This is information for anyone selling or buyin View-Master Reels. If you are a collector, you may be familiar with the problems.
1. Reels made by GAF between 1978 to about 1981 are all subject to fading. They turn magenta, or look like they have a red tint. The date on the reel can be deceptive because the reel may have been reissued between those dates. Sellers should picture the reels against a bright white background so the tinting or lack of it can be seen. Sealed packets by GAF could have this problem. Sawyers reels are all OK. Buyers can capture the pictures and in a photo editor brighten the background to see if there is fading. And asking the seller is a good idea. If the seller won't reply don't bid.
2. Bubbling or bumps on the reels indicate moisture damage which is often accompanied by blue spots on the pictures. Again posing them against a white background can help the buyer be assured there are no blue spots. Severe bubbling causes reels to stick in the viewer.
3. Dirt, staings, & fingerprints on reels are a problem that can often be seen in good resolution photos. Bubbling often is accompanied by severe dirt problems. Small speckles or stains are often found on new reels. Most of these defects can be seen by just examining the reel. Holding it up to the light reveals fading, and large spots or fingerprints can often be seen. The right/left images should be identical with strong blue, green, yellow colors.
Reels that have turned magenta are very saleable if there are no alternatives. Reels copyrighted between 1977 to about 1981 are often only availabe as faded copies. Dracula, and Wolf Man are examples of this, but even those reels might have come good copies in circulation. Sellers should always disclose obvious fading or bubbling, if they want satisfied customers. One tends to think that reels posed against a black background are defective and the background is designed to hide it. Most sellers are not aware of fading problems and just pose the reels however.
