Omnibus/OHC Graphic Novel Collectors discussion
Various display and storage questions
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Mod
I would believe the stacking issue. I stack my trade paperbacks because they’re paperbacks and I don’t have room for them otherwise. I used to stack my OHCs before I modified my bookshelf and the binding was definitely affected.
Mod
I dunno. Will have to do more research so I at least understand the problem.
As the hardcover usually extends lower than the pages, that means the pages are fighting gravity for their entire lives. Does that affect the spine of the books? I have seen some people post that they put folded tissues or paper towel under the pages between the hardcover front and back to support them. Do other rare book collectors do this or is it just a comics thing because we are nerds? Thanks!
Mod
I've heard that as well but haven't succumbed to propping up the pages. It makes sense, but my limited knowledge makes me think it applies more towards glued binding than sewn.
Mod
From a UK authority:
http://www.conservationregister.com/P...
Storage
Store books neatly, upright on bookshelves and do not allow them to lean sideways and become distorted. If possible, books should not come into contact with unsealed wood which can release organic acid vapours. Line shelves with conservation board (acid-free) to avoid this problem.
Packing books away
Small and medium books can be packed standing upright or lying flat, but never pack books with the front edge (fore-edge) down as this can damage the structure of the book and loosen the binding. Large books should be packed flat. If you need to see what is in a box easily, write a list of the box contents and stick it to the outside of the box.
From the US Library of Congress
http://www.loc.gov/preservation/care/...
Proper Storage of Books
Shelving books of similar size together, so that the face of the covers are maximally supported by the neighbors on each side
Keeping upright shelved books straight and not leaning (storing books lying flat is also good)
Mod
http://www.vam.ac.uk/content/articles...
On modern hardbacks and older books, particularly large books, the boards are bigger than the text block. When they are stored upright on a bookshelf, the text block is unsupported and will slowly 'drop' down to the shelf. In the beginning, this process distorts the spine: the top of the spine flattens, the bottom of the spine is pushed outwards and eventually the joints between the boards and spine begin to tear. This damage can be prevented by storing the book horizontally or, if vertically, within a book 'shoe'.
And what is a book shoe?
https://www.nedcc.org/free-resources/...
One more link to show how to make a book shoe:
https://archivesoutside.records.nsw.g...
Mod
Wow that’s some high maintenance book storage. Although I do appreciate keeping them safe and sound. I use book ends to keep them nice and vertical. But I’m more concerned with humidity at this point. My old house is so drafty I have to dehumidify it on top of using a wood stove otherwise the pages get wavy.
Mod
Yeah, that's pretty serious and wavy pages aren't completely recoverable.
Mod
Better home and garden has a version I like, a little thicker outside, and thinner internal shelves, feels more sturdy and has more color options. Amazon carries them and Walmart also often has them on sale.I’ll put up a new picture tonight.
I wonder if matte or gloss would be more tacky for books? Not that it would cause damage but books would be more difficult to shift around. Just an OCD thought.
Mod
@Donovan That's the kind of minor thing I was wondering about. I'm sure I'll stick with a matte if I have an option.
Whatever I get, I plan to raise them up about four inches either with castors which I'll hide, or some type of feet.
In regards to supporting the pages of an omnibus stored vertically, I measure, cut cardboard to size, and affix acid free backing board to the side in direct contact with the pages of each of my hardcovers. The first shelving options I used started making me nervous because as my collection grew, I saw the shelves start to bow, and I suffered from nightmares of waking up to a collapsed stack of books. I personally could never find heavy duty shelving that was rigid enough to support my collection in a way and cost I wanted, so I built my own bookcases. A bit time consuming, but built two so far and each only cost about $50-60 for materials. Especially the hardware I bought, won't find better quality in something like IKEA. Quality furniture is hard to find these days.
Mod
Funny, I went the same route for my statue collection for the exact same fear. I prefer that method for sure of building my own but I'm at the point where I really want this done (I've spent the last three years renovating my man cave.)
Anyone use Brodart covers - I want to start putting covers on my dust jackets but not sure what type to buy. Any suggestions and explanations are welcome!
Hi guys! I'm interested in how to properly display the coffee table books liked Behold .. Galactus and the upcoming Lee/Kirby King Size books. They are a novelty of course but somehow I like those huge things and I'm interested in how to put their impressive size to the best.
Karsten wrote: "Hi guys! I'm interested in how to properly display the coffee table books liked Behold .. Galactus and the upcoming Lee/Kirby King Size books. They are a novelty of course but somehow I like those..."
I actually ended up dedicating the bottom shelf on an Ikea Billy to them and their friends' height. This handles the Galactus edition, and the upcoming Kirby/Ditko releases as well as Library Edition Hellboys, Lone Wolf and Cub Gallery Edition, the weird dimension Frank Miller 300/Xerxes, Big Damn Sin City, Far Side box set, etc. It is wide enough though that it peaks out over the edge of the shelf, laugh.
