The Importance Of Glassine Envelopes?

I see that there is a lot of people that use this glassine envelopes for their stamps, but I was wondering if that any better than using just plain regular envelops. I know that the glassine envelopes allow you to see what you have inside, but beside that what is the true benifit?

Right now, I have hundreds of current stamps in plain ziplock bags, namely the Four Flag, Weather Vines and Forever Flag stamps, is that a good idea as well?

Any suggestions on storing large volumes of stamps would be helpful.

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Glassines are not acid free, and have been known to damage stamps
after some time, short term use is OK, (3 years?) a lot has to do with the cleanliness and humidity of the stamps surroundings.

Accepted best practice is in good quality stock books or hagner sheets
with mylar plastic.

We all store our large volumes of duplicates in paper envelopes
I should think, what else to do?

i use stock-books for my duplicates and have albums for each of my counties . I collect from 18 different areas so have 18 albums . expensive at the start but great now . none of my countries will extend into a second album since my cut off year is 1970 ....it is just great to fill even one gap in any country collection . it also means I have 18 stock books....when one fills I just sell the contents on e-bay

Glassine envelopes sold today are acid-free, at least the ones I purchase. They will store your stamps safely for many years. Whether they are safer than paper envelopes I guess depends on the archival quality of the paper.

For instance, Westvaco glassines are advertised:

- made from semi-transparent #30 glassine
- pH neutral archival quality
- open on long edge, with ungummed flap
- strong seams, using anti-tarnish adhesive
- envelopes feature seams on two side. (Size #1 envelopes have a side and a bottom seam)
- labels adhere to glassine, or print direct to the envelope.

I think the older glassines that I bought as a child many years ago, and my father bought, may have been acidic. I have seen quite a few yellowed.

I have routinely replaced all the old paper envelopes my family used as a child with new glassine envelopes and I store all my new stamps in glassines or dealer cards.

The old stamps my family had sat in both old glassines and paper envelopes for well over 30 years. Many of the glassines yellowed. The envelopes appeared to be less yellowed. The stamps in either case were well preserved. The environment was not overly hot or humid.

Glassines are good for short-term storage of multiples.

You will want to change them out every 5-10 years depending on your climate (tropical to arid).

A sure sign a glassine is too old is when it is changes color or becomes brittle. Discolored glassines should be recycled.

Stockbooks and albums are best for long-term storage.

I don't store any stamps in regular paper envelopes.

Its obvious collectors have had different experiences with glassine. Quite possibly its due to climate differences. I know I have glassines at least 10 years old that look like new. But I have received glassines in auctions that look horrible.

Anyway, I started a little search and found an interesting discussion about storing photographic negatives in glassine. They go much deeper into the discussion than we have.

http://www.apug.org/forums/archive/...t-54065.html

I think the heroin dealers buy them up at the hobby stores..wish they would order them online !!

I was given a collection of old stamps by my neighbor, the stamps were stored in 100 year old glassines. The glassines were in horrible shape, toned brown and falling apart... But the stamps were fine! Perhaps as you said it has to do with the climate.

I personally would not use normal envelopes as not being able to see the contents would really annoy me... I don't us bags, but I don't see why not!

Doing some more research, I cannot determine if the Westvaco glassines are lignin free. So I doubt they are. Lignin is an organic substance that binds wood fibers together and is what causes paper to change color and become brittle over time. Since glassines are made from wood pulp they will suffer the same effect unless the manufacturing process removed the lignin.

So, I would guess that in order to have a safer paper envelope, it would have to be lignin free and at least pH neutral.

I know a lot of places recommend the use of polypropylene envelopes for archival storage of photo's. Would this be a better medium for stamp storage? I use a lot of full page sleeves that are labeled archival for some of my collection.

I know you can get 10,000 polypropylene bags 3inch by 2 inch pretty cheap from a lot of places.

Having a degree in Forest Industry Management and having work in pulp/paper mills for 30 years, I know that since the 1980's most if not all glassine paper is lignin free. Since the demand for archival quality papers is high, the market for non-archival level glassines is low; thus it is really not cost effective to produce it. I have glassine envelopes which I purchased in the late 1960's which are still in great shape.

