Restoration 
We're proud to offer a revolutionary process in comic book restoration called leaf casting, which has dramatically improved the appearance of comics we restore. Leaf casting is used by most historical conservationist labs across the world; incorporating this process into comic book restoration now brings us in line with other fields of historical ephemera. Gone is the traditional method of piece replacement, adding each piece by hand. Leaf casting accomplishes this in one step, creating a seamless fill that matches thickness and flexibility. Our color touch methods have also evolved, which in hand with leaf casting has produced better grades and higher value then before. This means the field of candidacy has now broadened. But the most important question still remains, should you restore your comic book, or leave it in its current state? In an ideal world, all comics could and would be restored to perfection. But because of the comic market, many times it is prudent not to restore a comic even if it is in poor shape or has a precarious tear threatening to worsen. Many times the cost of restoration exceeds the value of the comic itself, even after being restored. Other times restoration will actually devalue a comic, such as high grade comics. Sometimes only small repairs should be done to a comic. The answer involves finding a balance between cost and value. The questions below will help guide you to that answer. Once you've determined that your comic book may be a good candidate for restoration, the next step is to e-mail us front and back cover scans of your comic. After we review the scans, we will e-mail you our recommendation as to whether or not restoration should be done, as well as a ballpark estimate of restoration cost and our estimated apparent grade (if feasible). If we think your comic book would benefit from restoration, the final step is to submit the comic to us for screening and exact determination of cost.
When should I not restore my comic book?As a rule of thumb, you should not consider restoring any comic better than VG condition, nor any comic younger than 1963. The market for unrestored vintage comic books better than VG is very strong and restoring them can actually decrease their value. Comics also become more common after 1963, and values are not high enough to absorb the cost of restoration. Sometimes a comic is too low grade to consider restoring, or they exhibit particular defects that hinder restoration. Brittle interior pages are not repairable; no comic book can be restored or conserved if the pages have begun to chip along the edges or if the spine is splitting. Comics missing pages or front and back covers cannot be restored unless a donor is provided with the comic. Please check our re-creation service if your comic book is missing its cover. Certain kinds of defects are very costly to repair and/or impede a comic's restored grade, including excessive tape and certain kinds of stains, cover fading, excessive glue repairs, multiple long creases, heavy spine wear, or a considerable amount of missing paper. Color touching missing artwork is the most time consuming aspect of comic restoration, so the more creasing, wear and missing paper a copy exhibits, the higher the restoration cost. Click here to view a list of comic books that may be considered for restoration if they are lower than VG in grade. If you don't find your book on this list, it's likely not worth investing the cost of our services. If your book is on this list and in VG or less condition, please e-mail us one scan of the front and back cover of your book. Based on your scan, we will provide you with an opinion on whether the book should be restored, a ballpark estimate of cost and grade, and an estimated turn time. What are the three steps in restoration?The first step is what we call conservation, which involves cleaning and/or minor repairs. This is the least time consuming and most crucial of the three steps. The second step is piece fill using leaf casting. After the cover (and interior if necessary) have been cleaned and prepped, the wrap is leafcasted, which involves filling all missing areas of paper with fibers suspended in a liquid medium. The fill is nearly seamless, and the thickness and flexibility of the original paper is closely matched. The third and final step is color touch, in which aesthetic repairs are applied to the book to achieve the maximum apparent grade. We use acrylics to blend filled areas and recreate missing art by hand, the most time consuming of the three steps. The result is a comic book that looks natural and as perfect as possible. This final step is considered "full" restoration. It's important to point out that these steps are not mutually exclusive. In order to leafcast a book, it must first be cleaned and prepped (conservation). For full restoration, all three steps must be taken. Step #1: ConservationConservation work involves removing unnecessary material from a comic (dirt, stains, tape), cleaning, and then minor repair if necessary (tear seals, support, staple replacement). Conservation work typically runs between $75 and $300. Because the purpose of conservation is primarily structural repair (no aesthetic repairs) lower grade comics may only marginally increase in grade. The type of comics that are recommended for conservation work are attractive copies that suffer from one major defect, such as a cleanly split spine, detached centerfold or cover, or large stain. Because cleaning a comic book skirts the line between "restored" and "unrestored" it is important to distinguish the types of cleaning available. There are three types: dry, solvent and water. Dry removes dirt and soiling, while solvent helps remove tape, some stains and yellowing. Water cleaning rids covers of tanning, wrinkling and most stains. A good conservation candidate would be a Marvel Mystery #3 that appears VF but is actually a GD- due to a cleanly split spine. Because a simple spine seal and pressing would drastically increase the grade and visual appeal of the book, this would be an excellent candidate for conservation. A bad example would be a Whiz #15 that also exhibits a clean spine split, but the entire spine of the cover has been taped for reattachment, and there is a large 2"x2" piece missing from the back cover. In this case, there are three factors that lower feasibility; the additional cost of tape removal, the lower apparent grade after conservation (because the missing piece will not be replaced), and the lower value of Whiz #15. In each case, the margin between cost and value does not justify the expense of conservation. Suitable candidates would be any Golden Age ('30s and '40s) or Atomic Age ('50s) worth at least $500 in current value, and would include every book listed in the restoration list below. We recommend conservation work on only a small number of Silver Age though, mostly the ones listed below as well. 
