New Collector Seeking Guidance On Albums.

I am collecting used U.S. stamps and am struggling to find a commercial album to suit my needs.

I had purchased a Scott Minuteman album, but that did not work because of the panes, blocks, strips of stamps that it had space for, rather than the groups single stamps that are typically soaked off of mail.

The two main options that I see at this point are to either design my own pages, in something like Publisher, or to buy stock pages or books and arranging it that way. Custom pages require more work, but I think stock pages would be prone to wasted space because the pockets in the stock pages would either to be too large or small for some of the issues that would naturally go together, such as certain commemorative of a given year.

Are there other options out there?

Thanks in advance for your help.

You can always use Steiner pages, and then have access to all pages from the whole world, if that helps!

IIRC, Steiner provides spaces for blocks, panes, strips, etc., rather than spaces for the individual stamps. That said, I use them for my WW collection, and make custom pages when I dislike how he chose to lay out blocks, panes, strips, etc. YMMV.

Yes, Bill Steiner has done a wonderful thing by making prepared album pages available inexpensively. Here's the link to his website:
http://www.stampalbums.com

You subscribe for a year and/or buy a CD with all the album pages on it. Then you print the pages yourself on your computer printer. These were designed to print as 8.5 x 11" standard printer sized pages. Or , if you prefer, it's possible to have pages printed for you. Note the link to Richard Simpson (on Steiner's website) who can do this for you. The cost ranges from 25-35 cents a page. This may save time and trouble but it costs more than doing it yourself.

If you're having your pages printed for you, you can also ask for larger pages in the Minkus or Scott Specialty/National album size which they'll be happy to print in that size for the slightly larger price (35 cents).

The 8.5 x 11 (smaller) pages can be put into any decent 3-ring binder if that size album appeals to you. The cost is very little. If you do print pages yourself, check your office supply stores for good high-quality acid-free paper in heavier weights (thickness). About 65 pounds or so will work well. Some people use even heavier paper up to 100 pounds paper weight. Color is usually some kind of off-white like "cream" or "ivory," two standard Staples paper colors that look good for stamp album pages. The larger page size won't fit into these binders, of course.

Or you can, as you suggest, design your own pages. That will take some time, but many have done it. You may find yourself reinventing the wheel since it's been done before many times.

Another alternative is to mount your stamps in a blank album. Using "blank" quadrille (or all blank) pages in an album binder, you can lay each page out the way you like it and label each stamp or set of stamps the way you like. This is a very classic way of creating an album, it's more popular in Europe, it's infinitely flexible, less expensive, and the final product is very personal to you rather than an album prepared by someone else.

If you prefer to buy a good preprinted U.S. stamp album with beautifully laid out larger pages, you can't go wrong with the Scott National album. It's sold by Amos Advantage (the old Scott Publishing Co.) on their website. Just google it. You can buy all the pages at once, one set of pages at a time, and so on. You must use Scott binders or something of that size since they're too big for smaller 3-ring size binders. But the look is very nice indeed.

The cost of a Scott National album is not cheap, but it's much less expensive than other more upscale alternatives made by Schaubek, Lighthouse, Davo, and other European album publishers. Those albums will end up costing you between $1K and $2K by the time you're done. Ouch! They will be beautiful to look at, that's for sure. Now you see the appeal of the less expensive Scott National album (a few hundred dollars total) -- and of blank albums or Steiner pages you print yourself which are much less expensive if you like that sort of album.

Another alternative would be the brand new USA Classic and USA Classic Back-of-the-Book albums created by Bill Weston covering 1847 to 1940 (Scott #1 to #902)

These are of course, as always, completely free and can be downloaded as ready to print PDF files or as AlbumEasy source files for easy customisation.

They are not yet on the web site, I am hoping to have this updated over the weekend, I can't post links, but a Google for "AlbumEasy" without the quotes should get you there.

Clive

"AlbumEasy - Free software for creating custom stamp album pages"

It sounded, from his intro, that Mr. Gamakatsu is interested in collecting recent issues....a cut-off date undetermined and going forward. So, commercially you could start with Scott pages from the year you wish to start and then be stuck buying the annual supplements. The Steiner option would prove to be much cheaper in the long run, particularly if your interest wanes.

A couple of options for free PDF pages that you can print yourself: First, the American Philatelic Society has free downloadable pages for issues from 2008 through 2016 with color pictures of the stamps. The 2017 pages should be available soon. They have some se-tenants grouped together but others individually, and you do not have to be a member to download them. Second is the Philosateleian website which has a free download of all pages from 1847 onward, although I do not know if they have this year's available yet. They do not have pictures of the stamps, but there are individual spaces for each stamp rather than the se-tenant blocks.

For my US collection, I use Mystic's Heirloom album. It uses a standard 3 ring binder format and a bargain so not a big financial outlay. It is also somewhat friendlier for collectors of used stamps. Annual supplements are not that expensive. I like the descriptions for the stamps and Mystic cleverly puts these on back side of pages.

https://www.mysticstamp.com/Product...s/M8104/USA/




I create custom pages when needed (add varieties or change format). Andy P has shared some of this at:

http://stamphacks.com/wp/?cat=3

The disadvantages are the standard binders are basic vinyl binders (they have nice ones with a slip case for a premium) and printed on 28# paper (can be less durable) than what you find in the premium albums.

Steiner pages are the other option mentioned and you get to choose paper, what pages you print, binders, etc. and you can create replacement pages as needed as well. I use these for my worldwide pages.

