Advice on figure protection and storage

[Deveus Anon]

Hello Figure Realm,
I guess I should introduce myself since I'm new here. I'm Deveus (not my real name, just a handle, but I totally wish it was). I've always loved action figures, but for the most part I've been a casual collector. As a kid I hoarded tons of batman, star wars, aliens and predator, and (lol) jurassic park figures...oh yeah, and captain simian and the space monkies...talk about obscure...but my collecting activity as an adult has been much more relaxed.

In the past few months, however, my interest in action figures (and comic books!) has been rekindled. I've begun collecting some of the higher end, more adult-oriented figures, and have started to explore the hobby of serious action figure collecting. Simply put, I'm a noob, but I'm eager to learn.

Anyway blah blah enough about that. Recently I decided to start collecting batman figures again and so I started with my personal favorite DC villainess, Harley Quinn. I fell in love with the Batman: Hush Series 2 Harley action figure, and she became the first piece in my new batman collection. The first one I bought, the package was pretty banged up and bent so I opted to take her out and put her in a nice display case. I hunted around some more and found (for a price that put a serious dent in my college student budget) a second one with nearly flawless packaging.

So anyway I'm finally getting to the actual point of this topic. I want to make sure this figure and box stay in pristine condition, and so I'm hoping to draw on your collective expertise in helping me preserve it, keeping in mind my college student budget. Since I already have the same figure out of packet, I'm not worried about displaying, purely about preserving. I researched as best I could but most of the literature on storage/preservation is more concerned with loose figures.

Here's what I've got set up: She's resting horizontally in an airtight(ish) Rubbermaid plastic container (brand new, never used for food or exposed to any dish soaps or anything) which I lined with a layer of acid-free paper. I'm keeping the container in a drawer in my room completely out of sunlight, and there are no heat sources nearby. My thermostat keeps my place at a pretty consistent temp, around 70 degrees, and I live in northern cali so humidity isn't really an issue most of the time.

So, am I doing it right? Is there anything I can change or anything else I can do to ensure she stays in good condition? I'd really appreciate any input and advice.

Thanks, and I look forward to learning from you guys,
Dev

[EDarthT]

Sounds like you have it pretty much wrapped up (pun not intended). The only way I know of that would be better would be to send it for grading afa or something along those lines. They grade your figure and then send it back in an acrylic case designed to stop uv, moisture and all things bad for action figures. This usually increases the price of well preserved figures. That's the only advice I can offer and welcome the realm mate.

[Deveus Anon]

Hey thanks for the welcome and for the advice. I checked out the AFA thing. Looks pretty expensive. I guess I'll start saving my pennies...I know that's an expression but literally pennies is about where I'm at financially. Anyway, I just wanted to make sure my current method of storage was safe and appropriate for the time being. If anyone else has suggestions/ideas I would greatly appreciate them.

[Deveus Anon]

Holy custom made UV-protected acrylic cases Batman!

Sorry I don't mean to be one of those guys who just keeps posting in his own topic but I just have to say I looked into the AFA's custom made action figure cases and it would cost about 60 bucks to get one made for my figure. That's over half what I paid for the figure itself! I dunno, is it worth it?

[ẈĀŦƧĦĪƧ₣Ā₵Ė]

Holy custom made UV-protected acrylic cases Batman!

Sorry I don't mean to be one of those guys who just keeps posting in his own topic but I just have to say I looked into the AFA's custom made action figure cases and it would cost about 60 bucks to get one made for my figure. That's over half what I paid for the figure itself! I dunno, is it worth it?

I would rather buy more figures than spend money to ensure the saftey of the one I have.

[Wesr]

I actually used to get the UV protective display cases used for model kits. A local store had them on blowout for 3.99 and they were selling like mad. They stop model car paint from fading. you search on amazon and probably can get a good price. they're pricey though (5-20.00) depending on how fancy and the size.

[3bcustoms]

I was like that once I used to worry about the packages getting damaged but I soon realized that it became to much of an obsession when I wouldn't even let myself enjoy the stuff I had cause I was to worried I would damage them, to me THAT'S a waste of money....so now I decided to only keep my Batman collection sealed and open everything else and display them, and when I buy a new Batman figure to keep in my sealed collection I don't care if the box has a bend or crease cause I'm just glad I have that figure and someone else doesn't

[Wesr]

the people who do the grading of comics and toys are the folks who look at it only as an investment more than anything else.

[EDarthT]

Yeah, everything comes out of the box with me, I don't want to look at it through plastic, I want to touch it and pose it, put accessories on and off and such. I was merely suggesting the AFA as a surefire way of preserving the figure and most probably raising the value. But yeah it is expensive and only really worth it for resale value a few years down the line.

[3bcustoms]

IMO, I always found that value was through the eye's of the collector, I mean if someone wants something that bad I think people would be willing to pay whether it's in mint packaging, graded or out of box

[Deveus Anon]

Lol I know this will probably sound crazy and honestly I guess it is, but I never plan on re-selling the figure ever. I just really love this particular one, plus I have really severe OCD so I'm crazy about the conditions of my prized posessions. It's kinda like what 3b said, I'm just happy that I have it and someone else doesn't, but at the same time I have this insane desire for it to be *perfect*. The day I got the figure I spent over 5 hours scouring downtown for a store with a Rubbermaid container big enough to fit the box (spent 20 bucks) and then cleared out an entire drawer in my bureau especially for it. All my other action figures are very casually displayed about my room, some loose, some still boxed, but this one is a special case.
Sephiroth, interesting idea regarding the display cases for model kits. I looked around but they're pretty scarce, at least on amazon. I'll keep that in mind for the future though, thanks for the tip. Anyway, hell, I know what's gonna happen in the end, I'm gonna scrounge up 60 bucks...maybe forego a meal or two...and buy the custom display case. It's the only thing that will satisfy my OCD...well that and all these fun medications I'm on . I just love harley quinn too much to give her anything but the best. Besides, since I already have the same figure loose I'll still have one to play with.