I recently managed to pick up a nice Palitoy Darth Vader's Star Destroyer Action Playset. The box is in pretty good shape considering its age, with good integrity, bright colours, not much creasing or other damage, at least to the display sides. However, it does have what I believe to be mould / mildew growth on all 6 faces to a greater or lesser extent. Many of us are probably familiar with what I'm referring to; small spots that sometimes dot the box surface that look almost dusty in appearance, but which don't simply rub off with a gentle wipe as dust itself would.
I would like to clean the box if possible, and looked on YouTube for ideas and tips on cleaning mould from cardboard. The problem is there are lots of different suggestions, ranging from wiping the surface with lighter fluid, to rubbing it with furniture polish, to wiping it with anti-bacterial spray. However, none of the items being cleaned were similar enough to my Star Destroyer box for me to be confident to use that specific cleaning method, as naturally I don't wish to damage the box. The main area of difference is in the box finish. The litho print on my box has an almost satin finish to it, rather than a glossy one, such as you'd normally find with a Slave 1 for example, and none of the YouTube techniques I viewed were treating boxes with a similar finish.
I'm loathe to try anything that might damage the box further, so before I try anything, I thought I would ask the forum for advice. Has anyone here managed to successfully clean a vintage Star Wars box with similar issues? If so, what tips, tricks or advice can you offer please?
Here are some photos of the box, taken with and without flash. The mould / mildew issue looks better than it actually is with flash, and worse than it actually is without flash!
Thank you.
Jeremy
I would like to clean the box if possible, and looked on YouTube for ideas and tips on cleaning mould from cardboard. The problem is there are lots of different suggestions, ranging from wiping the surface with lighter fluid, to rubbing it with furniture polish, to wiping it with anti-bacterial spray. However, none of the items being cleaned were similar enough to my Star Destroyer box for me to be confident to use that specific cleaning method, as naturally I don't wish to damage the box. The main area of difference is in the box finish. The litho print on my box has an almost satin finish to it, rather than a glossy one, such as you'd normally find with a Slave 1 for example, and none of the YouTube techniques I viewed were treating boxes with a similar finish.
I'm loathe to try anything that might damage the box further, so before I try anything, I thought I would ask the forum for advice. Has anyone here managed to successfully clean a vintage Star Wars box with similar issues? If so, what tips, tricks or advice can you offer please?
Here are some photos of the box, taken with and without flash. The mould / mildew issue looks better than it actually is with flash, and worse than it actually is without flash!
Thank you.
Jeremy