5 Best Comic Book File Cabinets For Storage
As a comic book fan, the issue is not whether you should have an organizational method or not. The issue is deciding which organizational method to use. While comic books bring readers a lot of enjoyment, they are also a responsibility. Comic book damage easily, add to clutter, and require organization since they are sequentially numbered by issue and the cultural era of release. If your collection numbers are in the thousands, you may need a comic book file cabinet storage solution.
Comic books attract dust. Comic books are made from the cheapest quality paper, ink, and iron staples. (The quality of such materials incrementally improved in recent decades, but not as much as you think.) As comic books are made from wood pulp, they contain a natural biological acid called lignin.
As the paper contained in comic books, books, or magazines are exposed to air and the elements, its releases gases and lignin which slowly dissolve paper fibers on the molecular level.
The longer you leave comic books exposed to sunlight and air, the quicker they disintegrate. Although the process takes decades, you can see your comic book fade, yellow, and become brittle to the touch in a few years if you don’t protect them
Comic books must be stored and filed in the same manner that you would do for books. It is so easy to spill food, and drink, or damage them if you have them covering a desk or stacked in unstable towers on the floor.
So, let’s talk about some comic book file cabinet storage options that are available. The hard reality is that while there are a lot of file cabinet storage options for documents and books, there is not a similar system for comic books.
Let’s explore that problem first before examining solutions.
Comic Book File Cabinet Storage Solutions – The Struggle is Real
The more that I researched this subject, the more that I believe that there should be a support group for collectors who need comic book file cabinet storage solutions.
Studies have been done that prove people turned more to reading comic books during the recent pandemic. And that development in turn put a light on the struggles of comic book collectors trying to organize their collections.
For example, some collectors will put a comic book short box or long box in a wider, rectangular cardboard tray, and then slide in and out the comic box in a preexisting wall unit. So, a deep-depth wall unit can be hacked into a comic book file cabinet storage system.
There are multiple Pinterest groups and posts dedicated to people creating their own comic book file cabinet-style storage solutions for their collections. People are repurposing file cabinets, wall units, document drawers, and even IKEA drawers into file cabinet storage systems for their comic books.
So, if you’re good at carpentry or hacking existing wall units, desk drawers, and IKEA furniture systems into bespoke comic book file cabinet storage systems, there is hope for you.
But if you’re like me, this reality just won’t do.
I’ve worked in offices. A lot of the file cabinets in business offices are empty or in states of disorganized disuse.
Companies should make it their mission on Earth to create comic book file cabinet storage systems for the existing demographics clamoring for one. (Did you click on the Pinterest link I provided earlier? That is not the only one in existence – not by a long shot.)
If you want a comic book file cabinet storage that serves your needs and doesn’t require you to MacGuyer your own organizational solutions, then there are a few options out there for you.
However, the best solutions are wide comic book box housings made of cardboard that you can stick preexisting comic book long boxes and short boxes into. So, you can create mock comic book file cabinet storage systems. However, you can only stack these boxes two or three levels high. Since they are made of cardboard, the accumulated weight of the comics within will crush the boxes under them.
BCW Short Comic Book House
BCW is a well-known name for comic book collectors looking to protect their comic books. This product is called a “comic book house,” but it is really a cardboard housing that allows you to insert a comic book short box.
You can then pull it out and stick it in the short box like it was a file cabinet. Your comic book short boxes slide in and out as if they were a file cabinet. Here are the dimensions of the housings: L 16 1/2 X W 9 X H 12 ¾. This product is colored white and is constructed with durable, high-quality corrugated cardboard.
You get ten of these cardboard houses with every purchase. You then have to buy 10 of BCW’s comic book short boxes to compliment the BCW short comic book house. (You can get that here, 10 short boxes for $80.)
Keep in mind that you should only stack these short comic book housing two or three levels high only. Stack them on a desk, or stick one on the shelves of accommodating wall units. Don’t fill the comic book short boxes to capacity. Such boxes can hold up to 175 comic books.
