Need Recommendation: Where To Buy Printed Scott Album Pages?

I agree that current album manufacturers are also probably cheaping out on their paper and using standard 'acid free' paper. The term 'acid free' only means that at time of manufacture they throw some buffer in the pulp slurry. How much? No one says, no one tests, no one knows. Buffers will work for a while but once it is used up the paper turns acidic.

I do not think that current album manufacturers are using high quality rag paper with absolutely no lignin because they are not touting it in their sale literature. It would make sense that if they were spending more to use it, they would be promoting it to differentiate themselves from other solutions.

And no matter how a paper is made, paper is a sponge (hydroscopic). The constant absorbing and shedding of moisture from the atmosphere brings with it other atmospheric components like carbon dioxide (carbon dioxide reacts with the moisture to form carbonic acid). Hobbyists who care about conservation monitor their environmental conditions and check for acidic conditions in the paper, albums, and materials their own. Other folks might not care but I think that when we suggest things to new hobbyists we should make sure that we offer a full understanding.
Don

'What I hate about hinged stamps is that they are fixed, you can't move them, inspect them, swap them, etc. Then what happens if you get an unused stamp and want to replace the used hinged stamp in you album for the unused one? It will be messy and you will probably damage the used stamp that is used but can still be valuable. What do you think?'

I have difficulty following this. Hinged stamps are not glued like iron to the page Older hinges are supposed to be peelable. Modern ones not so much but you can still get the stamps off the page.

I use Steiner pages and I love them. The clean simple look appeals to me, I really dislike overproduced albums like the White Ace Albums. My only complaints are that the pages are not specialized enough in the classic era (because Scott isn't) and modern stamps expect you to collect blocks or sheets instead of singles. Fortunately AlbumEasy lets you design your own pages to replace the Steiner ones if you need to fix this problem.

Don makes a good point about paper quality, but it is possible to have high quality paper that for self printed pages. I use 100% cotton paper, and the paper is thicker and feels nicer then the paper in the Scott National album I have. It has a texture to it and it is not 100% smooth like cheap laser printer paper. The paper does cost a little over 10 cents a page. Is it considered Archival? I don't know but I doubt it's any worse than what is in printed albums.

I also use black mounts for every stamp, whether I paid hundreds of dollars for it, or found it in a cheap mixture. I make sure they are mounted straight, and I like the mounts to cover up the box so you don't see any lines on the page, just the stamp. Using mounts allows me to seamlessly swap out stamps when I get a copy that I like better than the one I have. It also allows me to easily see perf issues or evaluate centering when considering an upgrade. I really dislike hinges, so much so that I soak off the hinges from every stamp I put in my collection unless it's on a stamp with fugitive ink or chalky paper. I only collect used so I don't have to worry about disturbing the gum when I soak off the hinges.

I think the end result looks far better than many of the printed albums.

Don (51studebaker) wrote: "Hobbyists who care about conservation monitor their environmental conditions........." I agree. One can debate all one wants about paper quality. But storage is everything. Even living in semi-arid Colorado, I do not store any stamp albums or stamps in the basement or attic.

Folks can 'get away' with a lot more if they maintain perfect environmental conditions. And perfect environmental means limiting fluctuations. When things like RH (relative humidity) fluctuate, paper acts like a sponge by exchanging moisture (seeking to balance the paper's moisture level with the RH levels). But these fluctuations accelerate the chemical reactions that cause paper to deteriorate, and high moisture levels can result in mold growth. Keep in mind that these fluctuations can also result atmospheric pollution (like CO2) and other contaminates being pulled into paper.

A cool, dry and stable storage environment is paramount; temperatures should be held at a constant 70°F with a relative humidity held between 30% and 50%.

But I fear the majority of folks do not maintain perfect environmental conditions and this is when the other conservation issues (use of sheet protectors, poor quality paper, unproven adhesives, etc.) can turn into problems over time. There are also many times when the stamp collector passes and those who inherit the material are not aware of paper conservation measures. This is when making good choices regarding paper conservation can pay off.

I think that it is the 'connection' between these conservation issues and the long-term impact which makes it easy to turn a deaf ear to being good stewards of the material we own.
Don

Printing your own pages on acid and lignin free paper is still cheaper than buying pre-printed pages for multiple countries. And there's always 100% cotton paper, which is archival. I doubt any album pages from any manufacturer are archival grade.

If you want Steiner pages with a fancy font and nicer border, look at Palo albums. They licensed Bill Steiner's album designs, and probably took his Pagemaker files edited the font and border. The supplements from the last few years have Palo designed. But everything from probably 2010 and back are identical to Steiner pages except for font and border. Bill Steiner confirmed in an email to me that Palo is a licensee of his.

As for albumpages.net, they offer an interesting service. They are licensed to print Steiner pages. But can print them on Scott International, Scott Specialized or Minkus size paper. With Scott National supplements costing around $25, depending where you get them, it's much cheaper to use this service to print multiple years of Steiner supplements than to track down old National supplements.

