Conference school::sports_memorabilia

    Tony,
    
    I've tried everything to remove creases, but never thought to use a
    vise! I've got several cards with minor creases, and it's all I can 
    do to keep from running home *this instant* and trying it. You're
    not just pulling our collective legs, now, are you?? :^) 
    
    John D.
    
    

    	This is for real John !  I've got a '60 Mantle All-Star in my
    vise at home right now !  Creases like a road map !  I don't expect
    more than a 25 % improvement on this one though.
    
    					Tony

    Just be sure there's no dust or grit in there before you tighten that
    sucker!
    
    Tony, if I take one of the 1990 Donruss error Ryans and lay it on the
    other one, then leave them in the vise for a year or so, will I wind up
    with a corrected Ryan?
    
    ski (who found his Aparicio rookie at the BG show!)

    RE: .3
    
    Na...you can just say the guy has a bad complexion! 8^)
    
    John D.
    

    Is it a VICE to inCREASE the value of your cards using this trick?

    Bad pun!!!
    

    Does anyone know a simple method of removing gum that is stuck to BB
    cards.  I bought 3 packs of 1980 Fleers, and a stick of gum is stuck to
    one card in each of the packs.  Do you leave it in the sun or use a
    hair dryer??  
    
    Also, any tricks on removing ink stains from cards??  There has to be
    an acid out there, or ink remover that could possibly remove these
    unwanted ink marks, or pen ink on check lists.  I think the guy who
    can develop something here can make a small fortune, buying up these
    cards cheap, and restoring them.  Now we can take out creases, we have
    to do something with ink stains, pen ink, etc.  
    
    Also, any thoughts on removing glue or tape that are on cards??  This
    is another thing that is troubling me??  Thanks for your help, and
    thanks Tony D. for the Vice trick.  I have an old card in there right
    now that I'm decreasing. Ha, Ha.

    re.7 Easiest way to remove gum is to freeze the card 

    
    OK one last problem....
    
    Anyone know how to get corners back on?

    Or how to turn a recent Jim Rice into a Jerry Rice rookie?

In days of old,
When cards weren't sold (by dealers 8^),
And plastic sheets were not yet invented,
They took the card stock,
And put it in a shoe box,
And CREASES were prevented.

    To Make a Jerry Rice Card Out of a Jim Rice CArd, follow these
    instructions:
                       Reciept
    
    Take one Jerry Remy card.
    Take one Jim   Rice card.
    Take one medium size vise.
    Take two pieces of plexi-glass.
    Place the Jerry Remy over the Jim Rice card, top side to 
    top side, between the two pieces of plexi-glass, and
    place in the vice.
    Screw up the vice tightly, very tight!
    Leave over nite.
    In the morning, you will have one Jerryjim RiceRice card.
    Good Luck.  And thank you Tony for the Vice Idea.  
    I'm going to send that one into the Worcester T&G and win $25.  If i
    win Tony, I'll split the money with you, ok.

    	Whats the Worcester T&G ?  A strip joint ?  Oops !  Theres women
    in here now.  Ut oh ...
    
    				Tony 8^)

    The T & G is a newspaper.  But restoring old creased cards to better
    condition, I don't see anything wrong with it.  After all we put the 
    creases in them, remember, they were in mint condition when we opened
    the wax pack, so why should that be unethical??  If your that good
    to be able to make the cards from good to EX condition, you should
    be rewarded for it.  Ink stains are tough, and gum stuck to cards is
    also pretty tough to get off without destroying the card, and I think
    it takes a pretty talented guy to work on cards without doing more
    damage than is already there.  So my feeling is restoration is
    perfectly acceptable.  They restore antiques and no one says anything
    about people who restore old furniture and things like pictures and
    old stuff.  Why should cards be any different??  I would like to see
    how they restore the rounded cornors on old cards.  That should be a
    real art!

    There is a way to fuse borders and corners on cards but it is 
    noticeable and easily detected. It does make the card more
    attractive though. I'm talking about badly damaged cards that
    have close to no value anyway. You use the white cardboard in
    a Moore Business Forms box of lineprinter paper. Then simply
    trace the outline of a perfect card on the piece of cardboard
    then trace the damaged card inside of that. Cut along both
    the outside and inside lines and glue the new border on the old
    card being careful not to have a lot of excess glue. It does not
    make a perfect match, but its close enough to improve the looks
    greatly. 

    A piece of nylon stocking or pantyhose works real well on removing wax
    from the glossy front of a card, less well on the back. Don't be
    sending me requests for spare panyhose. I'm all out.

    Thanks John for that good information on wax removal.  I'm still trying
    to remove some gum, the whole stick from three Fleer 1981 cards I
    bought.  I tryed freezing it, but that didn't work.  How about melting
    it?  I also found that if you have a card with a white border, and the
    card is pretty old and dirty, to take a STAEDTLER eraser, and very 
    lightly go over the dirty part.  It really brightens up the card, with 
    no damage.  Takes the dirt film off the card.  Wouldn't try it with
    any harsh eraser types, might rub the finish off the card.

    
    JOHN OR ANYONE,
    
    	I HAVE A SET OF 83 TOPPS BB THAT ARE SLIGHTLY CURLED. I HAVE
    RESTACKED THEM IN SMALLER BOX AND TURNED THEM IN GROUPS OF A HUNDRED
    OR SO, SO THAT THE CURVE IS FACEING THE CURVE ON ONE END AND THE
    CURL IS FACEING THE CURL ON THE OTHER. THIS HAS TAKEN OUT THE CURL,
    BUT WILL IT BE PERMANENT . I WOULD APPRECIATE ANY COMMENT OR INPUT
    ON THE CURL ISSUE.
    
    				THANKS,
    				JIM (ABO)
    

    I don't worry too much about curl. However, I have a bunch of 84 and 85
    commons that had curl, and I packed 'em tight the way you described, but
    I haven't really looked at them in about a year. I would imagine that
    the curl has at least relaxed if not disappeared alltogether. My sets
    are in binders, and the combined weight of the cards and pages seems to
    straighten them out.
    
    John D.

    
    rply.23
    
    	thanks for the reassuring words. I think i will probably end
    up storing this and other hand collated sets in binders. 
    	aside from the curl, this is the best looking '83 set i've seen.
    I felt like it was worth the effort.	                        
    
    					thanks again
    					jim               
    

    I think dampness is one cause of curl, with a sudden shot of heat.  I 
    mentioned about 2 years ago, a new factory box was opened down at
    ZAYRE's Dept. Store, and the whole box had a curl in them.  I think
    that I read somewhere to keep your cards in a dark dry environment, to
    keep the cards from becoming mildewed and curled.