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Stumper Posts: 8
5/23/2022
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When would it be better to buy a comic book press instead of using commercial service? How many books help make the decision? I have a few hundreds of bronze/copper age books that have humidity ripples that if flattened would move them up in grade considerably. But even VF would only add a buck or two to the value.
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glorkar Posts: 689
5/23/2022
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From what I understand there's quite the art to pressing books. Be ready to destroy a handful of books before you get the hang of the basics if you buy your own press.
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+2
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Ronbatman Administrator Posts: 2530
5/23/2022
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Here at Comics Price Guide, we have been pressing books for a year and a half now. I've pressed thousands of books now. I agree with Glorkar, it's an art mixed with science.
Here are what I consider to be common rookie mistakes.
1. Not knowing when to stop working on a book. You cannot get every stain out but if you keep trying you will damage the book.
2. Pressing the book too much and flattening the spine.
3. Knowing which technique to use on which book and which type of stain, dirt, wrinkle, or tan line.
The other piece is the financial benefit versus the cost. That's a whole different discussion.
Ron
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+3
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Xvipah73 Posts: 357
5/23/2022
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If the goal is pure profit then you have to do some serious number crunching/weighing of the benefits of a press/clean. Sometimes it's just not worth it.
But, I have had quite a few books pressed just because I wanted them to look better in my PC or in one of my displays.
Books I plan to actually send in for grading I send in with a press screen and let the professionals decide if a press would help at all.
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BasementComics Posts: 784
5/23/2022
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I've had Ronbatman press some books for me and I'm very pleased with the outcome. I still owe you some books Ron.
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+1
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Stumper Posts: 8
5/28/2022
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Thanks for the answers.
I may get a press just to play around with it on some of my books that are only worth a couple/three bucks if pressed flat.
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Comicgarage Posts: 13
9/13/2022
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I ve use a number of pressing services and they have all done nice jobs. The things I dont like are the turnaround times can be very long (not blaming the presser) just saying sometimes if you are trying to do things on a timeline it can throw things off and I still dont know for sure if the book got a bump or not. It can make big difference in 9.4/9.6/9.8 values. Plus it causes me to write run-on sentences.
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Ronbatman Administrator Posts: 2530
9/13/2022
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That was a fantastic run-on sentence. Congratulations. 
When you are evaluating a book for pressing there are some key things to look for.
1. Is the book dirty?
2. Are there wrinkles or creases that don't break color?
3. Is there tanning or a dust shadow on the book?
4. Does the book have a spine roll?
If your book doesn't have one or more of these things it isn't worth pressing.
At CPG, we have maintained a 1 week lead time for over a year now. If we got too busy, we would buy more presses.
R
edited by ronbatman on 9/13/2022
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