mendlab35 – Pokemon Card Restoration

Card: Voltorb
Number: 67/102
Set: Base Set 1st Edition
Year: 1999
Artist: Keiji Kinebuchi

Diagnosis

• Black specks on the front and back of the card.
• Separated top corners.
• On the back of the card, medium-sized crease near the top of the Pokémon logo and on the left side.
• Whitening.
• Bend on the top right corner.
• Small scratches.
• Edge lipping

The Restoration Process

1. Cleaned the surface card with distilled water. Took some time to remove the black specks.
2. Experimented with a different method rather than saturating the who card with moisture. Focused breath on creases and edges and used the heat pen.
3. Placed the card in the humidor at 85% for 30 minutes.
4. Dry pressed the card for 24 hours.
   • This fixed the separated corners.
   • Still a light bend in the card.
5. Heat pressed the card at 135F for 15 minutes.
6. Dry press for 24 hours. Used a light pressure.
7. Focused breath on the creases.
8. Heat pressed the card at 140F for 15 minutes.
9. Dry press for 24 hours.