Moving Across The Country

In the near future I will be moving from California to Tennessee and I'm wondering what woul d be the best / safest method for transporting my stamp collection. Most of the valuable stuff is concentrated into 4 albums but I have about 15 boxes containing mostly cheaper material I recently bought from a retiring show dealer that I won't have time to deal with before the move. Obviously I don't want to trust any of it to the movers, and there's too much to haul in the car during the drive, so I'm wondering how others have have handled similar situations. Any suggestions?

In plastic totes with the movers. What insurance is provided?

You really don't want to carry this inside a car where it could be visible to thieves and exposed to either heat or rain. Your luggage and travel stuff will probably take up the trunk.

Randy's suggestion is the best. If there's that much value to it, get the stamps insured through APS; done by Hugh Wood, Inc. with impeccable credentials, from what I've found.

I've definitely ruled out taking it with me on the drive, the risk of theft aside, there simply won't be room. I'm considering shipping the most valuable material, which is concentrated into 3 albums, to myself via USPS Priority Mail (girlfriend is already there due to job transfer so there will be someone to receive the packages) and trusting the rest to the movers.

Another option: take the three albums with you in a box, and carry them into the motel each night. That's what I did when I moved from Indiana to Colorado in April, 1981. Of course, my collection then fit into two boxes the size of small banker boxes.

Travel stuff for my dad and me; since he rode out with me; a few boxes of clothes; and the two boxes of stamps; all fit into the back seat and trunk of a 1978 Ford Pinto. The movers hauled the rest.

Good suggestion, though, to insure your collection through APS.

Since I already plan to do that with important documents like birth certificate, passport, Social Security card, DD 214 etc.that does sound feasible.

Since you have a good location/person to send the albums I think that is an excellent way to proceed. Peace of mind for you.

For long moves, I've just boxed up my collection, marked them "BOOKS" (with an additional mark like underlining the word to remind me they're actually my stamp collection), and trusted the movers to handle them properly. I don't mark them "Stamps" or "Stamp Collection" for obvious reasons. I often put an ordinary book or magazine on top just in case the box got accidentally opened -- but that's never happened.

On short moves, I put my collection in boxes and move them by car or van if it's less than a one-day drive.

Be sure your collection is insured from theft, etc. That's important.

@ Filechaser: This is what I do if I must travel with my most valuable stamps.

I carry them with me in the car and take them with me if I must leave the car to eat, etc. Second best is to leave them in the car but always have the car in sight if, say, in a restaurant.

Moving stamps from car to motel room at night is a given, but never leave them there unattended. Rule of thumb for all road valuables is never leave anything in a motel room that you wouldn't leave in an unlocked motel room.

For me insurance is fine but the amount paid out would never repay me for all the time spent accumulating all of those special stamps.

You could do what I would do (and have done in the past)

Take your best albums, put them in a SMALL suitcase (the rolling, airline carry-on type). IMPORTANTLY, use plastic cable ties (some call them zip ties) to secure the zippers shut. If you use cable ties OTHER than white or black (Home Depot has some fun colors) you can have some piece of mind knowing no-one got into your suitcase!

You can buy plastic "stretch film" (some people call it pallet wrap) online at U-Line, and wrap the suitcase up tightly before boxing it and shipping with a movie company. Mark the box with an innocuous-sounding but believable codeword, like "school files." Put a magazine, school related item, or boring textbook on top of the suitcase. Place the SCHOOL FILES-marked box inside a SLIGHTLY larger moving box and put clothes on top. Seal well, then mark the OUTER box "SCHOOL & CLOTHES".

I can't stress enough how important it is, obviously, NOT to put albums in the original container/suitcase laying FLAT--make sure they are standing on edge, right side UP!

Safe moving,

--Jim Wentzell
stampguyaps177-681