Beryllium Guy
Moderator 
Posts: 5,912 
What I collect: Worldwide Stamps 1840-1930
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Post by Beryllium Guy on Sept 8, 2019 7:54:23 GMT
In my Frog Mystery Box ( firstfrog2013) a couple of the items are old photo albums that someone decided to use as stamp albums. These are the ones with cardboard pages that have horizontal slightly sticky waxy ridges on them, and a clear plastic overlay. I remember having a couple of these back in the 1970s that I used for photos. I never thought about using them for stamps, and based on my recent experience, I am glad that I didn’t! In one of the two photo albums, I was able to remove 90% of the stamps without damaging them. But in the second album, the waxy ridges seem to have really hardened, and a lot of the stamps are the same as glued down, both mint and used copies. I have removed what I can, destroying several in the process. Before I destroy any more, I wanted to ask if anyone else has had any experience with this same situation. If so, any advice? The only idea that has occurred to me is to try either the Stamp-Lift fluid, or simply soaking in hot water. I was thinking hot water in an attempt to potentially soften the waxy material, but not sure if that is a sound strategy. I will be away from home today for several hours, but will give any reasonable suggestions a try after I return, probably 9-10 hours after this post. Thanks everyone! I look forward to your comments. |
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hrdoktorx
Member 
Posts: 7,215
What I collect: France (and French territories), Africa, Canada, USA, Germany, Guatemala, stamps about science, flags, maps, stamps on stamps...
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Post by hrdoktorx on Sept 8, 2019 8:31:10 GMT
I remember such albums. Indeed, I think the only way out is to tear off the pages and soak them. These albums were never meant for stamps and even with photos, either they would stop being glued to the pages as the wax dried up, or they would become inseparable.
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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 8, 2019 12:38:11 GMT
If stamp-lift or hot water don't work, you might want to give Pure Citrus a try, assuming it is available to you. It dissolves the adhesive on modern stamps and may do the same on those old photo pages.
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Ryan
Moderator
Calgary, Alberta, Canada
Posts: 2,749
What I collect: If I have a catalogue for it, I collect it. And I have many catalogues ....
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Post by Ryan on Sept 8, 2019 14:58:28 GMT
I am a fan of UPU presentation booklets, handed out by UPU delegates at their major conferences which generally contain the recent stamp issues of the day and occasionally include detailed write-ups on the stamps and their production info. Once upon a time I won an auction for a large number of these things dating from the mid-1970s and among the 30 or so items were books from the Netherlands, their Antilles and from Suriname. All three came in books with these photo album-type pages. I quickly picked out all the stamps and put them in glassines - fortunately only a very few stamps had suffered from any adhesion. I wonder how long the Dutch thought that photo albums were what the cool kids used for their stamp collections ....
Ryan
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Beryllium Guy
Moderator
Posts: 5,912
What I collect: Worldwide Stamps 1840-1930
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Post by Beryllium Guy on Sept 9, 2019 9:32:32 GMT
Many thanks to Xavier ( hrdoktorx), Steve ( tomiseksj), and Ryan for your responses to my post. Update: I went ahead and tried the hot-water soak for several stamps, with mixed results. The stamps that were either mint or CTO with full gum, did separate enough from the cardboard page that I was able to remove them in sound condition. The used stamps loosened slightly, but for the most part, not enough to enable removing them without damage. These became thinned as a result of the process. In neither case did the stamps simply float off of the cardboard. They still had to be carefully pulled off. I may try a bit of the Stamp-Lift fluid at my next opportunity, but I will also see if any citrus products are available here. If they are not, I will take those on which I want to try the citrus solution back to the US with me next month and do it then. Anyway, thanks again to all for the responses. |
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darkormex
Member
Swinging through Switzerland and getting tied up in Thailand
Posts: 2,197
What I collect: The World...just printing and mounting as I go...call me crazy!
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Post by darkormex on Sept 9, 2019 11:23:39 GMT
Beryllium Guy, have you considered heat? This might sound a bit radical but perhaps try sticking a page in the oven at a very low heat setting for just a couple of minutes or even put a cloth or paper towel over the page and use a clothing iron at a low heat setting. This might soften the wax enough to lift the stamps off the pages.
