clivel
Member 
Posts: 386 
What I collect: Basutoland, Bechuanaland, Rhodesias, South Africa, Swaziland, Israel to 1980, Ireland predecimal, Palestine Mandate
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Post by clivel on Jul 20, 2019 18:38:37 GMT
They are open at the top. They are also much firmer than standard office sheet protectors and are also I think more transparent. The only problem is the price, I hadn't bought any for years, but recently found that I needed a few to complete an existing album and was shocked to find that they are currently priced at CAD$9.99 (about US$7.50) for a pack of 5.
Clive
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stainlessb
Member
qaStaHvIS yIn 'ej chep
Posts: 4,904
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 Jul 20, 2019 18:54:54 GMT
Thanks blaamand - i think this may work...though I have considered putting denomination above and Yvert# and color below. I've gone back and forth regarding should I include the color or not, as some the shades are very subtle in differences... placing in the box only works until I place the mounts (I prefer the black mounts over the all clear) and as I load the pages it may save some time (not that I am in a hurry  ) I use the Avery Economy Sheet protectors (#PV119 ED 75091) 100 pack, top load, Acid free, clear binding edge, contains no PVC and quite affordable. They have a heavyweight and a super-heavy weight, which I've thought about, but I'm concerned things will get too 'bulky, and these seem to be working well and they are almost invisible |
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clivel
Member
Posts: 386
What I collect: Basutoland, Bechuanaland, Rhodesias, South Africa, Swaziland, Israel to 1980, Ireland predecimal, Palestine Mandate
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Post by clivel on Jul 20, 2019 19:32:20 GMT
It just occurred to me, that those who are not familiar with AlbumEasy might be interested in how I created the Palestine Mandate page shown earlier in the thread - hopefully I don't scare too many people off  All it requires are a few lines of text that at first glance might look rather arcane, but once one has the hang of a few basic commands, creating an album is largely a matter of copy and paste. To start with one needs to set a few parameters that affect the whole album, these commands are required only once whether the album is a single page or a hundred:
First set the page size to 8 1/2 x 11 (215.9mm x 279.4mm), set a 20mm left margin and 15mm top, bottom and right margins. Rather than use a simple single or double line border I have chosen to use a decorative border called Classic:
ALBUM_PAGES_SIZE (215.9 279.4)
ALBUM_PAGES_MARGINS (20.0 15.0 15.0 15.0)
ALBUM_PAGES_DECORATIVE_BORDER("Classic.txt")
ALBUM_PAGES_SPACING (3.0 6.0)
Next I tell the program what fonts I am going to use:
ALBUM_DEFINE_FONT (CPG "Copperplate-Gothic")
ALBUM_DEFINE_FONT (PAL "Palatino Linotype")
ALBUM_DEFINE_FONT (PAL_I "Palatino Linotype Italic")
ALBUM_DEFINE_FONT (PAL_BI "Palatino Linotype Bold Italic")
And now to create the actual page using a mixture of text and stamp box commands:
PAGE_START
PAGE_TEXT_CENTRE (CPG 22 "\nPalestine Mandate")
PAGE_TEXT_CENTRE (PAL_I 11 "Overprinted at the Greek Orthodox Convent, Jerusalem, 1st Sept 1920" )
PAGE_TEXT_CENTRE (PAL_BI 11 "Jerusalem Type I\nP15x14" )
ROW_START_FS (PAL 8 0.1 6.0)
STAMP_ADD (25.0 29.0 "1m\nsepia" "" "sg 16" "")
STAMP_ADD (25.0 29.0 "2m\nblue-green" "" "sg 17" "")
STAMP_ADD (25.0 29.0 "3m\nchestnut" "" "sg 18" "")
STAMP_ADD (25.0 29.0 "4m\nscarlet" "" "sg 19" "")
ROW_START_FS (PAL 8 0.1 6.0)
STAMP_ADD (25.0 29.0 "5m\nyellow-orange" "" "sg 20" "")
STAMP_ADD (25.0 29.0 "1p\ndeep indigo" "" "sg 21" "")
STAMP_ADD (25.0 29.0 "2p\ndeep olive" "" "sg 22" "")
STAMP_ADD (25.0 29.0 "5p\ndeep purple" "" "sg 23" "")
ROW_START_FS (PAL 8 0.1 6.0)
STAMP_ADD (25.0 29.0 "9p\nochre" "" "sg 24" "")
STAMP_ADD (25.0 29.0 "10p\nultramarine" "" "sg 25" "")
STAMP_ADD (25.0 29.0 "20p\npale grey" "" "sg 26" "")
PAGE_TEXT_CENTRE (PAL_BI 11 "\nJerusalem Type I\nP14")
ROW_START_FS (PAL 8 0.1 6.0)
STAMP_ADD (25.0 29.0 "2m\nblue-green" "" "sg 27" "")
STAMP_ADD (25.0 29.0 "3m\nchestnut" "" "sg 28" "")
STAMP_ADD (25.0 29.0 "5m\norange" "" "sg 29" "")
Clive |
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angore
Member
Posts: 5,697
What I collect: WW, focus on British Empire
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Post by angore on Jul 20, 2019 20:07:58 GMT
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renden
Member
Posts: 9,162
What I collect: Canada-USA-France-Lithuania-Austria--Germany-Mauritius-French Colonies in Africa
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Post by renden on Jul 20, 2019 20:57:25 GMT
My opinion of protective sleeves is : How many people will go through your custom Albums ? If the answer is 0 - you do not need more protection than the way you handle your pages - never had a problem since the 60s....more than 40 years (but not of continuous stamping) - My opinion  R |
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blaamand
Member
Currently creating custom pages until 1940.
