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Post by southafrica1 on Oct 31, 2023 16:52:16 GMT
I do a fair amount of soaking and find that lots of times some of the stamps curl up...so much that I have to put them into stock sheets and put a heavy book or weight
in order to straighten them out. Maybe there is something one can put in the water to avoid this problem. Any help would be much appreciated.
SouthAfrica1
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khj
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Post by khj on Oct 31, 2023 18:29:26 GMT
Back when I would do a lot of stamp soaking, I ended up using stamp drying/blotting books. That would keep all the stamps flat as they dried.
On some older stamps that were difficult to distinguish between vertical/horizontal laid paper or wove direction, and holding up to light didn't reveal readily, watching which direction the paper curled was the sure way!
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philatelia
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Captain Jack - my best kiloware find ever!
Posts: 3,655
What I collect: Ireland, Japan, Scandy, USA, Venezuela, Vatican, Bermuda, Austria
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Post by philatelia on Oct 31, 2023 19:37:45 GMT
Drying books are absolutely awesomesauce! Worth every penny. Stamp dry fast and flat as a pancake. No embossing from paper towels, or smudges from newsprint, or waxy residue from wax paper. Desert magic is my fav. Don’t leave home without one!
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philatelia
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Captain Jack - my best kiloware find ever!
Posts: 3,655
What I collect: Ireland, Japan, Scandy, USA, Venezuela, Vatican, Bermuda, Austria
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Post by philatelia on Oct 31, 2023 21:34:50 GMT
Beryllium Guy - LoL - wow that was a strong reaction! Well let’s wax on about wax off, eh? I used to use extra sheets of wax paper as the slick nonstick side for the extra blotter page you get in the desert magic drying books. When I removed the stamps, I noticed that where the stamps were on the wax paper, the slickness or waxy layer was somewhat depleted. It’s a very fine coating and barely noticeable, but it had to go somewhere and sure enough, the backs of the stamps were just a tiny bit glossy with a minute, tiny, wee, thin bit of wax or something shiny and slick. The next time you dry a stamp with the previously sticky - ex gum side of the stamp on the wax paper, carefully look at the wax paper after use and feel for the waxy coating. The wax paper seemed to feel slightly thinner where the stamps were especially if there was any glue residue on the stamps. If I remember correctly the wax paper was less translucent after use, too. Water doesn’t dissolve wax, but the pressure from heavy pressing might transfer a bit - wax is fairly soft after all. Some glue residue might be able to break down wax or adhere to it somewhat. I don’t think any small soap residue could be a factor as I rinse after the soapy soak. I might have been using a bad batch of wax-paper, but I think I always buy cut-rite. This is all not a very scientific measurement / analysis of the wax residue, but personal observations only. Sounds like time for controlled tests!
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Beryllium Guy
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What I collect: Worldwide Stamps 1840-1930
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Post by Beryllium Guy on Oct 31, 2023 22:14:28 GMT
Thanks, Terri ( philatelia ). I have removed my previous post. If you have actually seen waxy residue on stamps based on your soaking method, then I can't argue against that. All I can say is that I have never observed that with the method I use, which is why I have not seen the need to invest in drying books. To each, his/her own. Soaking and its associated drying process seems to have as many different methods as there are collectors who practice them.
Additional Edit: southafrica1, when all else fails with changing the soaking and drying processes and curling still results, there is actually a very simple fix. If you just put the curled stamp inside a folded sheet of clean, white paper, you can run a pair of spade-tipped tongs on the outside of paper (both sides at the same time, with the stamp sandwiched in between) bent in the opposite direction of the curling. If you do this gently and check the stamp in between passes, you should be able to effectively reverse the curl and make the stamp lie flat. I had this problem with curling when I first moved from the Midwest (Ohio), where it was generally humid and near sea level and then we moved to northern Arizona, where it was very dry and we lived at high altitude. All my stamps started curling, not just after soaking, but even ones just sitting in the stock books. So, I developed this flattening method using white paper and tongs, and I still use that on the occasions when I have curled stamps, whatever the cause. |
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rod222
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Posts: 11,047
What I collect: Worldwide Stamps, Ephemera and Catalogues
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Post by rod222 on Oct 31, 2023 23:01:30 GMT
I do a fair amount of soaking and find that lots of times some of the stamps curl up...so much that I have to put them into stock sheets and put a heavy book or weight in order to straighten them out. Maybe there is something one can put in the water to avoid this problem. Any help would be much appreciated. SouthAfrica1
No, sorry, there are only two ways, to straighten badly curled stamps.
Firstly, why do they curl?
Humidity, acts on the Gum Arabic, which can liquify, or harden, depending on temperature and humidity, it is always in flux.
As it does so, it takes the paper fibres with it, (illustrated by KHJ's observation, you can see the weave of the paper, depending on how it curls)
Now I don't recommend these two, solutions, it is what I do, but I rescue the ripped, the torn, the abused stamps, I need to mount.
Try at your own peril.
1. Place the damp stamp (after gum removal) in a freezer bag, or light plastic bag, then lightly run the bag over a curved corner (of your desk?) etc against the curl.
2. After removing the gum, lay the damp stamp on a clean tea towel, face down, and gently rub the back of the stamp, in the curl, with the back of a pair of spade tongs.
being careful not to rip the stamps.
In both cases, you are attempting to re-align the paper fibres.
Place straightened stamp on a freezer bag, clean sheet of copy paper on top, place in a book, take out in 3 days, to perfection.
Drying books not needed, this is a cheaper option.
PS: Worse stamps in my experience, early British, or Malay States, great orange brown gobs of gum Arabic, one can almost scrape off with a knife
PPS: Only soak stamps you intend to mount or save, soaking any more is a waste of time. |
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rod222
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What I collect: Worldwide Stamps, Ephemera and Catalogues
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Post by rod222 on Oct 31, 2023 23:14:20 GMT
Quote when all else fails with changing the soaking and drying processes and curling still results, there is actually a very simple fix. If you just put the curled stamp inside a folded sheet of clean, white paper, you can run a pair of spade-tipped tongs on the outside of paper (both sides at the same time, with the stamp sandwiched in between) bent in the opposite direction of the curling. If you do this gently and check the stamp in between passes, you should be able to effectively reverse the curl and make the stamp lie flat. I had this problem with curling when I first moved from the Midwest (Ohio), where it was generally humid and near sea level and then we moved to northern Arizona, where it was very dry and we lived at high altitude. All my stamps started curling, not just after soaking, but even ones just sitting in the stock books. So, I developed this flattening method using white paper and tongs, and I still use that on the occasions when I have curled stamps, whatever the cause.[/quote] I like this! Look forward to trying it ! Thanks  |
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stainlessb
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qaStaHvIS yIn 'ej chep
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What I collect: currently focused on most of western Europe, much of which is spent on France, Belgium, Germany and Great Britain Queen Victoria
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Post by stainlessb on Oct 31, 2023 23:37:27 GMT
adding my two cents- from what i have read, the paper was sized so that the ink would adhere but not soak in and bleed through the fibers.
As a woodworker, it is a common headache to have boards cup/curl, and they almost alway us do this on the side away from the center cut. It also happens onprojects where only one side of the would was sealed/finished. The other side can take on the humidity, swell and as the sealed/painted side works as a barrier, the unfinished side swells, and cups/warps in the process
Early Austrian stamps are also problematic, and my suspicion is the hard-as-'heck"-gum-to-remove, must absrb moiture at a higher rate than th eprinted side (shear speculation on my part)
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