I think the glassine material was chosen to be used at the time because plastics that we have now were not available then.

The glassine is semi-transparent or translucent so looks good as you can expect for a dealer selling his stamps, and can be printed upon also. See the old stamp approval / sales companies that had their own glassine envelopes made.

It's nice, as mentioned above, to be able to see what you have or what you are buying without necessarily have to touch the stamps.

A previous discussion on Stamp Community
Glassine envelopes v Clear Poly resealable envelops
https://goscf.com/t/23894

That makes a lot of sense. I would imagine that paper manufacturers would not tap one source of pulp for paper that is lignin free and another for glassines that is not. If its true that glassines are now routinely lignin free, then they are very safe indeed.

The problem I have with storing stamps long term in stock books, is that part of the stamp often extends out beyond the protection of the plastic or glassine strips. Over long periods of time the part of the stamp more exposed to air may change color slightly from the protected portion. Hence, the need for slipcases and other protection. I would prefer that the protection I use extend over the entire stamp and not just a portion.

I haven't seen this problem with modern stockbooks, but I am currently cataloging stamps from a collection I received recently that was housed in a stock book that looks at least 40-50 years old, maybe older. The backs of the stamps, mainly the gum on mint stamps, have a discernible line about where the glassine in the strip stops. The front of the stamps that touched the glassine look okay, but for some reason the gum on the back has been slightly discolored, probably due to exposure to the air. (Here's another case where glassine that is very many years old has not affected the stamp, but the environment clearly has).

I've also seen some discoloration on the face of stamps in some cases in other really old stock books. The part exposed to air has been slightly damaged (discolored) whereas the protected part is in better shape. Its a good thing that in most cases these stamps were fairly common.

Has anyone else experienced this with old stock books?

The ziploc bags are, I think?, polyetylene, the bad plastic for paper and stamps.

They is used to ship stamps at times as it seems a good idea to seal off moisture contamination and stamps falling out of their holders en route. Also cheap and readily available because you use them for sandwiches and what not.

Short term probably OK but not for long term use I wouldn't think.

You can get glassines or the polypropylene (sellophane) bags in larger sizes too, the PP bags are cheaper than the glassine but I think for handling (I have both here) the glassines win out.

Or some collectors use the 102 card (like in size to a #4 glassine envelope) or 104 cards (larger). These are stiff paper with a polypropylene sleeve attached to the paper on three sides. Use pencil when writing on the tops where the PP is not located so it can be erased and reused later on. Special boxes of cardboard are made to store these or glassines of the same size.

Vario or Hagner clear plastic over black cardboard stock pages are nice, you can see what you have and examine the stamps in their pockets of various sizes without damaging or touching them. Expensive for a lot of stamps.

I have stamps from an old collection in small cardboard card boxes or brown paper bags or manilla envelopes that are probably 50 years old anyway and seem fine. Storage conditions play a big role,, as mentioned already. Or they are in old regular sized #6-1/4 envelopes also. Some are wrapped in folded chocolate bar wrappers, the outside paper parts, the backs of, folded up like they were diamonds at the London Exchange (in the movies!).

Hi polo_sal.




I have recent(1966-Now) stamps in zip lock bags and some for over 6 years now as temporary storage.

The soft plastic type, the ones you can crunch up and they stay that way have let go or turned to a tacky liquid type state but changed the bags before they stuck to the stamps.

The stiffer plastics ones have been very good. I keep trying to put all my stamps into stock books but it is a never ending job. It is just so easy to put a bundle of stamps in a bag.

I like stock cards and am using over 2,000 them at present and I use these for more than just storage. They are great for storing 20 or 30 important stamps and for scanning stamps. etc

The lots of stamps that I have won that have had the bundles put together with elastic bands that have melted to the bundles of stamps. What a mess!

That's what I use exclusively for the duplicates other than the
large bulk duplicates (piles of Machins etc)

In Australia, I purchase them from a place called "Bunzl"
and if memory serves, about $8 per thousand
All differing sizes.

The downside is they have no "body" like Glassine
and stamps can bend slightly if not stored well.