Protective sleeves for cards 1 1

[Sandra j garman]

Hi, I recently am going thru my collection of cards to sell,  trade them. This is new to me. Does quality of the sleeve protector have a lot to do with value of card? Obviously,  if you have a rare card I would put it in a hard sleeve, but the average card ok to sell with just protective sleeve? Thank you in advance ☺

[northkorea]

On 4/9/2022 at 7:13 AM, Sandra j garman said:

Hi, I recently am going thru my collection of cards to sell,  trade them. This is new to me. Does quality of the sleeve protector have a lot to do with value of card? Obviously,  if you have a rare card I would put it in a hard sleeve, but the average card ok to sell with just protective sleeve? Thank you in advance ☺

The main thing to consider is the material of the holders. If they're PVC or have plasticizers, over time, you risk acid migration, which will cause burn damage to your cards (similar to a chemical burn on clothing). Generally, I find that semirigid holders ("CardSaver" or "UltraPro" branded) are better for shipping, as toploaders tend to warp, allow cards to slide, fit weird, etc. By contrast, semirigid holders tend to prevent the cards from moving around. To get additional protection, consider securing the semirigid holder between pieces of cardboard.

For long-term storage, consider that the boxes most people use for storing cards can also be a source of acids. Just be aware of your storage options and look for those choices that are the least likely to degrade (or create degrading environments) over time.