Steiner provides US supplements (2005 to date for free).

Example free page

Hi,
I spent a lot of time and research on this very question when I got back into the hobby 5 years ago. What would help you to make the correct (for you) decision is to determine how serious you are about the hobby, and how much money you want to spend.

I decided I was really interested in getting back into collecting (after a 45 year hiatus) and picked up the Scott National Albums from NOLA stamp shop, and went from there. The Scott pages for the US regular postage come in parts (4?) and additional sections can be had for the "BOB" pages like airmail, revenue, postage due, etc., etc.

Doing this isn't cheap, but you can do it part by part over time. And, you will end up with quality albums/pages.

This is what I did, but there are obviously several alternatives to may well better meet your needs.

I concur with mobilman44, Scott Nationals for US unless you think you want to invest in very high quality hingeless albums. I would get just the first album, mount some stamps, and see if you like it. The only way that printing your own pages is cheaper is if you use poor quality paper. The majority of the cost in ANY album page is the paper; if you run out to the local big box or office supply store and buy some low grade cheapo paper than that is how the album will feel. And of course their is no guarantees that paper will not eventually develop acids (even if it is marked 'acid-free'.

'Acid free' is the biggest marketing scam since 'all natural', it means virtually nothing. Actual high quality paper will break your wallet, if you want true archival paper than look for the following; paper buffered with at least 2-3% calcium carbonate, has a cotton content of 25% or greater, and it should only contain high alpha cellulose pulp from purified wood fiber (contains no Lignin). If you use actual archival quality paper then printing your own pages is no bargain at all. The value in printing your own pages is that you can customize the pages to make an incredible heirloom.

It also has to be noted that few, if any, stamp album publishers publish the specifications of the paper they use. We all have seen old albums with toned, brittle, browned pages (sure sign of acidification). Just like us, they pay for quality paper, who knows how faithfully they adhere to buying good quality paper from year to year (easy way to 'save money' for a publisher who might be in hard times).

Printing your own pages is an experiment, even more so if you play around with using sheet protectors. The reason is simple, we simply do not have enough examples across time to know the acid levels in thousands of environmental conditions that exist in our homes. Heck, it took a 20-25 years before anyone understood that Crystal Mounts were ruining stamps.

But we need to support folks who are experimenting, this is how we expand our knowledge. The key part of printing your own album pages is to treat it like an experiment. In other words, watch everything closely, control the environment (temperatures should be held at a constant 70°F with a relative humidity held between 30% and 50%).

'Watching closely' is good, you should pull your albums out every few months and leave through them. This is the best part of printing your own pages (requires you to look at your stamps)!
Don

Hello Mr Gamagatsu,

I have the MYSTIC Premium and like it very much. No regrets although the cost of Showgard mounts is quite expensive.

Jack Kelley

I have looked into the Steiner and Scott albums, but see that it would require a fair amount of redesign to have spots only for singles, not blocks, panes, etc.

I had not seen the Mystic Heirloom albums, the example pages look good, are they only mounted as singles? Or will this album also require a reworking of some pages?

I have been toying with designing my own pages, and do not mind the time it requires or the expense of premium paper so long as the finished product is what I want. The biggest problem I have seen thus far is that OpenOffice Draw lacks any interesting borders, so I need to find another program to do the designing with.

It shocks me that there is not album for single used stamps, is what I am asking for that out of the ordinary?

Thanks the replays so far!!

I, too, use the Mystic Heirloom albums, although some of the pages may need reworking. Sometimes they provide a space for an entire block of stamps, and other times they break them apart. No rhyme or reason. What I like the most is that the facing page in the Mystic albums provide detailed information about each stamp on the opposite page.

Another option is the Mystic Historic Postage Stamp album that most likely doesn't include spaces for the higher end stamps. It is Mystic item M11054. I guess it depends on how in depth you choose to collect.

The Heirloom 3 part binder/albums are about $40 for the set although you'll need to buy additional binders as you start filling the pages with stamps. I'm already up to 5 binders and will need a 6th soon. The "Historic" album is only 1 binder and runs about $15.

Gamakatsu not sure why you would think stock pages would have more "wasted space"?? If you use Lighthouse Vario F pages (the 2 sided ones) then each row is 195mm across. Just do some quick math to maximize the number of stamps per row (most US horizontal commemoratives are 39mm wide, vertical ones are 25 mm wide..bigger stamps of course would be a bit more. US defins almost always are either 22mm wide (if vertial oriented) or 25mm (if horizontal).

Plus you get the bonus of arranging the stamps the way you want to present them, and if you don't like the look, rearranging a row is a snap with no wasted mounts or waiting for hinges to dry etc.

Maybe you are right, DJCMHOH.

I don't know what it is , the more I look at stock pages, the less I like them for my album.

I think that I am going to design my own pages.

So now it's on to paper and binders (and slipcases!). Any recommendations for good value here? or should I start another thread?

Thanks

For years and years long before home computers even existed, collectors designed their own album pages by hand, either drawing boxes for their stamps or just labeling stamps mounted on blank or quadrille pages. Some collectors still collect this way. Some of these albums that I've seen are really very attractive. With mounts now common, the mount itself could take the place of any border you might need to draw. If I had a unique way of collecting, my inclination would be to do it this way, using a good binder and some high-quality blank/quadrille pages. And it would also be less expensive which is also nice. Hope you find a good solution you're happy with!