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Help Needed: Woven spine repair on GA books?15787

Collector jokioo private msg quote post Address this user
Hi everyone,

I recently purchased a low grade copy of Batman #13. It was going for a great price, so I asked for details, felt good about the photos that I saw and pulled the trigger on that and a Batman #14 immediately. The books arrived today, and the Batman #14 was as expected, but the Batman #13 had some unusual spine repair...




I've seen this before but I am unsure of what to call it. Was this common practice back in the day? How will this be noted on a CGC or CBCS label? Does it count as restoration?

Thanks for any help the forum can provide!

Best,
Noah
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Collector Wayneds private msg quote post Address this user
Yes I can see the woven spine! But it also looks like there is a piece of tape going down the spine? Beginning at the Oct-Nov, or is that just the photo?
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Collector jokioo private msg quote post Address this user
Quote:
Originally Posted by Wayneds
Yes I can see the woven spine! But it also looks like there is a piece of tape going down the spine? Beginning at the Oct-Nov, or is that just the photo?


That is just a weird glare with a scratch in the mylar. There is a small piece of tape at the top of the spine, but the woven spine covers the full length. Sorry for the limited sample size of the photo!
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Collector Wayneds private msg quote post Address this user
Ah I See! I’m not sure but I think CGC and CBCS will list it as a form of amateur restoration, interested to see what other members say?
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Collector obrie2tm private msg quote post Address this user
@jokioo I also have a 40's book (Adventure 62)that had a hand-sewn spine and wonder what the reasoning was. The book was not (as far as I can tell) trimmed, nor glued into a volume. Perhaps just an alternative preventative measure employed by some kids (e.g. tape along the full spine and edges) to maintain the integrity of the book, even when it was new? Really curious as well if anyone else might have an idea as to the origin of this practice. The sewing on mine is far more rudimentary than the fine work that seems to have been employed on your copy. I would imagine the grading might be similar to those books with three hole punches through them? Particularly if the staples are still present and the cover/pages are clearly still attached such that the sewing served no restoration purpose and is treated as a defect instead.


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Collector KCBatmanFan private msg quote post Address this user
It looks like it's been hand saddle stitched - just like the folios inside of a book are stitched together before they are bound.

It looks like they put some care into it. Like others have said I'd guess amateur restoration? Or preservation? I think it's kind of charming. I've never seen anything like that before (or obrie2tm's Adventure)
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Collector cyrano0521 private msg quote post Address this user
I have some British Captain Marvel books from the 40s with this. They had definitely been bound and the sewing was to hold them together after being removed. So far as labels, I do not know. @sborock, what would this do to the grade/restoration status?
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It was a one trick pony show but always hilarious. GAC private msg quote post Address this user
@jokioo I'm thinking CBCS would note this as Conserved. The stitching seems more in line with conservation as opposed to restoration. The stitching looks like it was done by a machine. It appears very straight and evenly distanced.
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It was a one trick pony show but always hilarious. GAC private msg quote post Address this user
You can also tell the stitching has age to it. This doesn't appear to have been recently.
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The apple sauce and pudding were the best part... Bronte private msg quote post Address this user
Stupid question but couldn't you just take a razor knife to it and remove the string and avoid any problems? Yes the cover may fall off but isn't that better than restored or conserved?
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It was a one trick pony show but always hilarious. GAC private msg quote post Address this user
@Bronte you probably could...for me, and for some reason I can't explain, Conserved offends me much less than Restored...I don't know why.

If it were my book, before I removed the stitching, I would want to know more about this practice, the who, what, where etc. There could be a very cool back story to this type of repair.
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Collector jokioo private msg quote post Address this user
Quote:
Originally Posted by Bronte
Stupid question but couldn't you just take a razor knife to it and remove the string and avoid any problems? Yes the cover may fall off but isn't that better than restored or conserved?


In the case that it does count as restoration, I am seriously considering that. The stitching isn't integral to the structure of the book at all. Staples are attached, spine is firmly intact. It doesn't look too difficult... That is, only if it affects resell in the event that I decide to part with it which I may.

Thanks for all of the input everyone. Would be helpful if the pres could shine a light on this from the grading side of things!
Post 12 IP   flag post
Collector jokioo private msg quote post Address this user
Sent Steve a message on IG and this was his response:

"A sewn spine is not restored. It will be down graded"

Update for anyone who was wondering about how the labeling might work!
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" . " Davethebrave private msg quote post Address this user
Quote:
Originally Posted by Bronte
Stupid question but couldn't you just take a razor knife to it and remove the string and avoid any problems? Yes the cover may fall off but isn't that better than restored or conserved?


Personally, given the damage was already inflicted on the book, I would leave as is. A label is just a label in the end, regardless of current “trends”… It adds some likely “period-correct” charm.

As for restored and conserved, I have mentioned this before but I have my doubts that those terms will be thrown around so interchangeably. Conservation is distinct from restoration in most cases. Where they overlap tends to be on the high quality (minimal) restoration side. I am guessing as more and more collectors from other areas expand into comics, the sophistication will increase and we (collectively) will recognize conservation as having almost no impact on value.

Why? Because the choice to reinforce and preserve has been taken by experts in countless other areas and has almost no impact on values.

Restoration (separate but related) then becomes a matter of degree. Of course because restoration enhances the aesthetic specifically, in a case of choice we will choose the 100% original. So a decent premium likely will remain. But really the peanut butter stigma and meme type approach “PLOD” and aversion to leaving things be where work was done in period seems destructive.

Again, just my 2 cents and I would deem this work neither true conservation nor true restoration… but I would not remove it either given it appears to be have been done as part of historical practice and removing would still leave the damage. Any future buyer could then have the choice and so (again, to me) you retain a “free option” on value.
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