Collecting Boxes & Packs - the Future?

[timzcardz]

Originally Posted by Eric72

Unless the cards are individually sleeved, many early UV coated products will "brick" (stick together) over time. This can ruin quite a few 90s releases, whether still in packs or stored loose in boxes. This (in my opinion) makes many early/mid 90s sealed products worthless. Imagine opening a pack and having the cards bonded together. I've been there...it's horrible...I can still hear the sound cards make when you peel them apart.

FWIW

Never peel them apart.

I am a structural engineer, and as bizarre as it may seem I have applied my professional knowledge and experience to separate stuck cards.

This is a little on the technical side but should get the point across.

When you separate the card by "peeling" them apart, the surface stuck together are put into tension, and many times that tensile connection between the surfaces is stronger than that of the surface to the underlying card and you end up tearing some of the surface of the card off.

The shear strength of the adhesion of the surfaces is not as strong though.

If you remove the stuck cards from the pack and rather than peel them you flex the cards as a whole. Grab the stuck pack of cards at each end and flex them together one way and then the other. You will find that the second flex the pack of cards seems less stiff. Then do the same at a 90 degree orientation (grabbing them along the long edge), and then proceed to also flex them grabbing at opposite corners. At this point the cards will normally separate.

The flexing of the cards creates shear planes between the surfaces of the cards due the slight differences in radii of the bend from card to card.

I have almost always had great results with this method.

[Deertick]

Originally Posted by timzcardz

.

The flexing of the cards creates shear planes between the surfaces of the cards due the slight differences in radii of the bend from card to card.

I have almost always had great results with this method.

Tim,
I always do this, very carefully, but a LOT of times I still get some damage (looks like snow) on one edge or another. Do you have any suggestions to 'pregame'? I have heard suggestions to freeze them, use a hair dryer, sit them in a steamy bathroom, etc, etc.

I guess it may be product dependent, but I wonder if you have any thoughts?

Thanks, Jim

[timzcardz]

Originally Posted by Deertick

Tim,
I always do this, very carefully, but a LOT of times I still get some damage (looks like snow) on one edge or another. Do you have any suggestions to 'pregame'? I have heard suggestions to freeze them, use a hair dryer, sit them in a steamy bathroom, etc, etc.

I guess it may be product dependent, but I wonder if you have any thoughts?

Thanks, Jim

No, I have not frozen, steamed, or anything elsed them.

Occasionally I have issues, but not a LOT.