Often responsive
Shallow dents, stacking bends, ripples, light spine roll and non-colour-breaking corner folds may respond when the paper remains sound. Results depend on paper stock, age, severity and previous treatment.
Dry surface dirt and some fingerprints may be reduced through appropriate dry-cleaning methods.
Permanent or specialist defects
A white line through printed colour means the ink and paper fibres have broken; flattening does not restore that colour. Tears, chips, missing pieces, detached covers and staple damage require more than pressing.
Foxing, mould, deep stains, tanning and water damage can be permanent or require conservation outside a standard press and clean.
Why photographs have limits
Angled light can reveal dents and rippling, but photographs may hide subtle colour breaks, brittleness, interior damage and previous restoration.
A final treatment decision should be based on the physical comic, not a guaranteed outcome from online images.
What to do next
Use this guidance to shortlist suitable comics, then use the Fantasy Road submission form for current prices and service eligibility. CGC assigns the final grade and its published turnaround times are estimates, not guarantees.