On the subject of paper quality, my ears perked up as I was watching a Scott/Amos video (on You Tube) about Scott albums when the narrator said that all Scott pages are on 80# paper that is "acid free" and "archival" quality. If that's true, I'm glad since I use a lot of Scott albums. And, if true, that means stamps in Scott albums will be just fine for decades or longer.

The point has been raised before, but it's worth repeating that many people who print-their-own albums (like Bill Steiner's) on computer printers may be printing on lower quality paper. When someone says they use Steiner pages, I never really know what that means since I'm not willing to ask if the paper they used is any good or not, and I'm not sure they'd even know.

'Acid free' means little and those who use it as evidence that their product is not going to become acidic are blowing smoke. 'Archival' is another marketing term which has no standard definition, this is much like saying a stamp is in 'fine' condition.

Let's start first with the term 'acid free'. 'Acid free' means, at best, that the paper manufacturer has thrown in some calcium or sodium bicarbonate into the paper pulp slurry. This buffer will indeed neutralize any acid that is currently in the paper and depending upon how much they use (consumers do not know) it will also offer some resistance to forming acids over a period of time. But this is like saying that YOU are 'acid free' when you eat a Tums or other antacid. Yes, you currently do not have any acid related heartburn…but for how long? Acid will return back in your stomach and in your stamp album pages, stamps and covers.

So where is the acid in paper coming from? Two primary places; any lignin in the paper itself and the atmosphere. There are archival quality paper which do not contain any lignin. Lignin is found in pulp made from trees and other woody plants; these are the cells which gives wood its strength. Over time and as they slowly (years) breakdown, lignin releases acid. But just like a Tums, any buffer that the manufacture added during manufacturing can only last a short time. Once the buffer gets 'used up' and the Lignin continues to form acid, the paper will tone and become brittle.

The second source of acid is the atmosphere. Everyone has heard of acid rain but acid does not simply fall as rain, it is floating around as part of the molecules in the atmosphere. And paper is constantly interacting with the atmosphere around it. Paper is a like a sponge, continually soaking up things in the air around it including any acid molecules. This is why it is important to maintain constant and stable environmental conditions, it limits the exchange. Using good quality paper but poor environmental conditions will result in your album pages, stamps and covers becoming acidic. Maintaining poor environmental conditions is like continually eating hot, spicy foods and wondering where your acid reflux is coming from.


But the real question here is why are album publishers, the philatelic press, and those who publish and promote self-printed pages not educating hobbyists? This is not rocket science nor does anyone need an advanced degree in chemistry to understand archival products or practices. Instead they treat us like idiots by saying things like 'the narrator said that all Scott pages are on 80# paper that is "acid free" and "archival" quality' and expect we will take their word that their pages will not damage historic material. They dodge any costs in actually educating us and shrug off any responsibility in helping hobbyists maintain the valuable material in our procession.
Don

Niosurfer, I think the Scott pages would be a good idea for individual countries if you only have one stamp of each set. I would allow an extra week or two for shipping with CO-VID 19 going around.

I agree with the reply in paragraph two. A hinged stamp can be lifted up (with tongs of course) to see the image or text in the mounting box under it, and to examine (though perhaps not scrutinize) most of the back of the stamp … hence the expression "hinged". You can use most perforation gauges on stamps hinge to an album page. If you need to remove a hinged stamp from a page, perhaps to check a watermark or examine it in more detail, or to replace it, many older hinges easily peel off both the stamp and the page. Newer hinges don't always dry peel nicely, but with a small brush (I use a foam one) dab some water on the hinge, the adhesive loosens, and the hinge comes off the stamp with out any damage.

As some have referred to, he is printing Steiner's pages for you. Lots of pros and cons listed.

What I like about the service is I can get a country printed on Scott International or Minkus sized pages, which can be a little more challenging to do at home unless you've invested in a wide format printer.

One thing that happens to me and I don't know if others do it . From reading all the post above my guess is it hasn't been a issue .

I need more that one set of album pages ,I will mount a used set ,than years later I will pick up a Mint Never Hinged set by being able to print my own page at home ,I can keep both pages next to each other .

Also my album pages have penciled in notes and information on them ,watermarks or perforation varieties under the extra stamps ,as my collection expands the information changes ,then I need to redo the pages .

If the Scott pages are "marketing hype" and the printer paper is ... well, junk if I'm understanding this correctly, then what should someone be looking for when mounting stamps? If the stamps are in black mounts, how important is the paper it is mounted upon?

It remains important, putting a stamp in a mount reduces 'direct contact' but this only has limited impact.

If the album page is acidic, then the atmosphere surrounding the stamps in mounts becomes acidic. Paper is hygroscopic (think sponge), it is constantly 'breathing'. As the relative humidity and other atmospheric changes occur, paper absorbs and releases gases and moisture. So having a stamp in a mount which is surrounded by acidic environment will still result in a stamp becoming toned and damaged over time.
Don

Again, the world around is important. I acquired a collection of France in which the stamps had been placed in mounts in rather expensive Frank Godden albums. But I suspect that the albums had, at some point, been relegated to a cold, damp loft. Most of the material was fine, but it wasn't possible to remove some of the stamps from their mounts without damaging them