This copy of Detective #35 exhibited a cleanly split spine, a perfect conservation candidate. Sealing the spine and reattaching the cover was inexpensive and drastically increased the book's appearance, grade, and desirability.
This Batman #1 interior suffered heavy wrinkling from improper storage. Conservation effectively removes any trace of waves, bends or wrinkles in comics, no matter how severe they are.
A More Fun #26 that at first glance appears to be beyond help. Closer inspection revealed that the brown tape was removable, and the white area at the bottom was actually paper from another book that had adhered to the cover.
Back cover pictures of the More Fun #26. Notice that nearly all of the ads were unaffected by either the tape or the removal.
Step #2: Leaf castingLeaf casting essentially fills in all missing paper to a cover or interior page. It's the step in between conservation (cleaning/prepping) and full restoration (color touch) and often produces dramatic results, particularly in covers missing a lot of paper. The average cost of conservation/leaf casting is $200-$500. Because this revolutionary process is such a vast improvement over tedious piece fill by hand, we can now offer only cleaning and leaf casting without color touch (step #3) as a cheap alternative. If you opt to just clean and leafcast your comic book, you will always have the option to submit it for color touch at a later date. For our list of suitable issues worthy of leaf casting, go here. 
Even though this copy of Marvel Mystery #3 exhibited extensive tape stains, the high value of the book justified the cost of conservation and leaf casting. We determined that cost of full restoration would not be feasible due to the extreme amount of color touch required.
The same cleaned and leafcasted Marvel Mystery #3 from at left, but exhibiting the outside cover. Note the diminished tape stains.
Considered one of the rarest issues of Planet, this copy of issue #15 was the perfect leaf casting candidate; very little cleaning involved, and most of the missing areas of paper were white, making the blend appear more invisible. This copy can be color touched at a later date if desired.
 An example of a leafcast interior wrap. This particular wrap still needs color touch to replace the missing art in the panels, but the results are stunning considering its poor shape prior to work. Step #3: Color TouchColor touch is the final step after conservation and leaf casting, and is considered to be a "full" restoration job. The goal is to achieve the highest possible apparent grade for your comic. Total cost for a full restoration job can run anywhere from $400 to over $3,000 depending on the extent of damage that must be repaired. Because full restoration costs are often considerably higher than conservation and leaf casting, the increase in apparent grade (and thus value) must offset the cost. A good candidate for full restoration mostly depends on the book's value. Because the cost can quickly exceed $1,000 only the most valuable comics should be considered. This is why the list of potential candidates for full restoration is only a fraction of the list of conservation or leaf casting candidates. While it would be great if every low grade comic was worth fully restoring, there are too just many hours invested in color touch to make most comics feasible candidates. For our list of candidates worthy of full restoration, go here. 
A close-up of the dramatic results we achieve with full restoration. Amateur restoration was removed from the Adventure #40 cover, resulting in significant color loss. Leaf casting and color touch has brought this book back to life, with a fresh appearance not unlike a Mile High copy.
The first picture of this Four Color #16 shows the cover conserved and leafcasted, while the second picture displays the final product after color touch (full restoration). The results are eye-popping; color touch is the most time consuming step of the three.
This Batman #1 is a great example of what stain removal and color touch can accomplish. In the past, a book with a stain this severe would have not restored higher than a 5.0 or 5.5. Our new techniques help comics achieve much higher apparent grades. It's hard to imagine this is the same book after restoration.
The before picture of this All-American #16 cover is after cleaning (step #1). The second picture showcases the final product after leaf casting (step #2) and color touch (step #3) have been introduced. Notice the seamless repairs along the spine.
