Walter Johnson L1 Leather

[Hankphenom]

I just picked up this "Holy Grail," and am wondering if I should try to get it cleaned, stains removed if possible, and maybe even restoration of the missing pieces using a cheaper non-baseball L1 (assuming I could find one). I'm very happy just putting it up on the wall as is with this nice framing job, the WaJo image is quite sharp and that's what counts for me, but wouldn't mind exploring the other possibilities. Anyone here had any experience with leather restoration, where (other than the internet) I should look for that kind of expertise, or any other comments or advice?

[Leon]

It's nice and if it was mine I would probably leave it just as it is. Good luck with whatever you do. Great leather.

.

[mrreality68]

Originally Posted by Hankphenom

I just picked up this "Holy Grail," and am wondering if I should try to get it cleaned, stains removed if possible, and maybe even restoration of the missing pieces using a cheaper non-baseball L1 (assuming I could find one). I'm very happy just putting it up on the wall as is with this nice framing job, the WaJo image is quite sharp and that's what counts for me, but wouldn't mind exploring the other possibilities. Anyone here had any experience with leather restoration, where (other than the internet) I should look for that kind of expertise, or any other comments or advice?

I would not restore it.

I think it looks great the way it is and my opinion is the Restoration takes away from the Character of the piece and also potentially devalues it

Great Pickup

[Casey2296]

Beautiful Hank, congratulations. I don't know what the +/- is on restoration of a piece like this but if you wanted to clean/restore it I would think a fine art restorer might be a good place to start. If you choose to go that route let me know, I have great guy here in town that's done a couple of pieces for me, I could give him a call and connect you two.

[ksfarmboy]

I’d leave it alone, looks great just as it is. Congrats on the pick up!

[rjackson44]

Don’t touch it

[egri]

I think it's a beautiful piece, and I would leave it as is.

[doug.goodman]

That's a pretty great piece (congrats) and I wouldn't do anything to change it.

Doug

[Tao_Moko]

Based on the current direction of our market - I would leave it alone. When the bubble bursts, altered cards(even preserved/restored) cards may have a scarlet letter of sorts. There's no correct answer and opinions will vary. Assuming your "holy grail" might end up in other family member hands when you're gone means setting them up for success to sell later is a consideration. If that's too morbid then maybe you stumble upon one at a flea market for a quarter and sell one off(lol). I approve of restoration when it's a necessity for preservation. That concept has not been adopted in our hobby. Beautiful piece and congratulations.

[Hankphenom]

I really appreciate the comments, and as a result I'm leaning strongly toward leaving it as it is. When so many of the people here I have such great respect for feel so strongly, I'm definitely paying attention. It did pass my presentability threshold from the start, or I wouldn't have bought it. What got me thinking about cleaning, and possibly restoration, was this one I found in my search for other examples on the web, from a 2005 REA auction. It's tempting to think that I might be able to get mine closer to this kind of beauty with just a cleaning and/or stain removal, which I approve of in most instances with cards and memorabilia and don't really consider restoration, which is more involved with adding non-original material rather than subtracting dirt and stains that weren't there in the first place--so why not get rid of them if you can do it without changing the piece in any significant way?

[Hankphenom]

Originally Posted by Casey2296

Beautiful Hank, congratulations. I don't know what the +/- is on restoration of a piece like this but if you wanted to clean/restore it I would think a fine art restorer might be a good place to start. If you choose to go that route let me know, I have great guy here in town that's done a couple of pieces for me, I could give him a call and connect you two.

Thanks, Phil, I would like to talk to them to see what the state of the art is. But my condition for any work would be that it look like it had never been touched. If they could promise that while getting the dirt and stains out without washing out or bleeding the image AT ALL, and depending on the cost, I'd have to give it some thought, at least. Right now I'm guessing I will put it on the wall and smile every time I look at it. Then I'll look at the S81 and do the same.

[Casey2296]

Originally Posted by Hankphenom

Thanks, Phil, I would like to talk to them to see what the state of the art is. But my condition for any work would be that it look like it had never been touched. If they could promise that while getting the dirt and stains out without washing out or bleeding the image AT ALL, and depending on the cost, I'd have to give it some thought, at least. Right now I'm guessing I will put it on the wall and smile every time I look at it. Then I'll look at the S81 and do the same.

I'll give him a call and have a chat with him.

[orioles70]

I would leave well enough alone.

For Want of a Nail

For want of a nail the shoe was lost.
For want of a shoe the horse was lost.
For want of a horse the rider was lost.
For want of a rider the message was lost.
For want of a message the battle was lost.
For want of a battle the kingdom was lost.
And all for the want of a horseshoe nail.



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