 years and the damage that has been occurring onto my cards has only been happening for the past six months. I'm not sure if it's something I've just been noticing lately, but this has never been an issue for me before. And it's not like all of my cards have white spots on them. I have a good number of cards that never saw play and put strait into a sleeve and they don't have any white spots on them. Most of the cards that have white spots on them have been in decks at one time or another. But there still remains things that are unexplained. I'm able to wipe off dust particles from cards before they "supposably" become permanent. And whenever I do check my cards that are in near mint condition, I spot a few dust particles lingering over them (this happens almost always) and I meticulously wipe them off. I also have cards that are near mint that I've pulled strait out of the pack and the only markings on them are scrapes from skimming through the pack. Right at this moment, I'm not sure what to believe, because they are so many factors and possibilities as to why this might be occurring. It seems that I might be doomed and cursed to never be able to maintain my collection in mint condition. Yea, this really sucks. I just want piece of mind as to why this is happening and put an end to it before I end up selling my whole collection out of despair. :frown:

Complete_Jank
02-07-2007, 06:09 PM
Do you have a mite or other pest problem? They might be eating cards.

Cavius The Great
02-08-2007, 06:23 AM
Do you have a mite or other pest problem? They might be eating cards.

Not that I know of. What type of mites are you talking about? And how big are they? Are they visible? If so, I haven't spotted any.

Lego
02-08-2007, 03:59 PM
Not that I know of. What type of mites are you talking about? And how big are they? Are they visible? If so, I haven't spotted any.

No no, we're looking for a rare species of [i]invisible[/e] mites. They're the ones that go after Magic cards.

Cavius The Great
02-08-2007, 04:55 PM
I sense the sarcasm (even though I'm not quite sure who it's directed to). I really have no idea how mites can be eating my cards. I have no idea of how many types of mites there are in the world, but I obviously know little about them. The only mites that I know of are dust mites and they're microscopic and harmless. If you can educate me on mites, Jank, be my guest.

Complete_Jank
02-08-2007, 05:58 PM
Just throwing that idea out there, I don't think anyone has mentioned bugs of some type yet.

I know my dog likes to mess with my cards and they often end up white becuase he eats them. He's eaten about $50 worth of cards I think.

The bug thing is something to look into, but I am no expert.

Cavius The Great
02-12-2007, 08:02 AM
I've come to the conclusion that the white spots on my cards were just from playing my cards in crappy sleeves. KMC or whatever is crap. I picked up some Ultra Pro sleeves and it made a world of difference. People, take it from me, don't use those cheap KMC Japanese sleeves, they are complete garbage. Go with Ultra Pro, they're so much better.

jazzykat
02-12-2007, 09:56 AM
Have you ever considered mold?

Cavius The Great
02-12-2007, 11:03 AM
Have you ever considered mold?

I don't let things gather mold, I'm not a slob.