If you stack these comic book housings higher than two or three levels, and at full storage capacity, then the accumulated weight of the comics will crush the comics underneath.
You can buy 10 units of the BCW Short Comic Book House for $90.
BCW Starter Comic Book Storage Kit
This product is essentially a more durable, plastic version of the BCW Short Comic House.
The BCW Starter Comic Book Storage Kit is a starter kit for new comic book fans who want to learn how to store and organize their collections.
This heavy-duty comic book storage box comes with 100 mylar resealable sleeves, four divider partitions, 100 acid-free backing boards, and even a cleaning cloth. The plastic storage box itself is acid-free too.
Here are the product’s dimensions: 8 ¾ x 12 ¼ x 16 ½ (WxHxL).
You can fit 100 to 150 comic books in each storage box. And the manufacturer claims that you can stack these boxes up to six levels. So, you can create an ad hoc comic book file cabinet storage system that way.
But, you will have to pull out, shift and move boxes as needed since each box has butterfly-wing opening lids. The best option may be to place these boxes on wall units with enough depth of space for you to slide them in and out.
Please note that this comic book is optimal for mylar-sleeved or unprotected comic books, not slabbed or top-loaded comic books.
BCW Graded Comic Book Bin (2-Pack)
Slabbed comic books are comic books that are encased in rigid plastic shells. An apt analogy to a slabbed comic book is the way you may get a valuable collector’s baseball card laminated.
Usually, a third-party comic book appraisal company assesses the value of the comic book, gives it a grade ranging between 0.5 to 9.0 on a “CGC” grade, slabs it, and then puts stickers and documentation attesting to the value of the comic.
The comic is slabbed to protect its value and slow down natural deterioration from exposure to the elements. (You can slab your own comics, but you can’t independently attest to their market value.) But that does not mean comic book collectors don’t enjoy holding and admiring the slab like a trophy.
The BCW Graded Comic Book Bin is a durable plastic comic book storage bin that is designed to exclusively store slabbed comic books. Here are the product’s dimensions: 19.55 x 14.1 x 6.2 inches.
You can store 28 slabbed comics in this product and stack them several boxes high. Or you can place these boxes on wall units with enough depth of space for you to slide them in and out like a mock file cabinet.
This product comes with two storage boxes as a two-pack item. Get it at Amazon for $71
Leffis 5-Pack Stackable Comic Book Storage System
Leffis’ stackable comic book storage system is an affordable alternative to the standard corrugated cardboard and plastic storage bin systems.
Here are the internal dimensions of this product: 15.5″ X 7.5″ X 11.3″. Each one of Leffis’ comic book storage boxes holds up to 150 comics.
Leffis’ storage boxes are made of a high-quality linen exterior with a sturdy and collapsible PVC shell interior and baseplate. Each box has a Velcro lid that covers the interior. And each box is sturdy enough to stack up to two levels safely. When not in use, you can collapse the box for easy storage.
This item is a five-pack purchase. Get it at Amazon for $57.99.
Koifuxii 2-Drawer File Cabinet with Lock
As this list has made it very self-evident by now, there is no standard comic book file cabinet system. And there should be one by now, considering the market.
But sometimes if you can’t beat them, join them. Koifuxii (wow, try saying that name out loud quickly) manufactures mini file cabinet systems for offices, home offices, and homes. Here are the product’s dimensions: 16.93 “W x 17.71 “D x 28.35 “H.
This product also features lockable drawers.
It’s a typical and affordable file cabinet with sliding drawers and hanging file folders that you could use to house your comic books. Until some manufacturer wises up and makes a file cabinet product exclusively for comic books, this could be your best bet to protect your more valuable comic books.
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Allen Francis is a full-time writer, prolific comic book investor and author of The Casual’s Guide: Why You Should Get Into Comic Book Investing. Allen holds a BA degree from Marymount Manhattan College. Before becoming a writer Allen was an academic advisor, librarian, and college adjunct for many years. Allen is an advocate of best personal financial practices including saving and investing in your own small business.
