Opinions On Palo Albums?

I have a small collection of German stamps, to about 1947. I have it housed in a stock book, but that just seems to me too chaotic. (I know, some people prefer that. I've tried it and I don't.)

My main collecting interest is US, so I don't want to put a lot of money into a German album. I'm looking at the Palo economy album. Binder, pages for Germany till 1949 and pages for German states would come to $200 or a bit over.

Any experience with Palo?

Thanks!

Don

Schaubek standard pages might be an option

http://www.schaubek.de/Germany-until-1945_1

Don-

You could get a sneak peak at the likely layout of the Palo album by taking a look at the Steiner pages for Germany. Palo has a licence to use Steiner pages, and often they are quite similar.

You might have to invest $25-$40 to get access to the Steiner pages.

http://www.stampalbums.com/

And if you really like the Steiner pages (which follow closely the format of the Scott catalogue), and don't mind printing them out for yourself, then you could perhaps use them.

Or a couple of lots of free pages here

http://www.album.france-timbres.net

I ordered 2 set of pages of Palo + a binder last year, I regret it, can't use it , pages are to hard to turn, Will considerate them again if Palo give 2 post binders option.

Biggest drawback for Palo is their page size. They are HUGE or at least seem so. Not sure why, there is ample empty space on the left margins before the holes for the rings. I have a suspicion they were trying to make it so you could not use any other binder but theirs, but that's just my cynicism. Apart from that they are attractive , the page size does indeed impede turning pages, I was always getting dings in the pages from turning thm.

I'm looking at the economy binder & pages. Catalog says they are a bit under 10" x 12". That doesn't seem too big.

Why are pages hard to turn? The six post binder? That seems odd to me, a six post binder, but then with my three post albums, I have to put reenforcements on the holes. I figure with a six post, less stress per hole.

Thanks for all the replies. When I try to print my own pages, something always goes wrong: run out of ink, paper jam, etc. I'd rather spend a few extra bucks and buy.

Don

You'd be hard-pressed to find an upscale album with pages that are 8.5x11, and Palo economy should be upscale despite the name. A 10x12 page really gives your stamps the appropriate frame they deserve. However, if just using Steiner pages printed on larger paper, you're going to have extra margin. Pages (the borders and spacing) should be designed for the larger size to get the full effect and the quality and texture of the paper makes a difference too. I would either opt for Steiner and print my own (possibly on larger paper using a wide bed printer) or purchase an album from someone else (e.g., Schaubek, Davo), but that could be expensive.

I've been remounting my German collection in Schaubek albums and am very happy with them. They have a classic traditional feel and look. I purchased the standard versions, adding mounts when needed. I do not care for their hingeless pages because the split back mounts used are difficult for me to work with. They do offer a page system for their albums that allows you to print your own pages on a standard page then place that into a holder that fits their albums. Makes a very nice presentation.

I've enjoyed my Palo albums. I have both the premium and the economy versions. The 6 ring economy binder is much easier to work with as compared to the much heavier and bulkier premium binder. I find the economy pages easy to turn. I still use reinforcements to help protect the pages. ddreisba, if you have any more questions concerning the Palo economy album, please contact me via SCF email.

Hi Lou,

You e-mail link doesn't seem to be working so I'm posting here. I just pulled the trigger on purchasing a set of KGVI Palo Premium pages and binders. Please don't tell me that I messed up. I really would like to know your unbiased opinion about these four ringed pages. My choices were either the SG KGVI six volume set or the Palo KGVI set. The SG appeared to be too comprehensive and the Palo was "pleasing to the eye" so I went with the Palo. Others are most welcomed to chime in and all opinions will be immensely valued. I haven't even received the Palo set yet!

Thanks,
Jack Kelley

The King George VI Palo set comes in 2 versions, one more comprehensive and of course more pages.

The SG set is similar to the Palo less comprehensive version. I have both sets and the SG is much easier to work with as has smaller pages, and lighter albums with many rings to hold them.

With SG, you can also buy the 2 volume Indian states in addition to the King George VI.

I ordered the Palo less comprehensive version. Based upon what I'm reading today. I might not be happy with it. I can only imagine that the SG pages must be a lot thinner than the Palo Premuim pages. If not, wouldn't it be harder to turn the pages with all those rings in the SG album? Need some help here (and quickly)!

Thanks,
Jack Kelley

Some random and sundry comments in no particular order:

Virtually all high-end album pages are going to be considerably larger than 8.5x11. Lighthouse, Safe, Lindner, Palo, Davo, all are larger. Most of the major brands all have their own ring binder sizes (14-ring, 18-ring, etc.). The more rings, the more stable the page, but also the more difficult to turn the pages. The companies deliberately use different ring configurations so you are forced to buy THEIR pages/binders/slipcases.

Davo actually makes decent cost-effective hingeless pages + binder + slipcase packages.

If you're working with Scott catalogs, Palo is the way to go, because everything is arranged in Scott numbering order. Most European brands will use Michel or Stanley Gibbons for their sequencing.

While Palo defaults to color on their hingeless pages, you can order black & white at the same price, which are infinitely easier to work with. Telling which spots are empty at a glance is a PAIN with color album pages.

Overall, I'm a fan of Safe and the Lindner T-Blank systems, because the page and mount sheet are separate, meaning you can examing the back side of stamps without removing them from the album. Those systems also give you extra "slots" on every page for duplicates, varieties, etc.

For certain countries though, palo is THE only option. Palo makes pages for countries and eras that no one else does. They offer pages for the entire world per Scott. Also, you can buy single pages pro rata, so if there is a certain set or series that you want pages for both mint and used (as opposed to mounting mint and used together) you can do so. Also handy if you damage or lose a single page.

If you have deep pockets, Palo will do custom hingeless pages for you. I've dreamt of having them do an album for Mexican Revenue Stamps, but simply cannot afford it.

I have a set of Palo Hingeless pages for Mexico and also U.S. Stock Transfer stamps. Currently, Palo is the only maker doing hingeless pages for U.S. revenues... pretty much all of the Scott-listed revenues too.

Thank you revenuecollector. Your words are reassuring. I don't feel as jittery as I did a few hours ago. If anybody else wishes to comment, PLEASE DO!

Thanks,
Jack Kelley

Jack

Palo albums follow SG numbering in this case, as far as I know. I don't think it's worth worrying about. Gibbons? Palo? Or, in other contexts, Lighthouse? Yvert? Whilst my preference is generally to find an album from the country that issued the stamps, it really doesn't matter that much. Either way, you'll end up with a good quality album. Relax. And don't tell your spouse that you've spent the cost of a holiday on stamp albums.

Geoff