How To Preserve Inherited Collecton

I am a newbie, starting off with an inherited collection from my dad who is 75 now. The collection is in a box, envelopes and some notebook pages, not exactly preserved well. So I would like to do so now. Its seems more like an accumulation of worldwide stamps and first day covers.

My question is how to preserve them? I prefer hingless mounting and don't want to spend a ton on mounts.

I have purchased some vario 8s sheets and 3 ring binders.

Are lighthouse albums a better option? I see them on ebay and Amazon. Eg: https://www.amazon.com/Lighthouse-H.../B002W63Q3I/
Is there a better place/price to buy these or just stick with vario.

Please advise. Thanks much!

Hi Svrider..i am also a newbie and welcome to the group.I opened a similiar discussion other day.. here is the link for the thread..hope it helps..

https://goscf.com/t/66682&whichpage=1#582261

Svrider- one more thing to add.. I suggest you checkout this forum about ineritance where you can post pics of your inherited collection

https://goscf.com/f/57

Stock-books and stock-pages have similar advantages (no need for hinges or mounts, stamps can be moved around) and disadvantages (expensive compared to paper, presentationally less attractive). You don't have to use Lighthouse - lots of other suppliers of decent products out there, with lower prices.

Geoffha - can you recommend some other suppliers for stockbooks and pages?

I think it's probably best if US-based collectors reply - they'll be aware of the best deals over there.

Thanks Aravind & Geoff. Btw apart from online the only retail store I found stocking stamp collecting supplies is Hobby Lobby (in the US). They seem to carry Showguard brand, which seems decent.

svrider: I use Showguard for my mounts.

Here are some on line references to brick & mortar stores that carry supplies:

www.subwaystamp.com in Altoona, PA

www.brooklyngallery.com in New York City

You can also try here for dealers that carry supplies. Some of them are still actual physical shops that you can visit:

www.americanstampdealer.com

Nordfrim, a recent new sponsor of this community, also is a supplier; see banner at top of page. (Recommending and supporting advertisers of our community is a good practice.)
Don

I've used Nordfrim for various items. Pretty good service, and free international delivery if you hit a minimum spend.

svrider- I never thought about checking hobby lobby.will do that. I went to barnes and nobles and they had a great section for coin collecting supplier but only one beginners stamo album which needs to be hinged/gummed.

Thanks Climber Steve & Don.

Aravind let me know how your hobby lobby trip goes, their selection seems to differ by store. Atleast the ones near me in PA & NJ do not carry stockbook or albums, though its listed on their website. They have showguard mounts and (vario like) sheets $5 for 5 pack.

Also this site I was able to find some useful stuff. Browse under collectibles > stamps category.
***No Drive-by Commercial Links Please***

Hi Geoff,

Could you please expand on "presentationally less attractive"?

Obviously you can't write on the pages of stockbooks (or hagner/vario sheets for that matter) but I've laid out stamps with a printed write up or little reference notes.

I guess this side of our hobby will come down to personal taste, and perhaps the quality of ones printing in block letters.

Bobby - I think the two main reasons for me are the antiseptic look of a stock-book or page and the fixed strips. A traditional album page allows you to configure different sizes and shapes of stamps. But then I don't much like printed album pages either, although I have a lot of them!