Posts: 1,459
What I collect: Worldwide - Stamps and Postmarks - not enough time...
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Post by blaamand on Jul 21, 2019 0:12:08 GMT
Wow, those sheetprotectors not only look exclusive clivel  Much more expensive than I can allow when collecting WW renden - haha, probably a valid point you're making. I still opt to use the sheet protectors. I think when printing on A4 the sheet simply gets too small if having free space at the edge for punching holes, so I prefer using the entire space of the sheet, and rather than punching holes use sheet protectors. Besides that I've handled a few feeder-albums with stamps on both sides, and I have managed to destroy a few stamps that way, so I'm probably not as careful as yourself  Seems I need the protectors... On the topic of sheet protectors - are anybody else using sheet protectors with openings both at top and the side? I do, and I can certainly recommend them. It makes inserting and removing pages much smoother, and the pages still stay put without sliding when flipping the pages. Well now, this thread seems to have got a bit sidetracked about sheet-protectors rather than DIY pages, hope that's within tolerance tobben63. |
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renden
Member
Posts: 9,162
What I collect: Canada-USA-France-Lithuania-Austria--Germany-Mauritius-French Colonies in Africa
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Post by renden on Jul 21, 2019 0:17:45 GMT
Jon blaamandMy custom albums are 1 side only. If they were 2 sided, I would welcome sheet protectors as you mention - Nice to hear from you and others on the subject - I do have a pile of sheet protectors (from my dad) but do not use them except if I want to send a page to a friend in an envelope. Always nice to discuss - My Scott Albums have (some) sheet protectors in the form of glassines and I do hate the 2 sided pages !! René |
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blaamand
Member
Currently creating custom pages until 1940.
Posts: 1,459
What I collect: Worldwide - Stamps and Postmarks - not enough time...
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Post by blaamand on Jul 21, 2019 10:45:57 GMT
renden, absolutely, always good to hear different ways to do things. 😁
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angore
Member
Posts: 5,697
What I collect: WW, focus on British Empire
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Post by angore on Jul 21, 2019 10:50:30 GMT
I do not mount stamps on both sides of a page. This is asking for trouble and from what I have seen some use interleaving.
The protective sleeves allows you to place two sheets back to back to give the same appearance. Some put supplemental material (covers, certs, etc) on left side.
What I have done is cut down collections on Scott pages (larger than US Letter size) and slip in protective sleeves in the intended album until I transfer to my pages.
My DIY preferences have changed over time as I created pages. It can be appearance related or trying to make the process more efficient.
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Post by classicalstamps on Jul 21, 2019 20:33:19 GMT
I'm building a World War 2 collection. I want to tell a "story", so the stamps are put in a historical context. I will mix postal history with world events. This means a lot of research The design is not finalised yet. Here is a work-in-progress draft of the first page of Germany: 
I use Apple's free Pages software. The paper I settle on will probably be A4. |
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tobben63
Member
Stamp eat sleep repeat
Posts: 1,874
What I collect: I collect to much, world wide!
