Lessons I Learned: Cleaning & Pressing ✅ Advice on Restoring Your Comics

I’ve been collecting comics and cleaning/pressing comics for a long time, and there a few things I wish I knew when I started.
➡️Nothing feels better than “refreshing” some of your comics, removing some of the blemishes, and having it look cleaner and newer than before.
But there are a few things to know about cleaning and pressing- including what you can and can’t remove, and other advanced techniques.
➡️In this video I’ll teach you what defects are cleanable/pressable, and whether or not there are other techniques you should know about that can help you, and other useful tips for restoring your comics to their glory.
Watch the full video to get all the info on cleaning/pressing!
🎬 More on Restoring Your Comics here:
Common defects explained: • Common Comic Book Defe...
Printer defects explained: • What Are Printer Defec...
How to clean comics: • How to Clean Comic Boo...
Pressing part 1: • Comic Book Pressing (P...
Pressing part 2: • Comic Book Pressing (P...
Pressing part 3: • Comic Book Pressing (P...
Pressing Q&A: • Your Questions About P...
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#CleaningComics #PressingComics #RegieCollectsComics #regiecollects #comicswoldier #comics #RestoringComics

[@prehistoricturtlesaurus5309]

Great vid. For me there's nothing like taking a white cover that's smudged with ink transfer and making that sunova pearly again. It can really transform it into something much more aesthetic. Foxing... mold and mildew are my nemesis. I won't keep any book that smells like mildew and for me to keep any book with foxing it's gotta be something that's unaffordable for me to get in high grade. Even then I want it quarantined in a slab... Although, to the best of my knowledge foxing doesn't really "infect" other books, especially when they're bagged.

[@allenoliver5119]

I just got a bunch of cleaning supplies and a press and am excited to finally learn how to do this myself :)

[@dougbratton7309]

Great tips as always - the photos are definitely one I wish I had known about when I first got back into the hobby.

[@chadstrauss7219]

Regie this is crazy. 3 weeks ago I started cleaning and pressing comics. Overall its going well but I had a handful of comics not come out quite as I would have hoped (under hang cover, book still has moisture in it a week later, reversion...etc). But like I said overall its going really well. I got my start watching your cleaning and pressing videos over and over...........and then watched them again. You literally inspired me and gave me the confidence to give it a try, and I am glad I did. A few days ago I was going to email you and ask if you would be willing to share what you learned over the years and what you would do differently today vs a couple of years ago. Then I see this video, which I haven't watched it yet. I got impulsive and had to comment right away. Thank you for your videos on cleaning and pressing. Thank you for taking the time to put such a well thought out set of instructions/suggestions together. I was so nervous or overwhelmed to get started cleaning and pressing and your videos gave me the confidence to give it a try. Thank you!

[@Matthew.E.Kelly.]

Check out Kaptain Myke on KZbin, his videos & website helped take me through several years of cleaning & pressing in about 2 years. I learned *so much* in 2 short years that I went from sending my books to 3rd parties in the area to having the people who worked at 3rd party cleaners & pressers asking _me_ what I'd done to different books they saw before & after grading. I don't know how long Myke has been at it for sure but it's a *very* long time. I'm currently doing an exterior overlay with peroxide & distilled water to clean a Ms. Marvel #9 😎 this thing was a creamy yellowing shade when it came to me & it's just about as bright white as the day it was printed now.

[@RegieCollects]

You are very welcome bro. Good luck!

[@chadstrauss7219]

@@Matthew.E.Kelly. Thank you I will definitely check Kaptain Myke out. I appreciate it.

[@Johnthecomicguy]

Great points Reg. Your pressing/cleaning videos were the very first among many that got me into pressing and cleaning a few years back. I pressed every book in my entire collection that would benefit from it and have my press going every day for about a year. It was a habit and seeing the difference between the books before and after we’re amazing. My made slight changes to my methods as I got more experienced and am fortunate that I haven’t ruined a single book…even when I was new and experimenting. Shall I refer to you as my comic pressing Sensei? I think so! Have a great weekend bro!

[@RegieCollects]

Lol. Good stuff brother. Appreciate the feedback. 👊🏾

[@HONDACR919USA313]

Got a press for my birthday still scared to use it lol

[@prehistoricturtlesaurus5309]

You don't have any cheap dollar book to learn with? Your in luck, I have a deal on right now... 1,000 youngblood comics for 100$

[@Matthew.E.Kelly.]

