Soliciting Opinions On Removing Hinges

i have a question. I have picked up my stamp collecting again after 15 years. I am finding that in my US collection I have pretty much every stamp released between 1940 and 1960 except errors, they are all mint vf, but back then I didn't know better and used hinges to attach them to my album. Question is, is it worth the time and expense to de-hinge them and remount them using proper mounts? IF so, what is the best method of removing hinges? I can't imagine soaking would be very good. Perhaps holding it over steam and letting the glue soften then laying them out to dry?

opinions are welcome.

In the most part, it is your decision and your personal taste,
I am a fan of hinging, but then again, I do not own really
expensive stamps.
Perhaps try a page of mounting, and see if you like it,
there is no need to remove the hinge if you do.

I would suggest "steam is extreme" and avoid that at all costs.

I'm with Rod on each point.

The issue of how easy it will be to remove hinges will depend in large part on whether you used peelable hinges, and to a lesser degree on how much moisture you originally used to hinge them.

If you are changing albums, there is no reason why you can't hinge the stamps into the new album. If you are keeping the same album(s), then I'd think long and hard about lifting everything and mounting it.

If you like the look of mounts, then by all means use them. Since the stamps are already hinged, one of the big benefit of mounts (preserving MNH stamps) isn't an issue.

If you decide you like the look of mounts, I'd do some quick math on what your long-term album goals are, and see if the cost of mounts works for you. The more limited your collecting goals are, the more you control that cost. If you want to be filling Scott Internationals with boatloads of stamps, then the cost will be significant.

C.

Removing hinges is a painful process...especially when it is not done right. Moisture obviously compromises the glue.

On the rare occassion when the hinges do not come off easily I have been using a wet q-tip and putting it where the hinge meets the stamp and waiting a few seconds before pulling the hinge off. However, today I applied too much moisture and the whole stamp started to curl. In my panic I wiped the excess moisture off and, of course, much of the glue as well. Live and learn!

PS Is this topic in the wrong forum? I only found it by searching the subject of removing hinges.

yes, wrong forum. and way old... but thanks.

I will rubbed the hinge with the back end of my stamp tongs several times until the hinge start to peel.

Issues from that era are not generally worth the money to mount. If you decide you want to use mounts (like Showgard) for aesthetic reasons, IMHO you should just leave the hinges as they are. Place the stamps in the mount and you're good to go.

BTW - I use Showgard mounts on ALL my collections/stamps regardless of the value.

So Stampvirgin

since this topic was brought back to life, do you mind telling us what you ended up doing? Just curious.

Dianne

I'm curious as well.

I received a few pages of stamps that are hinged. I haven't removed them from the pages yet, as I'm not sure how to get the hinges off the stamps.
I'm not too worried about them, as they are duplicates of stamps I already have. I may just use them to 'experiment' on how to remove hinges.

Hi Barstol,
You didn't mention whether you're trying to remove used or mint.
If used and they come off the pages easily why worry about hinge marks.
If they don't come off, then soak them.

For the mint ones with gum, I've tried steaming and it works OK (except for some curling which can be fixed by pressing them under a ton of books) even though someone here in another thread thought maybe the stamps would discolour. I haven't noticed that yet but then again I only hold it under the steam for a few seconds.

re: hinge removal, this looks helpful: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pdwye72HNDo

Once a gummed stamp is hinged, it will always be hinged - that it, it will always have evidence of having been hinged.
So I'd suggest either leaving them hinged in your album, or replace them with never hinged stamps and use the hinged stamps for postage.
Dan

Not necessarily so. There is an easy way to restore gum.

http://stampsmarter.com/learning/Ho...LostGum.html

Be cautious!

I feel that gum should not be restored with or without disclosure. I don't consider restoration with disclosure to be dishonest, but feel that the natural state should be preserved as the condition of the gum and of the stamp. This represents an important part of the history of the stamp. Consider if some deposition process was invented that could replicate original gum to a point that the difference could not be detected. In short order, a significant percent of older stamps would be NH.