How to clean my playing cards ?
- Thread starter okeanos13
- Start date
Unless they are plastic cards or Fournier 605, you can't clean them. Water is not an option with paper cards. If your cards are dirty to a point where dirt and oil spots appear on the edges of the faces and backs, and the deck doesn't fan anymore, you officially have a poop deck and you have the following options:
- throw it away (never do this, there is always something else to do with a used deck)
- use it for cardestroy, or for practicing the mercury fold
- continue using it for packet cutting
- try cleaning the spots: I did use facial tissue to clean one of my bikes one to remove the dirt. I did remove the dirt and brought the edges back close to white, but it also wore out even more the finish, and did not help getting better fans. It is still a poop deck, but I have been using it for a year now and it still works great for practicing cardistry. You would only do this if the deck is so comfortable you want to keep using it in that state, because honestly for a 1.50$ deck it is not really worth the effort, even for a 10$ deck.
- throw it away (never do this, there is always something else to do with a used deck)
- use it for cardestroy, or for practicing the mercury fold
- continue using it for packet cutting
- try cleaning the spots: I did use facial tissue to clean one of my bikes one to remove the dirt. I did remove the dirt and brought the edges back close to white, but it also wore out even more the finish, and did not help getting better fans. It is still a poop deck, but I have been using it for a year now and it still works great for practicing cardistry. You would only do this if the deck is so comfortable you want to keep using it in that state, because honestly for a 1.50$ deck it is not really worth the effort, even for a 10$ deck.
It is not dirt but paper dust. Rub the deck sides with a soft and clean vinyl eraser.
One time I was "renewing" a gimmick and needed to remove a bit of adhesive from an 808 joker that had become dirty, along with the rest of the card. It was doublefacer so I wanted to get as much mileage as possible out of it.
I used literally 3 drops of Goo Gone (a thin clear orange colored/smelling liquid that does what it says) on a folded paper towel corner. I found that it not only instantly removed the adhesive, I gave the whole face a quick wipe and dry and it looked like new, removing that dingey looking dirt that accumulates on the faces of an oft-used packet trick. Cleaned the rest of the packet trick and it looked and felt like new.
It removed no ink or finish at all and I've since used it (very sparing, very quick on/off) on other cards with great success.
I didn't use it on the edges but imagine a quick gentle swipe followed with a dry swipe would work pretty well. In fact, I'm going to go try it now and let you know in my next post (don't want to retype what I just did!)....
I used literally 3 drops of Goo Gone (a thin clear orange colored/smelling liquid that does what it says) on a folded paper towel corner. I found that it not only instantly removed the adhesive, I gave the whole face a quick wipe and dry and it looked like new, removing that dingey looking dirt that accumulates on the faces of an oft-used packet trick. Cleaned the rest of the packet trick and it looked and felt like new.
It removed no ink or finish at all and I've since used it (very sparing, very quick on/off) on other cards with great success.
I didn't use it on the edges but imagine a quick gentle swipe followed with a dry swipe would work pretty well. In fact, I'm going to go try it now and let you know in my next post (don't want to retype what I just did!)....
OK, that's a gigantic NEGATIVE on using Goo Gone on the card edges. Nope. No. Nein. No go. 
. Soaked it up like a parched lawn. Glad I went and tried it.
So the Goo Gone is good for spot cleaning on the faces, not for restoring or cleaning a whole deck.
Someone above said it best, just not worth the trouble even on a premium deck. Saving a gimmick card is one thing but cleaning a full deck would end in disappointment I'm afraid.
Good luck though, and if ya find some method that works be sure to share it!
. Soaked it up like a parched lawn. Glad I went and tried it. So the Goo Gone is good for spot cleaning on the faces, not for restoring or cleaning a whole deck.
Someone above said it best, just not worth the trouble even on a premium deck. Saving a gimmick card is one thing but cleaning a full deck would end in disappointment I'm afraid.
Good luck though, and if ya find some method that works be sure to share it!
Thanks mateOK, that's a gigantic NEGATIVE on using Goo Gone on the card edges. Nope. No. Nein. No go.
So the Goo Gone is good for spot cleaning on the faces, not for restoring or cleaning a whole deck.
Someone above said it best, just not worth the trouble even on a premium deck. Saving a gimmick card is one thing but cleaning a full deck would end in disappointment I'm afraid.
Good luck though, and if ya find some method that works be sure to share it!
OK, that's a gigantic NEGATIVE on using Goo Gone on the card edges. Nope. No. Nein. No go.
Playing cards are made of paper, and the worst enemies of paper playing cards are liquids and oils. Goo Gone is both. Goo Gone contains solvents (which can remove ink) and orange oil, among other things.
Most playing cards have a plastic-based coating, so a tiny bit of Goo Gone on a paper towel may not instantly wreck the deck, but if any gets past that plastic coating that card is dead. Not worth it.
Best way to clean cards? Don't let them get dirty in the first place. Wash and dry your hands before using them. Use them only on clean, dry surfaces. If they get dirty you may have luck brushing off a bit of dirt with a clean, dry cloth, but the bulk cleaning of paper playing cards is not easy or safe for the cards.
// L