Time to hit up the dollar bins, my man!

[@sean1hanna]

Reggie, it’s not called mishandling… it’s called love 😂 some books just have had a lot more love than others.

[@RegieCollects]

🤣😆 my bad.

[@mikestukes801]

Learned a lot from this. Thanks again bruh 😎

[@thepewbroswreeo5126]

Thanks for the help Reggie

[@Kpsoeren]

Helpful, thank you.

[@louis4352]

Thanks! Great video!

[@JesterJAC13]

Great video, Regie! Saved to favorites so I can always go back to this video and see where to find the other "pressable and cleanable" videos can be found. Hope you have a great week!

[@richardzaric2524]

All good advice, Regie. I've learned to clean and press and it has produced instant results. I've been doing it for about 6-8 months.

[@RegieCollects]

Boo-yah

[@l.greenemachine66]

Thanks for the information. I've always wanted to learn that myself out of press books. Had a chance to buy a press couple months ago for a $100. I just didn't have the money. Otherwise I'd have bought it and started learning. Again thanks for the information and I'll catch you on the next one.

[@best9642]

Solid video

[@RegieCollects]

👊🏾

[@Airspider23]

I still feel so on the fence about cleaning & pressing not being restoration. There are people doing this in the Sports Card world now…selling cleaners for your cards to help you “get a grade bump”. It all seems like such a scam. We know pressed books revert to the original state after time. There have been videos showing that. I have seen “pressers” complain that CGC took to long & their “press came out”…that sounds like a trick not a service. Like I said, REALLY on the fence 🕸😂🕸

[@robertt9342]

I think some pressing if done properly can be permanent, for specific flaws. but yes it’s because they are trying to scam another buyer because people by the grade and not the book. It’s one of the reasons why I have low opinion of grades in cases because they are only valid at the time of slabbing, and years down the road it doesn’t mean much, Let alone the other damage that occur while being in the slab.

[@RegieCollects]

Do what makes sense to you. 👊🏾

[@Airspider23]

@@robertt9342 I have to agree there. We don’t know where people are storing their collections. Just because the slab is pretty & says 9.8, doesn’t mean the book inside still is. That’s actually how I met Regie…a frantic DM over my first slab purchase. I bought a 9.8 which had shifted during shipping. The seller packed it very well & it still couldn’t withstand the mighty powers of the post office. I finally got it to straighten out in the slab, but even during that original conversation the topic, “is it still a 9.8” did come up.

[@Airspider23]

@@RegieCollects always 🕸👍🕸

[@prehistoricturtlesaurus5309]

Word. How slabs aren't uv protected is absurd!

[@jugglaassassin]

Never heard of it called “foxing” but I get that out, not with a standard cleaning. Staple rust stains was my newest feat. I press, repress and press again when it comes to modern books. I was experimenting with different temps and times and humidity… it’s mind boggling I haven’t found a fix all to wavy books but I sure as hell decreases the appearance of the ways but it’s still not perfect.

[@robertt9342]

So what name did you know it by. It makes me weary that you didn’t know what it is.

[@prehistoricturtlesaurus5309]

Yeah. "Foxing" is the standard term. It comes from antique book collecting terms. It's a type of mold that saturates the paper rather than lives on the surface. It's almost like trying to get grease outta paper.

[@Matthew.E.Kelly.]

So far the only thing I've found to get rid of foxing _almost_ completely is a combination of peroxide, distilled water, & LED flash treatment, & that's after using polymer eraser, Absorene, & a dry erase pad to get the surface layers of it worn down. Foxing can be nearly impossible to remove if the book was kept in certain conditions. I've gotten enough of it out that CGC didn't mention it on grader notes, but only a handful of times on Silver & Bronze Age books. Once it's in there it's *in* there.

[@maskedsnow2324]

I feel like you listen to my suggestion. Thanks so much!

[@RegieCollects]

What suggestion was that?

[@maskedsnow2324]

@@RegieCollects you out a video out on what topics should be covered, I suggested this one

[@panoz702]

Thanks for the video, I've been collecting on and off since the 80s and just getting a little more involved with it lately. I love the look of slabs in my collection and have new and old comics I'd like to send out to be graded. My question. Is it a good idea to send on both new and old comics to be cleaned and pressed before grading?

