MWalsh Posted September 27, 2011 Share #1 Posted September 27, 2011 I recently was able to pick up an old campaign medal and when I received it I sort of shuddered, thinking it was maybe wrecked. 10 or 15 years ago or so I think it was pretty common for medal and pin / DI / insignia collectors to purchase these small plastic cases with foam inserts in them, then use them to store their medals. That was all fine, but what the unsuspecting did not probably realize was that after a time the foam in those cases starts to disintegrate and get tacky, sticky, grainy, etc. It will, given enough time, actually turn into a sticky mess which will stain anything it is in contact with and will be impossible to remove. So I recently get this medal and saw the case it was in and immediately got nervous. I could see through the clear plastic lid of the case that the medal had started to settle into the foam as the foam started to fall apart. I opened the case and carefully removed the medal. The back of the ribbon, where it rested against the foam, was covered with slightly clingy, grainy, black disintegrated foam. Fortunately I was able to very carefully brush it off the ribbon and pin assembly and it appears no lasting damage was done. But it was very close, probably within 6 months to a year and the medal's ribbon and pin assembly would not have been able to be salvaged. Whew! It would have been a darn shame to have wrecked that medal. Also, I believe sun light and heat will accelerate the break down process too. I took a number of photos of the case after I had removed the medal. The pics will show how the medal had sunk into the foam backing as the foam fell apart, you should also see in the pics the grainy nature of the residue left from the break down of the foam. I wanted to post this as a warning to newer collectors and a reminder to older ones. Don't use these types of foam backed cases! Buy the small sleeves made purposely for long term storage, be careful in what fashion you store and display your medals in. I know others can weight in better on types of natural cloth to use too (i.e. cotton versus synthetic). We talk often on this Forum about being caretakers of such things, obviously a responsibility of being a caretaker is proper care of the things we do have. I still sometimes find medals and pins and such in cases like this, one obvious example is here, usually it seems like it is from when the collections are older ones. The downside is that quality storage methods are not cheap (while plastic cases are), but I will subscribe to the "a penny of prevention is worth a pound of cure" theory Just wanted to throw this out there as a friendly reminder and a word of caution. If anyone else out there has examples of the type I have described, or other words of caution about seemingly innocent ways to store things, please, by all means chime in, add on, etc. MW Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MWalsh Posted September 27, 2011 Author Share #2 Posted September 27, 2011 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MWalsh Posted September 27, 2011 Author Share #3 Posted September 27, 2011 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MWalsh Posted September 27, 2011 Author Share #4 Posted September 27, 2011 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SEABEEBRIAN Posted September 27, 2011 Share #5 Posted September 27, 2011 It was not just collectors that use these for medals, the government also stored medals in these. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Old Marine Posted September 27, 2011 Share #6 Posted September 27, 2011 Foam Stuck to medals Sorry to see your medals like that, I had that same problem recently. Foam is a VERY bad idea for storage. In my post some of the guys suggested freezing them and the just rolling the foam off, it worked fine. I threw my medals in the freezer for about a week and then the foam just pushed right off with no problem. A few had some minor stains on the ribbons and some little spots on the medals but over all it was a very effective way to clean up the medals with out soap and water or solvents. Thanks for the good info guys. Dennis Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Teamski Posted September 27, 2011 Share #7 Posted September 27, 2011 Here is an example of how the acids in the foam eat away at the finish. -Ski Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Medalman90 Posted September 27, 2011 Share #8 Posted September 27, 2011 I personally have never stored my medals in those cases, I just use them for a means of transport until i get them into a display case. I also see that they are easily breakable and Im running low on them and don't know where I can find new ones. can anyone help with this dilemma? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MWalsh Posted September 27, 2011 Author Share #9 Posted September 27, 2011 I had completely forgotten about the US Govt. issuing some medals like this. Good point! Its always the Vietnam ones that I have had like that. I suppose a person could get more of them from any local trophy shop, I suspect they sell them along with the common sports team medals and the like. I would think a google search of collector supplies or coin collector supplies may turn up vendors to buy the cases and sleeves from. A friend well versed in museum / conservation techniques had at one time suggested to me using cotton to back display cases and such with. The problem I had with that was that the only sheet cotton I could find at the time was medical use stuff, which did not have a nice, well packed, uniform thickness, nor the spring-back ability like foam, and which thus was not the best material to use in a display case. Any ideas on something similar? Not a synthetic? MW Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MWalsh Posted September 27, 2011 Author Share #10 Posted September 27, 2011 Foam Stuck to medals Sorry to see your medals like that, I had that same problem recently. Foam is a VERY bad idea for storage. In my post some of the guys suggested freezing them and the just rolling the foam off, it worked fine. I threw my medals in the freezer for about a week and then the foam just pushed right off with no problem. A few had some minor stains on the ribbons and some little spots on the medals but over all it was a very effective way to clean up the medals with out soap and water or solvents. Thanks for the good info guys. Dennis A freezer huh? I never would have considered that. Good idea! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Old Marine Posted September 27, 2011 Share #11 Posted September 27, 2011 Me either, but it worked pretty well, especially on the ribbons. Despite the freezing and getting the foam off some of the medals were left like the VN Campaign that Ski showed. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
