Arcihval-Quality Deck Box

 

 

 

There are plenty of high end deck boxes that are made of wood. Nothing is wrong with these boxes, Ive made several myself, but wood is not archival quality. If you want your precious cards to last hundreds of years you need a better material. 

The problem with wood is that as wood ages acetic acid and formic acid are produced by the degradation of cellulose and hemicellulose. This process is known as off gassing. Over the course of decades off gassing can migrate through plastic selves and eventually into the cards themselves causing yellow or brown discoloration due to acid-catalyzed oxidation reactions. Acid can also cause "foxing." Foxing appears as small brownish spots often seen on old comic books. 

Acidification of the cards (lowering of pH in the cards) will weaken the cellulose fibers in the cards and will cause the cards to become brittle.

After about 50 years the effect will likely be slight but noticeable, after 100 years the damage could be extensive.

So what materials are archival? Well, leather and plastic, are inert and wont off-gas. However, leather and plastic don't stop acid migration. If you were to store your box in a wooden cabinet or on a wooden shelf the the box would become acidic due to acid migration. Now, one option to prevent this acidification from happening is to line the shelf or drawer with Marvelseal. This material will effectively block all acid migration.

Now, one could incorporate marvelseal into a wooden deck box, but I think there is a better way--Aluminum. 

Aluminum blocks acid, is durable and light weight compared to other metals.

This is a 3d printed deck box I designed. Its made of an aluminum, magnesium, silicon alloy. I had it 3d printed in China for about 50 bucks with shipping. 

 

 

The top of the box is fitted with neodymium magnets and pins to prevent the lid from sliding off. The pinholes are reinforced with steel tension pins (AL is too soft to handle the wear of pins going in and out of it). The pins are made of steel and glued into holes in the lid. The magnets are also glued into their holes.

I carved the design using a hand held rotary dermal tool but if I had to make the box again I would build the design in fusion 360 using this technique.

I wanted my box to look aged and old. Normally AL looks new and shiny. The neat part of this particular alloy is that it holds a nice dark patina. All you have to do is suspend the box in water over a sprinkling of Oxyclean powder. Wait a day, and when you come back in the morning the box will be totally dark. I used a rag with Hydrochloric acid to lighten the raised areas of the design. Also, if for some reason you're having trouble getting the patina to stick try rubbing the resistant area with Hydrochloric acid. Be sure to wear gloves and eye protection. When your done playing with the acid neutralize it with baking soda before you dispose of it.

Finally, I painted on a bit of green ink into the recesses to make it look even more worn and old, like an ancient wizard trinket.