[@RegieCollects]

That’s a matter of perspective preference in some way. I believe that all comics can benefit from a clean and press. The head graded and now President of CGC told me that a clean/press can improve a books grade by a half to a full grade-depending upon the book. A newer book-even one printed last week-could have fingerprints or other pressable defects which could impact the grade if not addressed. Often times newer books also have wavy paper due to modern paper and printing. While a wavy book is permissible in a 9.8 how does it look in a perfect case?? I personally try to take my best shot on goal when submitting a book to be graded so as to prevent wasting money or doubting my approach when the books finally return. If you don’t already have your CGC membership consider using my affiliate link in the description of my videos.

[@RegieCollects]

Wavy paper: kzbin.info/www/bejne/iqu1p5psftaqqLc

[@panoz702]

Awesome! Thank you so much for the advice.

[@panoz702]

@@RegieCollects Thank you so much for your advice.

[@davidmitchell8582]

Regie thanks for this awesome video on cleaning and pressing. You have definately encouraged me to try my own cleaning and pressing, something I was on the fence about. For those highly valuable books, I think I will stick with a 3rd party service. Who do you recommend?

[@RegieCollects]

I don’t make recommendations for 3-party pressers. If you check out my discord there is an entire room dedicated to this topic. I haven’t worked with anyone that I could recommend.

[@davidmitchell8582]

@@RegieCollects Regie, thanks for the fast response. I will check out the information you recommended. Best Regards!!

[@gillywritescomics]

Great info. Reggie, any plans to do a cleaning guide video? Also, are there any reputable 3rd party cleaning and pressing services that you know of? I believe CGC has similar services, but I'd love to have them pressed and cleaned beforehand, and then I send them out to CBCS for grading. I know with the delays in getting comics graded, and memberships, I wonder if there are any great, economical clean & press comic book services that are worth using.

[@RegieCollects]

Check the description of the video. I've done about a half dozen videos on cleaning and pressing. Some folks that are doing cleaning and pressing as a side hustle learned from my videos. :-) I do not recommend third party pressers. There are a lot of folks that will give you recommendation however. If you are not on the discord server, you might want to check it out. We have a room setup for cleaning, pressing, etc. It's all free of course. Link in the description.

[@brianvera3563]

Do you happen to have a video showing or discussing the method for pressing signed comics?

[@RegieCollects]

It’s the exact same as non-signed books. Search for “Regie Collects Pressing” and you’ll find the multi-part series.

[@brianvera3563]

@@RegieCollects thank you sir, much appreciated brother!

[@RegieCollects]

👊🏾

[@mr-vet]

I’ve been sorting through the comics I have for submission to CGC and CBCS (sending 10-15 to each). I still need to thin out the 50 or so that passed my initial chop. I Don;t plan on pressing any of them…I will clean a few of them that have light colored covers/noticeable stains, but only with a microfiber cloth gum erasers. It’ll be be first submission.

[@RegieCollects]

Good luck.

[@johnscott3233]

Hi Reggie - quick question: 1st time presser here. I recently sent some books to CCS pressing (fast track). They came back graded and supposedly pressed (I have to go home and check). When I send in to CCS do they press AND grade for one price? I thought those were two different shipments I had to do. The reason I don't think they were pressed is they came back with lower grades than I expected. Something is off, but I won't know until I take a good look at them.

[@RegieCollects]

CCS doesn’t grade. CCS cleans and presses books. Grading is done by CGC. Both are owned by the same company but it’s two different divisions. Books sent to CGC for grading and pressing first given to ccs then turned over to CGC. Hope this helps.

[@christiantolliver4042]

I send a lot of books through CCS. Do they just press or do they clean also? Is cleaning extra?

[@RegieCollects]

Books are always cleaned before being pressed

[@JosueTorres28]

Who do yall recommend as 3rd party service?

[@George-de6hd]

So many People out there that don’t know what there doing or don’t understand what there doing just ruining comics

[@christophertomasello1227]

I'm too scared to press my Avengers 1 in the traditional way so instead I'm going to press it for about 3 days with the power off and see if that makes a difference

[@RegieCollects]

Ok

[@Voxclamantis]

I've recently learned that some non-color breaking spine ticks are not pressable, same with finger bends. I thought if it wasn't color breaking it could be pressed - but recently learned that's not necessarily the case.

