Somewhat related to my previous thread about stains. Most of my pre-crash game carts exhibit anywhere from mild to severe signs of what looks like foxing on the labels. Colors have become mottled and quite unsightly. I'm not sure if the cause is the same as foxing found in books and other paper products or is the result of some sort of process having taken effect with the glue. To resolve such problems there seem to be three big factors: 1) What sort of paper was used? Some labels are glossy, some matte, and the thickness seems to vary greatly across brands. 2 What sort of glue was used? It's obvious that among older carts this varied greatly. Almost all of the labels on my intellivision games, which are of the same vintage and pedigree as my others and were stored similarly, are falling off (not peeling, just falling). 3) What is the cause of the discoloration? Outside source stains aren't what I'm talking about here and shouldn't be considered. Is the discoloration caused by something environmental: light, humidity, or fungus; natural deterioration of the materials; or something else. Any information, input, or comments are welcome. Below is a photo (two more are in the gallery, but came out blurry) of STARMASTER for the 2600 which exhibits one of the sorts of discoloration I'm talking about. I could provide further examples if desired. I believe somewhere I also have multiple copies of a game that have different amounts of discoloration. Cheers.
It's how they were stored. If they were stored correctly, this wouldn't happen. Label damage is usually due to poor conditions such as damp or direct sunlight. Yes, there are moulds that affect labels. The damage is permanent. Solution: store them correctly in the first place!
