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[Tarazet]

I might be picking up a sealed, in-box Star Ocean 3: Till the End of Time. It's pristine and gorgeous. Problem is, there's a sticker on the box (and probably one of those sticky plastic security tabs, too). I know from removing the seal on my DQ8 box that the ink on these boxes isn't very secure, and I would be very nervous about trying to remove it, since I am buying this as a collector's item and I want it to look pristine, even if I have to leave the sticker on.

What are the methods I could try? How reliable are they in situations like this? Should I practice on a GBA box first?

 

[Skin]

I really doubt you can. If it's a plastic sticker, it's easy. If it's not, say goodbye to your pristine box. And although I know this is a gaming forum, this question is beyond nerdy.

 

[the year 20XX]

Heat up the adhesive a little with a hair dryer?

I don't know. This is really hard to do.

 

[Bebpo]

I might be picking up a sealed, in-box Star Ocean 3: Till the End of Time. It's pristine and gorgeous. Problem is, there's a sticker on the box (and probably one of those sticky plastic security tabs, too). I know from removing the seal on my DQ8 box that the ink on these boxes isn't very secure, and I would be very nervous about trying to remove it, since I am buying this as a collector's item and I want it to look pristine, even if I have to leave the sticker on.

What are the methods I could try? How reliable are they in situations like this? Should I practice on a GBA box first?

Yeah, you're fucked sorry. I got Gunstar Heroes GBA a few days ago and it was the last one they had so they gave me the floor box at EB with the big yellow circle sticker about trading in games, a sticker saying the price, and a stick saying new release. 3 stickers which basically covered the entire front of the package. I tried peeling them off and it just ripped the cover to shreds. Good thing it wasn't a particularly good looking cover, but still it makes me pretty fucking pissed and if I didn't get the game for $15 new I'd want to knock over some racks at EB.

 

[Tarazet]

I really doubt you can. If it's a plastic sticker, it's easy. If it's not, say goodbye to your pristine box. And although I know this is a gaming forum, this question is beyond nerdy.

Well, I am beyond nerdy. No shame there. I'm going to buy a guide for it, too, and look for the most unmolested one I can find. Am I going to use it? Hell no.

I've heard of some methods that used isopropyl.. anyone tried that?

 

[flarkminator]

Here's what I do.


1. First hold the box really really close to you and breathe hot air right on the sticker.
2. Then you try and dig your nail under one corner to expose a little bit.
3. Repeat steps 1 and 2 until sticker is removed
4. pass out.


works for almost anything

 

[Tarazet]

Looks like I lucked out. Well, almost - the box was a bit more banged up than I remembered, and the seal was broken. :/ Fortunately, the game rang up at $29.99, and the case itself looked so fantastic that I felt it was worth it. And when I got it home, the sticker came off without a hitch. Music for a Song rocks.

 

[Musashi Wins!]

In the book business we would use lighter fluid, the same yellow bottle you can buy anywhere to fill up a lighter. It's perfect in small amounts to gradually remove the bond between a sticker and surface, with repeated small dosings for very old or hard to remove adhesives. Works better than Goo-gone or any of the factory made substitutes and doesn't damage materials when it dries, even old paper or slick covers.

 

[Kobun Heat]

In the book business we would use lighter fluid, the same yellow bottle you can buy anywhere to fill up a lighter.

Ding ding ding.

Dissolves the shit out of the adhesive; leaves the paper perfect.

 

[koam]

isopropyl alcohol + hair dryer ftw

 

[Ghengis Cohen]

It's the only way.

 

[Jive Turkey]

In the book business we would use lighter fluid, the same yellow bottle you can buy anywhere to fill up a lighter. It's perfect in small amounts to gradually remove the bond between a sticker and surface, with repeated small dosings for very old or hard to remove adhesives. Works better than Goo-gone or any of the factory made substitutes and doesn't damage materials when it dries, even old paper or slick covers.

Huh...I used to use lighter fluid to clean damn near everything at one place I used to work. Brass plates, vinyl or leather folders, acrylics, glass and crystal...Didn't know it worked on paper products too.

 

[renvi]

http://www.ga-forum.com/showthread.php?t=77128

 

[Musashi Wins!]

Huh...I used to use lighter fluid to clean damn near everything at one place I used to work. Brass plates, vinyl or leather folders, acrylics, glass and crystal...Didn't know it worked on paper products too.

Yea, and it was quite safe on the rarer, older items. Plus it evaporates quickly. I'm not a big fan of bringing the dryer into adhesive removal because of the temperature and the fact that I hate a noisy hair dryer.

 

[boo7z]

 

[Tarazet]

Oh, yeah - there was a little bit of residue left on the box, so I went over it with a Q-tip and a little bit of Goo Gone. Worked like a charm. In some spots where the SO3 box has been dinged, it's actually silver colored underneath - I wonder why they did that. The DQ8 box was just cheap white paper. If I had tried the same thing with a DQ8 box it would have ruined the ink. Maybe they changed suppliers, or maybe it was just necessary to use different materials to do the nice embossed box for SO3.

 

[Community Forum]

Wait... Gunstar Heroes for GBA is $15 new at EB?