[@Matthew.E.Kelly.]

Never saw non-color breaking spine or staple stress that couldn't be removed by using 50lbs card stock underneath the cover in addition to a mag board at the centerfold & on top. The bottom/base layer is usually 2 mag boards but sometimes I'll use 3. The key is humidification & press time. You definitely can't fix all spine or staple stress without a considerable time under cold press *after* the initial heated pressing, I've found 24 hours to be sufficient for those kind of ticks. There can be additional presses to fix finger bends & creases that don't break color, but by the time I'm taking those out the spine & staples stress lines are gone. I hope you find a way to get them out that works for you, my methods are time consuming & goddam irritating!

[@thepantscommandme]

It all depends on how much effort you want to put into it. I purchased some Transformers that were in a poly bag 3 pack that had the metal ring on the package for hanging imprinted on the top book because they were stored with the flap folded over. After a first pressing the ring was still imprinted on the cover so I repressed the book with a circular piece of card stock under the impression which raised it and then repressed it without the extra cardstock and the cover came out perfect. There's also a technique of using a 2 inch ball bearing on cover creases. I've learned it's all about heat, time, moisture, and patience.

[@Voxclamantis]

@@thepantscommandme to what extent will 3rd party pressers do this kind of time? Are these the kind of things only possible if one presses oneself?

[@RegieCollects]

Not certain that I’ve seen a non-color breaking crease or bend that can’t be removed with a press. It’s all about moisture, heat, pressure and time.

[@Voxclamantis]

@@RegieCollects will third party pressers typically put that kind of time on persistent non color breaking defects? Will CSS really work those? Hero Restoration? Or are those ones only pressing yourself will fix?

[@josephbattiest1271]

Out of curiosity, in the past when you sent your books to be cleaned and pressed if they did not process it for the cleaning and pressing did CGC refund you the difference?

[@RegieCollects]

I do not understand this question.

[@josephbattiest1271]

@@RegieCollects Sorry, I thought you meant that your books were sent in for the service of cleaning and pressing and everything else but CGC said that they would not benefit from it and they were only graded and slabbed only. Or were he books still cleaned and pressed?

[@RegieCollects]

I almost always have books clean and pressed before grading.

[@joebroadhead7733]

How to prevent staple crunches? After pressing, some of my staples pull back into the book. Not detaching, but pulls in a bit.

[@RegieCollects]

You may be applying too much pressure to the book. Back off the tension.

[@fletch3538]

Your press may be pressing down unevenly when pulling the lever down that can shift everything a little bit. Like the front may make contact first then the back as you pull the handle. If evening out pressure does not work try evening out the screws holding the press plate so it sets down nice and flat all at one time.

[@Matthew.E.Kelly.]

Depends on the kind of press you have 🤔 pressure works differently between a clamshell press & a swing-away press. But it sounds like you're using too much pressure regardless of the type of press. I even out pressure across clamshells with a 4" clamp I affix to the front of the shell after closing it.

[@consumetheliving]

thickness of paper you use under the front and rear cover. 60 pound card stock is a good general rule of thumb for most books but I sometime sub in 2 pieces of standard printer paper when I feel like the card stock is to thick for the cover.

[@Matthew.E.Kelly.]

@@consumethelivingI use 50lbs with the same results, I usually reserve copy or printer paper for chemical overlays (distilled water, hydrogen peroxide, solutions & mixtures, etc.), I'd be interested in seeing how other people use different weights for different applications 👍

[@johnscott3233]

Wait....cleaning and pressing can't fix my no-cover issue???

[@RegieCollects]

Actually, it probably could. 🤷🏾‍♂️😆

[@thekmfdmmachine3919]

Whats the biggest grade jump any one has personally witnessed ?

[@gumption76]

At the 6:00 minute mark, you held the book to turn pages by pinching the book halfway along the edge. You really are inviting creasing at that pinch point when you do that. Sorry - I’ve been collecting comic books for almost 40 years now and seeing that always drives me crazy. Best to turn pages by leafing at the upper right corner of the page, with supporting hand underneath.

[@leewood6388]

Cleaning and pressing has added a whole new dimension to the hobby for me. I love making my books look as good as they can be. I mishandled a lot of books when I was a kid and it feels great to sharpen them up. Now that I've been cleaning and pressing for a few years...I've turned it into a great side hustle and have a small second income.