Mod
If you have Ikea stuff, I believe the Eket vertically, with no middle shelf, will fit many of the tall stuff.
Thank you guys for your tips. Will try some ideas with Billy from IKEA.
I’m going to upgrade my whole storage system with Talas archival board, which seems to be the choice material for page support between covers to combat page drooping and potential damage to spines of my omnis. But here’s a question for you all that’s been kicking around in the back of my head now for some time: what are you doing with books that’re still sealed, if anything? I’ve got a number of books that I haven’t gotten around to reading yet, and for the most part I keep them sealed to increase value, if I ever choose or need to sell. Thin books seem to be wrapped tight enough and don’t have enough mass between the covers to be worried about. But my thick books? Looking at you Spider-Man by Stern. Starting to worry the droop is real and I’m doing it more harm by not unsealing. Part of me says ditch the plastic and get support under those pages stat, but another part says just tear open the bottom and stick the board in.
Anyone else staring down such a conundrum? These first world problems, man...
Spent a few hours this weekend replacing the random cardboard/backing board support I had under the pages of my omnis and OHCs with Talas archival board: https://www.talasonline.com/Heritage-...B-flute, 8x10 sheets have the perfect thickness for Marvel omnis and OHCs (at least). Measure and cut to width for each book, and for the sealed omnis I made a small slit in the plastic along the bottom corners and slid in a strip between the covers. Worked perfectly and gave me a few hours to just get lost in my thoughts with my collection. About 25% done with the project.
One of my books that I never previously made a support strip for is a 10 year old copy of Inferno: Crossovers. Let me tell you guys: the pages on it were sagging and the new Talas strip didn't sit flush with the bottom of the book. If you've never thought of adding support like this before, definitely give it consideration.
Mod
Blindzider wrote: "Dude, you are scaring me. I think we’ve brought this up before but I’ve considered storing books sideways, on their backs and stack up."To misquote: Good, good. Let the fear flow through you....
Haha. At worst, we’re talking about a millimeter or 2 of movement: the corners of the pages sagging down. Doesn’t seem like a lot, but it was noticeable as compared to a newer book where the Talas board would line up flush along the bottom of the front & back covers. I’m sure each book is affected differently depending on quality of binding, etc., but I’m not guessing: eventually everything loses to gravity. I posted before that this was a concern I was having, especially with some of my older, fatter, still-sealed books.
Personally, I’m against stacking: unsure about long term effects for the bottom few, and don’t find it aesthetically pleasing or providing easy access to all titles. These Talas boards really aren’t that much. I bought five 10-packs for $30 (shipping brought it to just under $50) and was averaging about 8 omnis per single sheet—that’s enough for 400 books in theory. I also noticed that they’re pretty impressive in terms of resistance to compression compared to things like cardboard, and again that acid-free archival quality: very nice. I’m betting I won’t ever have to replace them in my lifetime.
Mod
I really need to buy new shelving and move my Omnibus collection to the basement. Everyone suggests Kallax or Billy from Ikea. Does anyone know if you have to fasten these to the wall? I’m looking for bookshelves that will fit Omnis and Absolutes but do not need to be fastened, since my basement walls are not covered in drywall.
Ryan wrote: "I really need to buy new shelving and move my Omnibus collection to the basement. Everyone suggests Kallax or Billy from Ikea. Does anyone know if you have to fasten these to the wall? I’m looking ..."You don't have to fasten them to the wall but they include the things to do it if you want to.
Also I recommend buying the slimmer version of those bookshelves to prevent the shelves themselves to start slacking which tends to happen with wide bookshelves. I use Billy myself.
Thank you. When you mention the slimmer Billy shelf, do you mean the single shelf side only, or double as well? I know they come with the fasteners, but I guess my question is would they be nice and stable without using them?
Mod
But if you don’t have kids and there won’t be any near them, that’s up to you.
I too recommend narrower shelves to help keep them from sagging.
Thanks for the advice. I don’t have kids, but could in the future. I can’t fasten to studs because the walls are covered in insulation with basically a tarp material covering the insulation. Hard to describe properly. If they will stand fine on their own without lunatic kids climbing them, I should be ok. If the wife and I ever have a little rascal, I suppose I could do some parenting and keep them from climbing it too 😂
Ryan wrote: "Thank you. When you mention the slimmer Billy shelf, do you mean the single shelf side only, or double as well? I know they come with the fasteners, but I guess my question is would they be nice ..."
With "slimmer" I mean to get this: https://www.ikea.com/us/en/p/billy-bo...
rather than this: https://www.ikea.com/us/en/p/billy-bo...
Anyone ever heard of this? Any exceptions or does that only apply to certain types of binding (glued)?