Why aren’t slabs more resistant to scratching/cracking/breaking?

[steve B]

Originally Posted by NonSportDaniel

I think that what I might try for the stamp concern is a scanning electron microscope with an EDAX attached. Unless the stamp was oversized you shouldn't have to damage it. Reference would be important for that application as I don't think I could put the composition together from an elemental scan as I don't know enough about the stamp paper composition/ glue backing/ ink top coats in that industry. You might need a combination of tools. The Smith's Detection ATR FTIRs are great, but you would probably crush a portion of the stamp.

The work that's being done is impressive so far.

Like
"the plates wore out too fast because the pigment was rust"
Xref says..... no iron present. And by the way brown, red brown and dark brown are chemically identical.....


I wouldn't mind seeing that sort of thing applied to maybe brown/black Lenox, or Blue Old mill.

I can make some guesses about the paper composition, but things were weird back around 1910. Lots of technology changes both in papers and inks.

[jjbond]

I don't care that they scratch or break.
I just want them to be made with a UV blocker....

[jchcollins]

Originally Posted by jjbond

I don't care that they scratch or break.
I just want them to be made with a UV blocker....

Agreed. To me this is just the graders being cheap. Also given the grade of plastic they use, I would imagine they haven't found a great way to put the UV coating on and keep it looking decent.

Many of the magnetic cases (UltraPro, ProMold) do have UV protection and that is good, but you can always see at least a light film on the cases and junk sometimes from that if you hold them in a certain light. Again my guess is that PSA, et al. haven't found a way yet to make that suit their budget. The plastic that UltraPro uses is slightly thicker and would seem to be of better quality.

[steve B]

Polycarbonate blocks essentially all UV we would be concerned with.
Polystyrene blocks about 98%

So both are effective UV blocking materials.

Even toploaders block some UV, although the older ones are readily damaged by it they do protect the contents.

[jjbond]

Originally Posted by jchcollins

Agreed. To me this is just the graders being cheap. Also given the grade of plastic they use, I would imagine they haven't found a great way to put the UV coating on and keep it looking decent.

Many of the magnetic cases (UltraPro, ProMold) do have UV protection and that is good, but you can always see at least a light film on the cases and junk sometimes from that if you hold them in a certain light. Again my guess is that PSA, et al. haven't found a way yet to make that suit their budget. The plastic that UltraPro uses is slightly thicker and would seem to be of better quality.

Besides making it a better product, I always thought it would be a good business investment for the grading company. Back when I collected comics, I marveled that you could have a slabbed NM comic that had since suffered significant fading while in the slab. Slabs, and their labeled grades, are effectively advertisements for the grading company, and a faded card should have a matching grade if we want to trust the grading company.