Your Trading Cards can hold a lot of value, whether it sentimental or monetary. You don't want to have valuable cards gets bent, scratched or scuffed so you need to protect them. In this article I will give some hints for the beginner collector.
1. Sleeves
The first and most important step in protecting your cards is to sleeve them. At the very least you should use Penny Sleeves. These are cheap and effective ways of protecting your cards against scratches and scuffs. You should only use these on Rare cards. Common cards (or bulk cards) don't necessarily need to have penny sleeves.
If you are playing with your Trading Cards then you should use Deck Sleeves. These can be colour co-ordinated to your deck or have fun images on them. I would recommend using Dragon Shield Sleeves as they are high quality, they come in a box that can be used to store your cards, and they come with enough sleeves to protect two decks (depending on the game).
In addition to Deck Sleeves, you can also use over-sleeves to protect your deck sleeves. Some may consider that overkill, but some decks can cost in the 4 or 5 digits so the extra insurance will help.
2. Folders
For valuable cards that you are not competing with, you should use a folder. I would only use a folder that fits sleeved cards for extra protection. I would also suggest you get a folder that you slide cards in from the side, this will protect them from falling out while moving. A zip is also great to have, but as long as the folder can close you will be good.
I suggest either the Ultimate Guard 16-Pocket ZipFolio or the Ultimate Guard 12-Pocket Flexfolio. The ZipFolio has 8 pockets per page and a zip, so really good for showing playsets of cards. The FlexxFolio shows more per page but does not zip up.
3. Deck Boxes
If you are playing with your cards then you will need a deck box. The box your Deck Sleeves come in will do for the thrifty card player. You can get some decent plastic boxes that will protect your deck as a step up. Or you can get an Ultimate Guard Sidewinder and play in absolute style.
There you have it, now you can run around outside during the apocalypse with your cards knowing they will be safe. If I missed anything be sure to let me know.
