Ensure a Comic-Book Collection Is Transported Safely During a Move

A person may put a home up for sale with no qualms, but that same individual might never part with a prized comic-book collection. Finding a new home is easy. Replacing rare books from the Bronze and Silver Ages of comic books would be extremely costly and heartbreaking. So, when moving time comes, extra steps do have to be taken to transport the collection safely.

Hand the Collection to Movers

Packaging a comic-book collection and putting it into the trunk of a car is a risky proposition. The box could open up, and those rare pulp books may end up bent or otherwise ruined. A major accident on the highway might send rare books airborne. Even sending the collection through a private shipping service is risky due to the chances of items being lost or stolen. Going with local moving services, such as those of Walsh Moving & Storage, is the wiser plan, but the plan has to be a bit fleshed out.

• Seek Out Packing by Experts

Contact local comic-book shops that handle a lot of mail-order work and place an order for packing work. Even though the collection won't be going out in the mail, it is still being transported. Hence, the packaging has to be done right to prevent any potential problems form occurring. The comic shop might opt to use extremely thick boxes and add buffers to the interior to reduce movement. The inner packing material may need to be somewhat pliable to prevent stress causing bending to the books.

• Inquire About Insurance

Moving services usually have some basic insurance coverage on contents traveling in one of their trucks. Something very special—and costly—like a rare comic-book collection may need an appraisal in order to be properly insured. Upon reviewing the moving company's policy toward transporting rare items, a decision can be made if third-party insurance should be purchased. Regardless, make no assumptions about how the collectibles are insured.

• Double-Check with the Movers

Don't just label the comic-book boxes as "rare collectibles" and hope for the best. Inform the movers there are valuable books in there and ask them if they can think of any additional preservation steps. The moving-team leader may suggest positioning the collection against the truck's interior wall, toward the front, and away from heavier objects. Additional straps could be employed to keep the packaged collection in place along with any other over-sized items near it.

Comic-book collections are not easy to replace. Avoiding taking any moving steps for granted to ensure the collection never has to be replaced.