Gnat the Beggar wrote:In many cases; even though the SW looks tight with no visible holes, the staples are totally rusted.
Mars wrote:Rusty staples can happen very easily in shrink and often I think shrink items are more prone for it to happen (and less chance to be discovered).There was one seller a few years ago that was selling off a ton (literally cases) of old TSR stuff in shrink (D&D, Star Frontiers, Gamma World, Boot Hill, MSH, etc). I bought about 20 items (I think) and the shrink was coming off of one of them so I removed it and while the cover looked NM, the staples inside were completely rusted. <Smarmy cover your ears> I ended ripping off the shrink of the rest of the items and most (about 16/20 had completely rusted staples).</Smarmy cover your ears> A lot of these were bought in bulk from this seller and then resold as well.The theory is that if they are stored longer term in some place where the moisture seeps in (like a warehouse or basement or storage locker) then the shrink traps it in and you get the rust. Open modules have a chance to breathe. I suspect a large number of "Mint in Shrink" modules actually have rusty staples - just don't check and ignorance will be bliss.
Gnat the Beggar wrote:I have seen the same problems with hundreds and hundreds of Judges Guild SWed products.For many (most) Judges Guild products, you can see the Staples even when it is still inside the sealed SW.In many cases; even though the SW looks tight with no visible holes, the staples are totally rusted.Judges Guild products are far worse for this problem than any other publisher.Main reason is that so much of the unsold Judges Guild Stock was stored for MANY years in non-climate controlled shipping containers and damp warehouses.It is actually rare to find a SWed Judges Guild product with no rust to the staples.
Badmike wrote:Gnat the Beggar wrote:I have seen the same problems with hundreds and hundreds of Judges Guild SWed products.For many (most) Judges Guild products, you can see the Staples even when it is still inside the sealed SW.In many cases; even though the SW looks tight with no visible holes, the staples are totally rusted.Judges Guild products are far worse for this problem than any other publisher.Main reason is that so much of the unsold Judges Guild Stock was stored for MANY years in non-climate controlled shipping containers and damp warehouses.It is actually rare to find a SWed Judges Guild product with no rust to the staples.Gnat has seen the mass of JG stuff I got, and a lot of it (even SW) was rusted beyond belief (and ended up in the trash can). Two things, as Gnat says, one that for years most JG stuff was stored in warehouses at Gulfport, Mississippi (hot, humid, near the ocean) and two the paper is basically newsprint and attracts moisture unlike higher quality paper.I've torn open plenty of SW JG stuff in the last year or so and you'd be surprised at the rusted staples revealed when some of it is open that is completely undetectable otherwise.Mike B.
Sea-to-sky-games wrote:Thanks for the info on the staples. Coming back to my point on authenticity - so what I'm gleaning from this thread is that, prior to standardized H-seam shrinkwrapping, and apart from the obvious rewraps, it's really difficult to determine whether shrink is original or not?
red_bus wrote:Or... experientia docet
smarmy1 wrote:red_bus wrote:Or... experientia docet My collection of pre-80's shrink is far too small to draw any useful conclusions. The H-seam is not always present. 8O My rule of thumb is if the shrink looks good and the item is minty fresh, buy it or bid on it; if the shrink is dirty or torn or the item does not look so minty, take a pass.
Badmike wrote:smarmy1 wrote:My collection of pre-80's shrink is far too small to draw any useful conclusions. The H-seam is not always present. 8O My rule of thumb is if the shrink looks good and the item is minty fresh, buy it or bid on it; if the shrink is dirty or torn or the item does not look so minty, take a pass.Much like my rules about women.... Mike B.
smarmy1 wrote:My collection of pre-80's shrink is far too small to draw any useful conclusions. The H-seam is not always present. 8O My rule of thumb is if the shrink looks good and the item is minty fresh, buy it or bid on it; if the shrink is dirty or torn or the item does not look so minty, take a pass.
Gnat the Beggar wrote:Sea-to-sky-games wrote:Thanks for the info on the staples. Coming back to my point on authenticity - so what I'm gleaning from this thread is that, prior to standardized H-seam shrinkwrapping, and apart from the obvious rewraps, it's really difficult to determine whether shrink is original or not?Experience is your best teacher.