doyler Posted September 27, 2011 Share #12 Posted September 27, 2011 I had completely forgotten about the US Govt. issuing some medals like this. Good point! Its always the Vietnam ones that I have had like that. I suppose a person could get more of them from any local trophy shop, I suspect they sell them along with the common sports team medals and the like. I would think a google search of collector supplies or coin collector supplies may turn up vendors to buy the cases and sleeves from. A friend well versed in museum / conservation techniques had at one time suggested to me using cotton to back display cases and such with. The problem I had with that was that the only sheet cotton I could find at the time was medical use stuff, which did not have a nice, well packed, uniform thickness, nor the spring-back ability like foam, and which thus was not the best material to use in a display case. Any ideas on something similar? Not a synthetic? MW Mike You may have to try the batting material used in quilt making.Most I have seen come in a uniform roll and can be double layered for thickness.Dont know if you can find all cotton.Most I believe is a poly blend. RD Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jack's Son Posted September 27, 2011 Share #13 Posted September 27, 2011 Guys, its a good time to go through your medals to check and see if you have forgotten about a few that have been stored like this. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Teamski Posted September 27, 2011 Share #14 Posted September 27, 2011 I have always been told that velvet works really well with medals. -Ski Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MWalsh Posted September 27, 2011 Author Share #15 Posted September 27, 2011 RD, The quilting material being synthetic means that to a degree it will "off gas" over time. If you have a synthetic backing of some sort in a display case, even if you put felt or something over it, after a couple years when you open up the glass top on the case you will see shadowing on the glass from the chemicals I guess. At least I have regularly seen that on display cases where the medals are in contact with the glass. I have never seen any damage to the medals, but I don't know what 25 years would bring... Thanks Ski, I hadn't thought of velvet either. The problem with velvet and quilt stuffing and cotton rolls though is that none of them are the perfect, uniform thickness. When that is the case it seems like a display stood up will result in medals sliding around, getting crooked, etc. I have tried to layer the stuff really thick, but then the cases are hard to close down, etc. Anyone else have any other ideas? Perhaps foam which is heavily wrapped in paper or cloth and then cardboard over that and then a layer of the final cloth which the items would rest on? Maybe that'd give enough seperation to where the foam wouldn;t be an issue? MW Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
3rdeye Posted October 1, 2011 Share #16 Posted October 1, 2011 wow thats nasty thanks for showing us this! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
3rdeye Posted October 1, 2011 Share #17 Posted October 1, 2011 wow thats nasty thanks for showing us this! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bluehawk Posted October 1, 2011 Share #18 Posted October 1, 2011 If one feels that they prefer a soft foam for long-term storage of anything, then the only safe one museums use is ethafoam: http://www.masterpak-usa.com/cat_203_ethafoam.htm So far as I'm aware, all other commercially available foams will out-gas or self-destruct. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Twillie2 Posted January 9, 2017 Share #19 Posted January 9, 2017 This is good info. I learned about the plastic cases with foam a 15 - 20 years ago when I opened a case holding a restike Sampson Medal. I found that the foam had crumbled and the medal and ribbon were coated with the residue of the foam. A question I have is about those black paper type display cases that have a non cotton or stiff fiberous material: do they give off the gas also? And what about paper, paint, and lacquer don't many of those products have acid in them? I guess I am wondering if someone has a suggestion for displaying our medals and other militaria without them being exposed damaging gasses. R/ Twillie2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Adam R Posted January 9, 2017 Share #20 Posted January 9, 2017 Felt can be dangerous as well. I once stored a WWII Navy Cross in a small Riker case that was lined with black felt. Within a year the previously pristine gilt finish on the reverse was GONE. The obverse was still perfect but the the reverse had deteriorated to raw, blackened metal with no trace of the original gilt finish. One person I mentioned this to speculated that formaldehyde in the felt may have caused the reaction. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kaigun Shosa Posted January 11, 2017 Share #21 Posted January 11, 2017 Has anybody had any issues with velvet? I have a riker mount lined with velvet and had a medal group in it for about 5 year no problem. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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