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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 13:03:05 GMT
Beryllium Guy, have you considered heat? This might sound a bit radical but perhaps try sticking a page in the oven at a very low heat setting for just a couple of minutes or even put a cloth or paper towel over the page and use a clothing iron at a low heat setting. This might soften the wax enough to lift the stamps off the pages. I'd use a hair dryer for that, much safer if you ask me! |
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philatelia
Member
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 Sept 9, 2019 14:04:27 GMT
I had a bit of luck freezing those pages when I was working on my mom’s old photo albums. The pics popped right off.
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Beryllium Guy
Moderator
Posts: 5,912
What I collect: Worldwide Stamps 1840-1930
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Post by Beryllium Guy on Sept 17, 2019 20:59:38 GMT
Another update: Additional thanks to darkormex , brightonpete , and philatelia for your input! I tried the freezer idea, and found that it loosened some of the stamps more than they had been, but basically it was the same overall result as with soaking. The stamps with full gum separated more easily from the pages than those without. To date, I have not tried the heat. I am hesitant to use the oven, as we are living in a rental place and preparing to move, so if anything goes wrong and I make a mess, it will be a problem. The hairdryer idea seems intriguing, Peter, thank you! I may give that a try. For the moment, I have set aside the rest of the stamps still stuck to the photo album material, and I will return to them later, after the move. Thanks again to everyone who commented and/or made a constructive suggestion to my original question! |
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philatelia
Member
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 Sept 18, 2019 1:52:53 GMT
Glad that the freezer idea helped a tiny bit, was worth a try!
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stainlessb
Member
qaStaHvIS yIn 'ej chep
Posts: 4,906
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 Sept 18, 2019 1:56:05 GMT
I'm curious- when you place in the freezer- are the pages in a big Zip-Lock or otherwise inside something?
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Beryllium Guy
Moderator
Posts: 5,912
What I collect: Worldwide Stamps 1840-1930
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Post by Beryllium Guy on Sept 18, 2019 8:32:39 GMT
Excellent question, Stan ( stainlessb )! I can't speak for Theresa ( philatelia ), but when I tried my experiment, I put the stamps on their page material into a Ziploc bag and sealed it, just to keep them clean, as the freezer is full of all sorts of other stuff. In truth, the remaining stamps stuck to the cardboard are not especially valuable, and nothing that will end up in my collection, so I am debating how much time and effort I want to put into this project. If I am going to spend my time on salvage operations, I prefer it to be to rescue some material in which I am really interested. I have some plans to do some of that in the future, and I will share it on TSF when I do. So, anyone interested in taking this project off my hands is welcome to PM me, and I will send you the stuck-down stamps for your own experimentation. I estimate that there are 50-60 such stamps remaining. |
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philatelia
Member
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 Sept 18, 2019 11:30:28 GMT
The freezer idea works better if you take them out of the plastic because most modern freezers dehumidify the air and the drying will help with separation.
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Beryllium Guy
Moderator
Posts: 5,912
What I collect: Worldwide Stamps 1840-1930
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Post by Beryllium Guy on Sept 18, 2019 11:52:48 GMT
Thanks for the added comment, Theresa ( philatelia). I hadn't thought of that! |
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philatelia
Member
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 Sept 18, 2019 13:14:17 GMT
It was nice of you to take the time away from your albums to post the results of all of your experiments. The info will undoubtedly help others.
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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 Sept 18, 2019 13:23:35 GMT
Never had those kind of pages with stamps stuck (lucky I guess) but what I do have are those pages with stamps wrapped tightly in cellophane  - you have to use microsurgery to get those stamps free and I have a lot and they are US classics, most Mint NH so I have to find a pointed scissor do do an opening and free the stamp or some other method.....not the freezer  René |
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philatelia
Member
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 Sept 18, 2019 13:31:28 GMT
An X-acto knife is super handy for performing “surgery” on packaging.
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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 Sept 18, 2019 14:25:51 GMT
An X-acto knife is super handy for performing “surgery” on packaging. Thanks philatelia - tried that and my late dad had something better and smaller than the X-acto but it still does not do wonders - I will try a surgical knife, very pointed so not to damage the stamp. René |
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- you have to use microsurgery to get those stamps free and I have a lot and they are US classics, most Mint NH so I have to find a pointed scissor do do an opening and free the stamp or some other method.....not the freezer 
René