Please Help Me With My Ocd !

Hello community,
this is my first post so please be gentle

I started collecting stamps almost 30 years ago and after a long pause I have resumed last year.
OMG how things have changed! no more local shops, everything or most things are done over the internet.. oh well... the good news is this forum :)

Anyhow, back to the topic.
My issue is, I have always been a person who struggles to take decisions when there are many choices combined with the "I have to have it now" syndrome, and although I am really really enjoying collecting again I have been obsessed with the decision of which album to choose or how to keep my collection.
When I started back in 80's there were really no other choices.. hinges or stockbooks.

Today? well.. pre-printed albums, hingeless albums, stockpages, stockbooks, etc etc.
here is where it gets weird, I know
for the past 3 months I have tried EVERY single possible option to display my stamps...
Bought pre-printed pages, lindner, lighthouse, schaubek, stanley Gibbons, you name it. I've tried stockpages, mounts, etc..
and I can't really seem to find a method I am 100% happy with.
I hate cutting mounts and putting them on album pages, very time consuming although I admit they look good.
here is an example of a page I did, bought blank Schaubek paper, printed the page at home in my A3 printer, mounts and here is the result:


but I don't like the fact that mounts open at the top and when I turn the pages the stamps move.
Also I don't like pre-printed albums because mostly they use clear mounts and I prefer how black background contrasts.

I've tried Lindner T pages, they are great but super expensive..

so, I'm selling all the albums I have tried and inherited...

and I'm thinking of transferring my entire collection to Stockbooks

Please help me stop this OCD and show me your stockbook collections so that I can finally rest my mind


Regards
Luis

To be honest, I don't think you'll be happy with stock books. I use them, but my collection is growing quickly and in many directions. I can move things around easily and find that I reorganize a lot.

One day, however, I will say enough is enough and will start collecting in albums like the lovely one you have shown above.

Luis,

You can get black mounts that are split-back instead of open at the top.

Thank you guys for your responses...

yes, I know.. Stockbooks also don't seem like the perfect answer due to the difficulty of keeping things organized if the collections grow quickly.

has anyone tried to use one of the glue pens to seal the top of the mounts ?
here in Lisbon it is no easy to find split-back mounts..

You can order the black split mounts from ebay for reasonable price W/free shipping. I have a mount cutter and order them in long strips. You should be able to search for them under supplys and publications under the stamp category. You will have to know what size you need to fit each size stamp, measure in Milimeter from inside top to bottom seal of mount. Example, the entire mount may be 33mm tall, but the inside size is actually 30mm.

Luis: welcome to the Forum. You are finding that there are many ways to store and display one's stamps. Myself, I use albums with hinges, and mounts for more expensive stamps.

You said "no more local shops." Do you know this shop In Lisbon: Filatelia Joaquim A. S. Macas, R. do Crucifixo, 76 - 2 sala H, 1100-184 Lisboa http://filatelia.com.pt 351-21-346-76-61 ? Note that I left off tilde from couple of the letters as I have no way to duplicate these. I know of this dealer since I collect Portugal and Colonies (through 1974). I hope to visit their shop next year.

Thank you Steve.
yes I know that shop but they really don't have many supplies in stock. Economy in Portugal is bad I guess a lot of people stopped collecting.

I am really divided now... I like the look of the page I've printed.. the one I've posted. it looks great to me... although a lot of work to cut the mounts and putting them on the page but I hate the open top mounts so I would have to look into the ones open at the back. I've never seen one
Do you have experience with them ? do they really stay flat and closed?

I understand stockbooks are not really flexible that is the reason why I was keen to see some of your collections to make up my mind

thank you Guys

I make my own album pages, use black backed mounts which I cut to size and have successfully used glue pens for many years now. The glue pens stop the stamps from moving regardless of the shape or angle of the mounts.

My process is to apply a very small dot or thin line of glue without touching the stamp and do so prior to mounting the stamp onto the page.

I place the mount on a spare piece of paper, then lightly touch the mount closest to the stamp and draw quickly backwards to the outside edge of the mount. I seldom use "lines' of glue.

Luis,

Your album page above is awesome.

below are some scans from my albums-- I use Safe Dual pages (MDC)

also see link
https://goscf.com/t/48299

there is short discussion regarding this brand of album pages including advantages and disadvantages. Hope it helps. There are some other recent pages including stock book. I prefer albums!

I have been lazy but at some point I plan to add written commentary regarding variations etc. These Safe Dual pages do allow customization as they come in a variety of styles and sizes for plates blocks, small stamps , larger stamps etc.

I tried to start a similar thread a few weeks ago to see how others are housing their collections, but only got a few responses and pics.

Hopefully your link will lead to other ideas as I am eager to get suggestions on best way to show as well

This should help :)

I have always used the split back mounts and a tight fit. It takes a little bit of money to buy different sizes but after a while, you will find that you mainly use a certain size. I have never had a stamp move or come out of the mount, ever. They are open at the sides by design. But the tight fit keeps them from moving. They make them in black or clear. Black is more common. Showgard, Scott, Hawdid are the main choice. I have found no difference in any of the companies mounts. I like the Showgard but the Scott mounts have better packaging that you can open and snap shut. You will find that by using stock pages, you will be constantly moving stamps around.

Hi BlackJag, thanks for your response.
could you please elaborate a bit more on your technique to seal the mounts ? I have ordered a Hawid glue pen, which I hope will help.
The alternative is split back mounts... but it means I would have to purchase basically dozens of sizes and I already have all sizes I need in open top ones.

rgstamp, thanks. I also like the page you've shown very much. Here they are by Lindner. Safe is not a brand that exists here but it seems to be exactly the same.. you can choose a vast number of pages, which row with a different size.
My problem with those pages is that I really like adding page titles and labels to the sets.. and I believe that with those pages the only option would be to print a page a put it behind the transparent film, but I have never tried this , have you ?

rwoodennickel I found on ebay.co.uk which is the one I have to use to avoid having to pay customs if I order from the US, a lot of Prinz split back mounts... have you tried these ? and In general how happy are you with split back mounts ? they remain flat and as easy to mount to the page as the regular open top ones right ? sorry for asking but I have never tried or seen these

thanks

Luis,

I haven't tried printing a page yet ... The pages are quite expensive and I don't want to mess it up.
I will probably try the label route first by printing a label and slipping it in alongside stamp...but not sure I will like it. I too like the idea of adding titles and labels but haven't experimented with it yet. I'll update after I try.

Prinz and Scott are the same mount. I use them pretty much exclusively.