A nice long soaking

[Vol]

You did a great job.

[jezzeaepi]

I have never done any soaking before, but had a few newbie questions.

Does soaking do anything to degrade the card?
Is there anyway to tell if a card has been soaked, and if so do they have any less value?
Have people been doing this long enough to know the long term results? As in, does a soaked card look any different from a non soaked card 30 years later?

The soaking thing kind of reminds me how people used to trim down cards to make them fit into binders or just "look nicer," but 50 years down the road, people started to care about trimming. I just wonder if, 50 years from now, people will say"Oh, that tycobb has never been soaked, its worth twice as much!" Kind of how an antique is worth less if you clean it. Thoughts?

Edit to add, that clearly in this case it makes a ton of sense since the card had stuff stuck to it.


Peace,
Jesse

[FrankWakefield]

no, no, yes, no.


Pick an old T206 beater with scrapbook bits or dirt on it, and give it a try. Many of the 'nice' graded T206s are that nice because they were once pasted into a scrapbook. I'd guess that soaking has been going on for 80 years or so....

[jezzeaepi]

Thanks Frank.

[Rob D.]

Originally Posted by jezzeaepi

Does soaking do anything to degrade the card?

Hi Jesse,

Though cards that have been soaked certainly can and will receive high grades (both from hobbyists and third-party grading companies) it's worth mentioning that some collectors consider soaking to be a form of altering a card. Not on the level of trimming, coloring, erasing marks, etc, but still a form of alteration, in some people's minds.

So even though the card isn't degraded, there still are collectors opposed to soaking. Not as many as those who condemn other forms of alteration, obviously, but there are collectors who think that soaking a card is wrong.

[peterose4hof]

Can T202 Hassan Triple Folders be soaked? If so, any tips or suggestions?

Thanks!

[rp12367]

I destroyed a T212 last week, I had soaked a few beaters in the past. But this one lost half the ink on front... Any other issues/thoughts with T212's. Thx

[Exhibitman]

I once had a T212 that looked like it had been intentionally saturated with oil which had gotten quite dark over the ages I guess. I asked around with some conservators and one recommended a product called "Bestine"; said it would remove some of the oily residue but not all. I used it on the card and removed a great deal of the oil. Turned the card from trash to something that was suitable as a filler. It did not affect the printing at all but did leave the white of the card grayish. Now, given that the card was entirely a dark brown stain before, it was a great improvement, but I'd not do it on a nicer card without testing first.

[mdschulze]

I've got a t206 with old tape residue on the top and bottom. The card is stained but not sticky at all. Will soaking this card help remove the tape stain? Thanks for everyone's input... interesting thread!