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Post by tobben63 on Jul 21, 2019 20:43:18 GMT
Nice. Look forward to see more 👍
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renden
Member
Posts: 9,162
What I collect: Canada-USA-France-Lithuania-Austria--Germany-Mauritius-French Colonies in Africa
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Post by renden on Jul 21, 2019 21:21:02 GMT
I'm building a World War 2 collection. I want to tell a "story", so the stamps are put in a historical context. I will mix postal history with world events. This means a lot of research The design is not finalised yet. Here is a work-in-progress draft of the first page of Germany:
I use Apple's free Pages software. The paper I settle on will probably be A4. Great idea for WWII stamp/history - My WWII collection is divided into 6 parts, already discussed so I will not repeat - I have not done custom pages for this Album which is in essence a big stockbook, divided into parts, with 1,360 stamps - The stamps of WWII bought by my late father from H.E. Harris in 1974 - Aug 1, to be precise. How many stamps are in your WWII album classicalstamps ? Nice to share with a member of the Club (WWII) !! BTW do not do Apple but have other means to create a WWII stamp custom album, which I will never do (time is of essence....and it is nice like it is) Kudos to your efforts ! René |
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brightonpete
Departed
Rest in Peace
On a hike at Goodrich-Loomis
Posts: 5,110
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Post by brightonpete on Jul 22, 2019 1:21:10 GMT
I didn't really look at Pages to do anything, but it looks quite good. I use 'Graphic' to create my album pages. I like the ability to alter individual objects on various layers in Graphic. I tried to move things around in Pages, but it seems too simplistic as compared to Graphic. I have added a bit more info to my pages at times, and occasionally a picture. But it is great to see how everyone makes their own album pages. Nice story display for that issue, classicalstamps! |
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Post by classicalstamps on Jul 22, 2019 11:35:02 GMT
renden, it is a new project, so not that many stamps yet. I have spent quite a lot of time looking into what stamps to include. Kid in a candy store Do you have a link to where you tell about your WW2 collection?
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blaamand
Member
Currently creating custom pages until 1940.
Posts: 1,459
What I collect: Worldwide - Stamps and Postmarks - not enough time...
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Post by blaamand on Jul 23, 2019 16:20:21 GMT
classicalstamps - very impressive page, Morten 😊 Really neat pages that are putting the stamps in a wider context. Would love to see more 😊
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renden
Member
Posts: 9,162
What I collect: Canada-USA-France-Lithuania-Austria--Germany-Mauritius-French Colonies in Africa
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Post by renden on Jul 23, 2019 18:49:06 GMT
renden , it is a new project, so not that many stamps yet. I have spent quite a lot of time looking into what stamps to include. Kid in a candy store Do you have a link to where you tell about your WW2 collection? All info, pics sent by e-mail to classicalstamps and to blaamandRené |
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Post by classicalstamps on Jul 26, 2019 8:32:19 GMT
Like you all know, it is very hard to "finalise" a design. As soon as you start printing, new, more and better ideas come up... Anyway, I've settled on this for my WW2 collection (for now..) Instead of a "proper album", I keep coming back to Vario pages. Some of the reasons behind: * I collect MNH and used, so I have to use mounts in some way anyway. * I want to specialise, so I will continue to get "odd pieces", (if using an album, I would have to redo pages all the time) * I'm a sucker for flexibility. But most importantly/ideally, I would like album pages of the same size as Grande Vario (or any Vario), but European A4 doesn't fit very well (custom sizes ordered from a paper-shop is expensive, and then you need an oversize printer..) Some of the reasons for wanting to integrate to Vario's, is that I want to be able to include postcards and full sheets, which Various does well. So, this is the result:  The example above takes up 4 rows. The size (height) can be adjusted to 1, 2 or 3 as well, to be used for series that don't require much text. Even several on one page. Next up is how to show varieties... |
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Post by classicalstamps on Jul 26, 2019 13:10:31 GMT
For varieties:  Boxes will be adjusted to the same height as the stamp. |
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tobben63
Member
Stamp eat sleep repeat
Posts: 1,874
What I collect: I collect to much, world wide!
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Post by tobben63 on Aug 25, 2019 6:36:39 GMT
I have started to make new Ireland pages, and I have a good helper.  |
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angore
Member
Posts: 5,697
What I collect: WW, focus on British Empire
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Post by angore on Aug 25, 2019 13:06:55 GMT
I created a couple of Steiner like pages for some minor varieties.   |
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stanley64
Member
Posts: 1,979
What I collect: Canada, USA, Netherlands, Portugal & Colonies, Antarctic Territories and anything that catches my eye...
