How to Protect Carded Figures From Warping and Fading

Your carded figures are most likely very valuable since they remain on their cardback and with original packaging. However, carded figures can become warped and fade over time due to damage. Damage can be slow and unnoticeable until you find a protected piece and compare. 

Damage can be avoided, though, by taking certain steps to make sure your items are as protected as possible. Storing your items properly is a big proponent of this. It will tremendously help your toy collection to have all items stored away and to know the major factors that will play into any possible damage.

This way, you can know the preventative measures that will need to take place in order to have a high valued collection of toys. Join us in our blog to see the different factors that can harm carded figures and the preventative measures to take in order to protect them in the best possible way.

Join Us in Seeing How to Protect Carded Figures

Many factors cause harm to rare vintage toys. Many of these items are fragile to begin with since they released at least 20 years ago. However, factors such as pressure, dust, sunlight, extreme temperatures, humidity, pests, and rough handling can all cause great damage to an item.

Follow along in our blog with us to see just how the items can be protected from these factors of potential damage. See how you can better take care of your carded action figures to keep your items in good condition and even increase the value over time.

Keep a Barrier in Between Items

One thing that will help protect your carded figures is to keep a barrier in between each item. Keeping a barrier in between items will ensure your toys will stay in good condition and free from most things that can cause damage.

Your carded items will show damage from rubbing or leaning against each other. From this, the coloring and design often fades which will greatly harm the value. For individual cardbacks, this factor still stands so a barrier in between cards will help avoid any fading in color or peeling of paper.

To protect your carded action figures, a sheet of bubble wrap or foam will help to provide some extra protection in between each item. This will help during storage to keep your items in good condition and to keep their value from when you purchased it.

Keep Items Away From Dust

Dust causes harm to vintage toys from the build up of layers over time. When your toys are left in the open air on a shelf or counter, dust can build up and create a thick layer of particles that will affect toys and their packaging.

When dust builds up on your toys, it can scratch away paint and coloring- making it more difficult to see the images and artwork on the item. Dust build up can also grow a layer of grime on the toys, making them sticky and ruining their outer layer- whether that includes the plastic, cardback, or both. 

From this, keeping your carded figures in a safe spot for storage is super important. Not leaving your items out on shelves or counters without regular cleaning will help your items stay in the best condition and value. When dust begins to build up, proper cleaning with a microfiber towel will ensure your items will also stay in good condition for many more years.

Keep Items Away From Sunlight

Another necessary thing to consider when protecting your carded figures is that sunlight and UV rays harm toys over time. UV light accelerates chemical reactions to ink, coating, and plastic. Because of this, many carded action figures get damaged simply by sitting in the sunlight

This damage from sunlight through a window or UV radiation through a lightbulb is typically permanent to these toys. It hits the plastic bubble which begins to yellow over time and slowly grow thinner and more fragile. Further, even action figures inide their bubble packaging yellow from sunlight and UV which leads to more brittle plastic parts and discoloration.

The sunlight and UV radiation can cause damage to the cardbacks as well by fading the color and making them less vibrant. To avoid this and keep your items in pristine condition, it is important to keep your toys out of bright lighting and windows or direct sunlight.

For items on display, UV-resistant acrylic cases help to limit the direct UV impact while still having your toys out to showcase. However, putting items in secure storage and away from this exposure will ensure your collection or individual items stay in the best possible condition and value.

Consistent Temperature and Humidity

Keeping a consistent temperature and humidity within the storage space is super important for the protection of your carded figures. A place with high humidity can cause damage to these items in many different ways. This includes a carded figure growing damp and warping or fading in color.

High humidity can also harm the plastic on a carded figure making it lose its adhesive on the cardback and thus not remain a toy that is sealed in its original packaging anymore. If there is even a small hole in the bubble portion of the packaging, humidity can harm the toy itself as well as the packaging outside of it.

Another thing to look out for is consistent temperature. Keeping a consistent temperature keeps items from degrading, specifically plastic on the action figure or bubble packaging. It also keeps carded figures from warping. Similar to the high humidity, vast changes in temperature can cause cardbacks to warp which will ruin the condition and decrease the value.

Be Aware of Frequent Handling

A lot of people leave items out for display and frequently touch the toys in their collection to re-pose them or move them up to the front of a display case to showcase each item. Although this is common and okay to do, it is important to know that frequent handling of vintage toys affects their condition greatly. 

Frequently touching and handling toys can place more of your hand oils onto the items which causes fading over time, especially on cardboard packaging such as cardbacks. Frequently handling toys also puts more pressure on them and can cause them to break easier.

Vintage toys are decades old and often don’t hold the same durability they once did when they first released. Since vintage toys are at least a couple decades old, they are often rare and fragile. Rough handling, or even frequent gentle handling, can cause damage to items.

Use the Correct Method of Storage

Lastly, one of the main factors for damaged carded figures is improper storage. Properly storing items can keep your vintage toys in the best possible condition whereas improperly storing toys can cause severe damage to the condition and value very quickly. 

Improper storage can include placing heavy items on top of each other, even in secure bins. Vintage fragile items can easily get crushed, such as carded figures on top of each other harming the bubble packaging and warping the cardbacks. 

Along with this, improper storage includes keeping items in a place of known external damage that may harm the items. This includes fluctuating temperature changes, exposure to dust and sunlight, and easy access for unwanted guests or rough handling.

To avoid this, keeping carded figures upright in bins or on shelves with slots will help keep items from touching one another and from falling in a position of potential damage. This will help your toys to stay protected and remain far from fading or warping.

Final Thoughts

Although vintage toys are fragile, rare, and take on damage easily, most of the damage is also preventable. Keeping your items out of sunlight and dusty areas as well as storing correctly with a barrier in between will allow your carded figures to remain in the best possible condition.

Value of items is essential and comes from the condition and market demand. Most people will not purchase an item if it is warped and faded, especially if the same item is found on the market in better condition. Thus, protecting your carded figures will keep your collection pristine and high in value for many years to come.

Do You Have Old or Used Toys?

Don’t let your collection sit in storage gathering dust—turn it into cash! At Wheeljack’s Lab, we specialize in evaluating and buying vintage and used toys, from single standouts to entire collections.

Our friendly, expert team has decades of hands-on experience in collectible toys, so you can expect honest evaluations and a smooth process from start to finish. Ready to sell? Call us at 888-946-2895 and let’s get started.

About the Owner, Chris Ingledue

Chris is the founder and owner of Wheeljack’s Lab Pop Culture and Toy Shop. His vision has always been to reconnect collectors with the toys and pop culture that shaped their childhoods—sparking memories, nostalgia, and imagination along the way.

Each day in the “Lab” feels like Christmas year-round. From scouring the internet for the next great treasure—much like flipping through the Sears Catalog of years past—to eagerly awaiting the postman’s arrival like Santa himself, Chris lives and breathes the thrill of the hunt. Helping collectors around the world experience their own version of Christmas is what makes being a vintage toy buyer an absolute joy.