The Doctor is in.

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Posted By: HandsAtNeck

My first attempt to improve the appearance of a card is complete and was successful. The card was from the early '50s and had a bit of staining. I tried soaking it in deionized water. On the first pass (of a half hour soak and dry using paper towels pressed by a heavy book, changed daily, over several days) about 75% of the stain disappeared. On the second pass, no apparent improvement was noted, however, the paper towel did become slightly discolored, so I guess that it had an effect.

This was not a baseball card, it was a Topps non-sport card. But now I am going to check on some of my baseball beaters and near beaters from 30s-50s and see if I can improve some staining. What is next? Thoughts?

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Posted By: ScottIngold

Oh boy....Here we go.

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Posted By: Josh K.

where exactly does one find dionized water?

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Posted By: HandsAtNeck

I am not sure that it is important, Josh. My thinking was that distilled water contains salts (I'm not sure if it's enuff to worry about) that could deposit inside of the card as it dries. To get deionized water, it is easiest if you know a person who has some association with a chemical lab (maybe a drug store could have this).

Edited to add:

Or if you gotta have it, I will send you some.