General Forum

I really like these conversations. Here's my two cents, for what it's worth.

This is what I use for box filler:

• Used, clean bubble wrap
• Small boxes - half-size box that top loaders come in.
• Some blaster boxes also work well

Card savers work great for saving cards. I place an empty card saver between the box filler and the cards. It protects the cards from the box filler. I would never put a card in a card saver.

This is the BCW monster pads, they're not as expensive as I was thinking they were.  I bought 3 boxes (60 pads) for $15, so roughly a quarter a piece.  I'm not sure how much shipping would cost though.  I was stocking up on a bunch of stuff and got free shipping on my order.  If the Dollar Store sponges fit right in a box, that would be a cheaper option and should work just as good.

 Ranfordfan uses snow.  It never gets warm enough there to melt, so the cards are safe.

My job bought me a 5000 ct of business cards when I started. 5 weeks after starting I was assigned directly to an account so all of those business cards became fire place kindling, door hinge spacers, and you guessed it, card spacers.

I'll use soft foam or junk wax cards as filler. I'm a sheets/album/set collector guy so the only sets in boxes are incomplete ones. I like to look at the cards, often, and unless i want to drop them all over the place, which i have, they seem to be more secure and look nicer in an album. Ultra Pro Platium sheets are the absolute best, and the only sheets I use. On the subject of cards savers, was at an auction once, and saw right in front of me, a 57 Banks get creased by that junk. The auctioneer holding it up bent it the wrong way, and of course the crowd went oooohhhh noooo....very sad. When subbing to PSA that's all they want to take on subs, so that is the ONLY time I use them.

Small boxes, plastic bags, whatever it takes.

Ranfordfan shakes his head slowly, we do have heat David!! And I could never store my cards outside!! =)

Shoeboxes. Anything bigger is too bulky. I have probably a dozen or so sponges that were purchased more than 20 years ago that were designed for storage boxes.

I've used many different things, whatever is on hand.  Plastic bags, bubble wrap, tennis balls, paper towels, and the partial boxes that top loaders come in.  Probably the best one I found is a hard foam that came in some packing of computers at work (when I used to work).  It came in long pieces over 2' long and you could easily cut it to the sizes you wanted.  No mess like the styrofoam pieces. Often wish I had taken more when I was there.

I cut up index cards in to three stripes and use them. I write the card or year info along the top so I can see it.