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Post by stanley64 on Sept 9, 2019 6:30:36 GMT
Working with my collection of flag and transportation coil strips, custom pages seems to be the only option. Here a few examples of the pages I have created... Suggestions, feedback or ideas for improvement are welcomed!
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stanley64
Member
Posts: 1,979
What I collect: Canada, USA, Netherlands, Portugal & Colonies, Antarctic Territories and anything that catches my eye...
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Post by stanley64 on Sept 9, 2019 6:37:01 GMT
To soak or not to soak? I think I know the answer given my page setup as shared in the earlier post, but do folks think I should soak these strips or create pages using the entire stamp on paper as is?
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brightonpete
Departed
Rest in Peace
On a hike at Goodrich-Loomis
Posts: 5,110
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Post by brightonpete on Sept 9, 2019 13:00:02 GMT
I'd probably soak them all. But if I collected postmarks, I'd probably soak the third one & keep the other 2 intact. Just wondering... I notice Americans collect coil singles & line pairs; Canadians usually collect coils as pairs or jump strip of 4, or ridiculous length start/end strips. Why the strips of 5? I found out that's the German way of collecting due to control numbers on the backside. Just curious |
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angore
Member
Posts: 5,697
What I collect: WW, focus on British Empire
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Post by angore on Sept 9, 2019 15:41:16 GMT
stanley64What font did you use for the engineering style text?
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stanley64
Member
Posts: 1,979
What I collect: Canada, USA, Netherlands, Portugal & Colonies, Antarctic Territories and anything that catches my eye...
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Post by stanley64 on Sept 9, 2019 16:16:44 GMT
I'd probably soak them all. But if I collected postmarks, I'd probably soak the third one & keep the other 2 intact. Just wondering... I notice Americans collect coil singles & line pairs; Canadians usually collect coils as pairs or jump strip of 4, or ridiculous length start/end strips. Why the strips of 5? I found out that's the German way of collecting due to control numbers on the backside. Just curious As for the strip length, not sure; aesthetics, love of Fibonacci sequencing or something else, but it is what I started collecting and I do like the look...
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stanley64
Member
Posts: 1,979
What I collect: Canada, USA, Netherlands, Portugal & Colonies, Antarctic Territories and anything that catches my eye...
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Post by stanley64 on Sept 9, 2019 16:20:15 GMT
stanley64 What font did you use for the engineering style text? To create the pages angore , I am using LibreOffice Writer and an architectural font similar to "Architext"... |
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tomiseksj
Moderator 
Woodbridge, Virginia, USA
Posts: 6,385
What I collect: Worldwide stamps/covers, Cinderellas, Ohio Prepaid Sales Tax Receipts, U.S. WWII Ration ephemera
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Post by tomiseksj on Sept 9, 2019 16:44:39 GMT
The USPS introduced plate numbers on coil stamps in 1981. Collectors of plate number coil strips (P#S) now typically collect single design mint stamps in strips of 5 (P#S5) with the plate number as the central stamp. Strips of 3 (P#S3) seem to be falling out of favor; some collect these in strips of 7 (P#S7). Coils with multiple stamp designs are typically collected in a number that shows each of the designs on both sides of the stamp with the plate number.  But, as in all things related to stamp collecting, the what and how is up to the individual collector. |
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brightonpete
Departed
Rest in Peace
On a hike at Goodrich-Loomis
Posts: 5,110
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Post by brightonpete on Sept 9, 2019 16:51:57 GMT
Aha, plate numbers! Up here in Canada we don't have things like that on out coils...
On looking close again, I see the plate number in the middle of the strips.
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stanley64
Member
Posts: 1,979
What I collect: Canada, USA, Netherlands, Portugal & Colonies, Antarctic Territories and anything that catches my eye...
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Post by stanley64 on Sept 10, 2019 17:29:50 GMT
Aha, plate numbers! Up here in Canada we don't have things like that on out coils... On looking close again, I see the plate number in the middle of the strips. Appreciate the additional details as to why we collect strips in the format we do Steve! At the same time, good catch on the missing plate numbers from the descriptions brightonpete ! I will update my pages so that the listing is complete and clearly displays the plate number e.g. from the Omnibus issue, Plate 3 40536-3.
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angore
Member
Posts: 5,697
What I collect: WW, focus on British Empire
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Post by angore on Sept 11, 2019 12:01:35 GMT
stanley64, It looks like you modified your post on font used. The first font you noted looked close to what you actually used. Architext looks less formal.
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)
R
Much more expensive than I can allow when collecting WW
Seems I need the protectors...
