Seal plastic cases with tape?
I recently started collecting and I'm experimenting with plastic cases from retroprotection.com. The cases work great; however, on close inspection, I noticed that the side flaps very slightly bow outwards. I plan to keep the items on a shelf for years. And, from experience, I know after a few years, everything on the shelf will be full of dust. With the slight bowing, dust can get into the cases. Is it worth sealing the edges with tape? Or is that overkill?
Comments
I recently started collecting and I'm experimenting with plastic cases from retroprotection.com. The cases work great; however, on close inspection, I noticed that the side flaps very slightly bow outwards. I plan to keep the items on a shelf for years. And, from experience, I know after a few years, everything on the shelf will be full of dust. With the slight bowing, dust can get into the cases. Is it worth sealing the edges with tape? Or is that overkill?
Bowing is not good. The idea of a clam shell is to keep out the dust and dirt. These mass produced cases are prone to manufacturing defects. Could you please share a picture of this issue?
Bowing is not good. The idea of a clam shell is to keep out the dust and dirt. These mass produced cases are prone to manufacturing defects. Could you please share a picture of this issue?
It's not a clam shell case. It's one of those ultra thin plastic cases that are shipped completely flat. I'll try to obtain a pic tonight. It's the kind of thing you wouldn't notice if you were causally looking at all the items on my shelving. Though if you picked up an item and studied the edges, you'll notice that it's not hermetically sealed. My only concern is dusting every few months.
Ive got a lot of their cases and they seem to open up very good. I always tend the move the bends back and forth a bit before I put the games into them. I hadn't noticed bowing since ive done this with them. Actually just put another order in yesterday for more.
It probably depends a lot on the size of the case. These are Nintendo Classics (the minis) box sized.
If possible, as a comparison, could you provide a pic of the edges of the final flaps that you close before the case is sealed. Maybe your folding trick is the secret.
Ive got a lot of their cases and they seem to open up very good. I always tend the move the bends back and forth a bit before I put the games into them. I hadn't noticed bowing since ive done this with them. Actually just put another order in yesterday for more.
It probably depends a lot on the size of the case. These are Nintendo Classics (the minis) box sized.
If possible, as a comparison, could you provide a pic of the edges of the final flaps that you close before the case is sealed. Maybe your folding trick is the secret.
Sure, when i get home i will take some pics. Im using the cases on all of these: NES (cartridge with official dust protectors), SNES(cartridge), sega(boxed), gameboy(boxed), sega cd, PS1 (cardboard big box games).
https://i.ebayimg.com/images/g/50YAAOSwurNbRbNE/s-l1600.jpg
Bowing is present in lower left and lower right of that image. It's also exaggerated since the case is empty. When the NES Classic is within the case, the bowing is less pronounced. Nevertheless, since those slivers will be at the top when the item is on display, dust could potentially enter over time.
https://i.ebayimg.com/images/g/KWkAAOSw7L1Zz4Re/s-l1600.jpg
I doubt the issue is serious enough to warrant the effort.
reducing airflow into the protector could lead to other issues due to microclimate, such as potential condensation build up
That's one of my concerns. Since there is no pratical way to sterilize the item and the internal case surfices, whatever microorganisms get trapped in there may find an easy way to thrive especially if I were to seal it up on one of the humid days of summer. Desiccants were invented to mitiate things like that, but maybe that's getting nuts. I'm considering just cutting out thin slivers of paper and lightly covering the bowing at the top. If I decide to dust the items a year from now, I can replace those slivers of paper then.
I've upgraded from 0.3mm to 0.4mm cases recently and noticed much less bowing, so I'd recommend going for 0.4mm when possible (they are becoming more readily available for all case sizes). For consoles and hardware, I do use a bit of tape to counteract the bowing, as these will never be opened by me for use anyway. For items like CIB games, where the intent is to occasionally have access to the contents, I also feel that taping them shut is overkill. More efficient in the long-term to dust well than to remove the tape each time you want access. If you organize games sideways on shelves, and neatly fill entire shelves, the lack of space between games = no bowing anyway.
Very interesting. Where did you get the thicker cases?
Very interesting. Where did you get the thicker cases?
https://www.theboxprotectorshop.nl/en_GB/
https://www.theboxprotectorshop.n...
Thanks. I didn't know about that site.
Here's a pic of their case:
https://static.mijnwebwinkel.nl/winkel/boxprotectorshop/image/cache/full/60ebd12431819e0c5104782200f8ad08bc73b1a1.jpg
I do see some bowing in the lower-left.
Ive got a lot of their cases and they seem to open up very good. I always tend the move the bends back and forth a bit before I put the games into them. I hadn't noticed bowing since ive done this with them. Actually just put another order in yesterday for more.
It probably depends a lot on the size of the case. These are Nintendo Classics (the minis) box sized.
If possible, as a comparison, could you provide a pic of the edges of the final flaps that you close before the case is sealed. Maybe your folding trick is the secret.
Ok. Looking through them, I don’t notice it on smaller cases but the larger ones I can. Sorry I didn’t post pics yesterday.
This is silly. If you're this worried about dust, just run a couple of air purifiers where you store your games. When people obsess over minutae like this, it makes me wonder if they care about every other aspect of their living space this way. Or their car. When's the last time you vigorously vacuumed the interior of your car? Are all of the books and dishes in your home also meticulously organized, cleaned and protected? Why limit it just to games?
I agree. To most, the exposed slivers are insignificant. In fact, it sounds like a lot of people weren't even aware they had slight bowing too. But, I have OCD and things like this can drive me crazy. I do have a hepa filter running all the time. But over a extended periods, dust still accumulates on shelved items. Ironically, part of the reason is due to my OCD. I use a lot of paper towels, tissues and toilet paper. And when sheets are torn off, a tiny bit of paper dust is emitted into the air. I noticed that the dust that accumulates is white, almost like the lint on the surfaces in a laundry room. That said, in the worse case that dust enters the cases over time around the bowing, I could just take a can of air to each of them and get rid of it.
This is silly. If you're this worried about dust, just run a couple of air purifiers where you store your games. When people obsess over minutae like this, it makes me wonder if they care about every other aspect of their living space this way. Or their car. When's the last time you vigorously vacuumed the interior of your car? Are all of the books and dishes in your home also meticulously organized, cleaned and protected? Why limit it just to games?
I agree. To most, the exposed slivers are insignificant. In fact, it sounds like a lot of people weren't even aware they had slight bowing too. But, I have OCD and things like this can drive me crazy. I do have a hepa filter running all the time. But over a extended periods, dust still accumulates on shelved items. Ironically, part of the reason is due to my OCD. I use a lot of paper towels, tissues and toilet paper. And when sheets are torn off, a tiny bit of paper dust is emitted into the air. I noticed that the dust that accumulates is white, almost like the lint on the surfaces in a laundry room. That said, in the worse case that dust enters the cases over time around the bowing, I could just take a can of air to each of them and get rid of it.
If your still contemplating taping them, i would just get a roll of clear, thin double sided scotch tape and put on in the inside of the flap youre not planning on opening. Then you could put that side up. That would probably be the most neat way of doing it, unless youre not displaying them.