Hello,
Long story short, I have a handful of record jackets with 2-3 inches of frayed spines (which in one case wraps around to the very top left corner of the jacket's front). I'd like to address this in some way, but want to know my options. The vinyl is in great shape, and finding alternate sleeves isn't realistic as they're valuable records (OG Alice and John Coltrane LPs). I'd like them to look better on my shelf than they currently do, and understand perfection isn't attainable.
My options, as far as I see them:
1) Marker or colored pencil (finding best type and color will likely require some trial and error)
2) Paint or oil (seems insane but wth)
3) Tape/adhesive (lots of options here)
4) Paper (idk if this is viable, but assume that book restoration specialists use techniques involving paper of some kind)
Any thoughts or links to resources would be appreciated.
In my opinion, retouching record jackets is not a great idea.
I have tried the markers and pencils method. There is just no such thing as an invisible repair; the main problem is that record jackets are either covered with printed paper or they are printed directly. The surface of the paper or card stock has a particular finish, sometimes coated sometimes not, which is impossible (in my opinion) to restore in a way for your repair to not be entirely obvious. The closest I've gotten to believable is a bit of black Sharpie on the non-spine edges of a black jacket - the surface of the edges are less glaringly obvious.
Think about whether or not you would buy a copy that has been altered in the way you would like to do. I would certainly never try to retouch a record I plan to resell. Honesty about condition seems to work well enough, as Discogs s are well-informed.
Personally, I think that wear & tear are a patina that has its own worth. Sure, a pristine vintage jacket is wonderful, but it is a rarity, which you can buy if you like. The rest are records that people have loved and played and ed along for us to own for a time.
That being said, I am fanatic about removing stickers or anything else that can be removed. Ask me about Bestine® Rubber Cement Remover. 8^)
I agree with the comments re: retouching areas of abrasion with loss of the original color. I have on occasion used a Sharpie and I tried color matching and it seems impossible to truly match any color other than black. I do still use a black Sharpie on abraded black areas as that does match reasonably well.
For split seams I use hinging tape - the intended function of that is for photo/poster mounting to a mat for framing. I cut a piece to size, fold it in half length-wise, wet the adhesive back, and then insert inside the sleeve with a ruler and put a heavy book or two to compress the repair for a bit until the adhesive dries. Sometimes the adhesive spreads a bit inside the sleeve, and there is a little tearing internally as the front and back are opened, but its always superficial and not visible on the outside. If a bit of the tape remains outside the sleeve opening, I just cut it flush with a utility knife. I have done hundreds of repairs this way. Easy, cheap, and adds real aesthetic value. I don't use tape, and anything external is a detriment, worse than the tear itself...
hartro
I don't use tape, and anything external is a detriment, worse than the tear itself
Right on.
I haven't tried the hingeing tape yet. I have cloddish fingers. Mostly, I'm fine with split jacket seams; I just store the thing in a poly bag and handle it gently.
Sorry, I meant to respond weeks ago, but it got away from me.
My best advice is to go slowly and carefully. Of course. And I'm the first one to violate the obvious. Plenty of times I've just rushed the end of the removal, pulled the sticker away just a little too fast to get it over with, and sure enough, some of the surface paper pulls away.
When I was doing cabinet-making (which I no longer do because I decided I'd like to die with my fingers intact, as much as possible) someone once told me that the most dangerous cut is the last one of the day. It's that sudden drop-off of attention that will get you every time. I'm lucky I got out of the workshop fully digit-ized.
I must also mention that I recently had a sort of disaster with the rubber cement remover. I was working on removing a price sticker, not an old stubborn one, just a regular new one, and I had gone through a stack of ten or so before this one, but this particular jacket has a kind of, I think, unfinished finish. This record: The Walter Arties Chorale - His Name Is Wonderful. It's not a commonly found record, but it is on Atlantic, so you'd think it would behave just as all the others I've encountered on that label. My usual simple procedure is to cover the label in the solvent, wait until it looks like the paper has been fully wetted, and then just pull up the sticker and wipe away the dissolved glue and solvent; I've done that literally thousands of times. Unfortunately, this time around, the solvent had dissolved the print ink. When I wiped it with a rag, it left a giant (half-dollar size) blemish. This is very unusual, but, sorry to say, not a unique occurrence (it happened to me once before, so many years ago, I don't really it, just that it happened.) So, I recommend you do as I do not do often enough - check out the effect of the solvent on an equivalent object, if at all possible. I know, this is vague and impractical.
Therefore: there is some risk using the rubber cement remover. However, I believe that it is a relatively small risk. The much larger risk factor is always my own skill and patience - and lack thereof.
Ha! I just realized that I was the person who added His Name Is Wonderful to the database. You can plainly see my hack work in the lousy photo I posted. Now I am embarrassed!
As I mentioned, affecting the printed jacket is a very rare thing.
The bigger risk, in my opinion, is tearing or scraping the paper. It does often take a bit of work, even with a solvent, to get thing off.
I have also encountered glues that seem deliberately made to be difficult to remove. One shop I frequent recently changed their glue so that I can get the stickers off, but the remaining glue takes a huge amount of solvent and careful but vigorous rubbing to remove.
I agree, Rosonol or Zippo. Buy it at a smoke shop. Some old stickers/covers do lose a little color from the cover but most new stickers or newer covers are fine. Tearing the cover (or peeling some lamination off) much more common than lightening a patch.
Which brings me to the question: When are record stores going to stop putting price stickers directly on the cover? I can think of no other collectible where this is considered normal. Comic Books? Baseball Cards? Let alone art prints. For the love of god, can we please stop doing this? Newer price code stickers identify the LP and the price, and can be placed on an outer sleeve. No one will get ripped off...
And since I'm already ranting, the worst are stickers placed over old stickers or over cover damage to hide it. There is a whole extra level of hell awaiting shop owners that do that...
hartro
the worst are stickers placed over old stickers or over cover damage to hide it. There is a whole extra level of hell awaiting shop owners that do that...
Most adhesives can be made “liquid” again using heat (hair dryer). Do not hold the hairdryer in one place for too long (risk of burns) and carefully peel off the sticker. With enough patience, you can be 100% safe without damaging the cover
i understand why you might want to repair split and frayed spines.
Firstly, restoration and colour matching is a real skill and will take you ages to master unless you're already experienced.
Repairs are probably more easily achieved. you will probably be just as happy with the results.
Get yourself a set of small tools: tweezers, cotton-buds, toothpicks.
carefully wet the area to repair, just enough to make the area maliable. carefully uncrease the folds, apply just enough craft glue/PVA, reposition back into the correct position. When dry, place in plastic outer sleeve to prevent further deterioration.