How is cost determined?Our service is $75/hour. Once you submit your comic, our Pro-screen will compare the book's potential value against various scenarios of repair to determine the most advantageous course of action, if any. The five options are, 1) do nothing to the comic, 2) perform only conservation work, 3) perform conservation and leaf casting, 4) perform full restoration work, 5) only press the comic to preserve its unrestored state. We will recommend work only if we feel it is advantageous from both a preservation and investment standpoint. How long does it take to restore my comic book?Our turnaround time varies widely, depending on what we are doing to your comic. Conservation takes the least amount of time, typically 2-3 months. Leaf casting does not take much longer, usually 3-4 months. Full restoration can run anywhere from 4-9 months, depending on our workload and how much restoration your comic book needs. What are CGC's grading standards for restored comics?Restored comics graded by CGC are identified with a purple label, rather than the blue label given for unrestored comic books. CGC's grading standards for restored comics consists of three components; an apparent grade, the extent of restoration, and the quality of restoration materials used. The apparent grade follows the same standard as for unrestored comics, ranging from 0.5 to 10.0 (most in the 1.0 to 9.0 range), but is printed on a purple label rather than blue. Extent of restoration has three classifications: Slight, Moderate, and Extensive. Slightly restored comics include cover and interior cleaning, tear seals, support, and very minor color touch. Moderately restored comics include all of that plus minor piece fill and more color touch. Extensive comics include any kind of piece fill, including major grafts of up to 1/3 of a cover or page, and any amount of color touch. Quality of restoration is ranked as Professional (P) or Amateur (A). Professional restoration encompasses the traditional materials used by a professional comic restorer such as rice paper, wheat paste, methyl cellulose, and acrylic or water based paint. Amateur restoration denotes the use of markers and pens (color touch that results in bleedthrough) and hard glues (basically anything not water soluble). Trimming is considered amateur. An example of a restored CGC grade for a moderately restored Batman #1 with professional work would be "Batman #1, CGC app. 6.5 Moderate (P)." Staple cleaning or replacement, replaced wraps, and fully married covers will receive a "Qualified" grade, which is represented by a green label. How is value determined for a restored comic?To understand the relationship between grade and value, either the Overstreet Price Guide or http://www.gpanalysis.com is required. A restored comic is never worth as much as an unrestored comic in the same grade, but a restored 8.0 can be worth more than an unrestored 4.0. Also, a book graded apparent 4.0 (slight) may be worth the same as the same book graded apparent 6.0 (moderate) or apparent 8.5 (extensive). To illustrate the relationship between value, apparent grade and extent of restoration, below is a chart showing the value of Fantastic Four #1 as it changes with the increase of apparent grade and extent of restoration.
In summary, the more extensive the restoration, the more negative impact it has on value. Conversely, the higher the apparent grade, the more positive impact it has on value. Maximum value is obtained with the highest possible grade and the slightest amount of restoration. Rarely can you achieve a high apparent grade with minimal restoration (unless you restore comics above 4.0, which we do not recommend). While conservation is typically slight or moderate in nature, it focuses more on structural repairs and does little to increase the apparent grade of most candidates. Conversely, full restoration includes aesthetic enhancement to achieve the highest possible grade, but are often extensive (and costly) in nature. Another interesting observation is how the value points begin to converge as the grade lowers. This shows that restoration has very little effect on low grade copies (and a tremendous effect on high grade copies). What are some examples of comparing cost to value?Let's say you submitted three books for restoration, a Batman #1 (1940) in Fair 1.0, a Justice League #1 (1960) in Good 2.0, and a Spider-man #1 (1963) in Good+ 2.5. Our evaluations give you the following information:
Batman #1 - restore to app 6.0 extensive, restoration cost $2200 (your cost $5,000) The results are as follows:
For the Batman #1, you find the Overstreet value in 6.0 to be $20,000. After plugging in a 6.0 grade and value into the graph, entering the "extensive" amount of work, the restoration cost of $2,200, and your investment of $5,000, we see the graph shows the restoration cost line below the value line, which means that this Batman #1 would be worth restoring, no matter the extent. This would be a very good restoration candidate.
For the JLA #1, the Overstreet value in 7.0 is $1,400, and you bought the book for $200 ten years ago. After entering the pertinent data, the chart shows that the cost of restoration would almost be break even if the work was slight. Because our evaluation labels the restoration as extensive, the cost is far above the value of the comic book in that restored grade. The JLA #1 would clearly not be a good restoration candidate, even if you had gotten the book for free.
For the Spidey #1, the Overstreet value in 6.0 is $4,000, and you have nothing into the comic, since your awesome Uncle was nice enough to give it to you as a gift. We see the cost line below the value line across the board. For this moderate restoration job, there is enough room to make restoration feasible. Had you paid say $1500 for this comic (the going rate for a 2.0 Spidey #1 these days), moderate restoration would have been a break-even proposition, with extensive restoration putting you in the red. Your initial investment is a big factor in determining whether you should restore or not. I'm ready to submit my comic book.If you have already e-mailed us scans of your comic and we think it could be a good restoration candidate, it's time to submit your comic to us. Generating a profile and creating a work order for your submission is very easy, but if you have any questions, please feel free to contact us. Once we e-mail you our estimate or Pro-screen, which includes cost of restoration, estimated apparent grade and extent of restoration, you can do your own cost analysis to determine if restoration is feasible. You will also need the Overstreet value of your comic plus your cost into the book. The list of comics best suited for restoration
1440 Halsey Way (Venture Building), Suite #114, Carrollton TX 75007 | 972-980-8040 |
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