Discussion - Member to Member Sales - Research Center
Discussion - Member to Member Sales - Research Center
Years back, US Postal changed the glue. As result, most of the stamps cannot be soaked to get them off paper. On top of this situation, the ink used to cancel the stamps is penetrating the stamps very hard.
There are few ways to remove the stamps, but all make the ink to be seen on the back of the stamp. Many collectors do not like heavy cancellation. I am showing just a stamp for this discussion.
Virgil
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virgil,
there have been many discussions, both about the distaste for stamps that don't soak, as well as the best ways to soak those that will release.
Few of us are fans of self-adhesives, but we might as well bemoan the coming of combustion engines. Both are here to stay.
many of us have changed our collecting habits, however, either using an end date that often relates to the coming of SAs or now collecting full covers.
USPS changes all the time, and, for collectors, many of them aren't welcomed. We don't get a say, and our dollars aren't significant.
David
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Maybe there is a better method than mine to get the stamp off paper. If the reply is not important for the community, can I get it privately? Virgil
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Virgil, personally, I don't see any reason to use all those chemicals to soak the self-adhesive stamps, and the hours it seems to take to get one stamp off the paper,if it is at all possible to begin with. Who knows what the long-term effects will be on the stamps and the collector? No one. I simply cut around the stamp, keep it on the paper, and place it in the album.
Anyway, there are those who want to soak, because that's the way it has always been done...
The American Philatelic Society has information about ways to do this, both on a video and text. Here is a link to the APS site. It is item 2 on the page:
https://stamps.org/Tips-and-Links
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I like Michael just keep them on paper. This also keeps the cancel from soaking or spreading more on the stamp.
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It is quite possible that in time the adhesive will degrade and the stamp will just fall off.
Just like receipt "printed" with a heat source ends up as a blank piece of paper.
Malcolm
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To answer the question of how these stamps will degrade over time, just look back at the first self adhesive Christmas stamp. Those have aged poorly and gum stains have seeped to the face. Maybe that has been taken into account and the new stamp stickum will perform better.
I can say that the new glues stick very well and are a good deterrent to reuse. Especially since the Forever Stamps will always be good for first class postage.... unlike trying to fit 25 three centers on an envelope!
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I wonder how many members are familiar with (or not familiar with) using 100% natural, non-aerosol (air propelled) Pure Citrus Orange Air Freshener to remove Forever stamps from paper, packing tape, cellophane, and Scotch tape. I have been using this routinely, and even do it semi-routinely for a major Stamp Company - about 1,000 stamps at a time. I purchase it at Home Depot. I am very willing to send Dr. Joanne Berkowitz's original article to whomever might want to receive it.
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I would be very interested in that article. A few weeks ago, I have been made aware of certain European equivalents for this Pure Citrus stuff and that has rekindled my interest in trying to get these sticker stamps off paper. Before I knew what I needed, I just left them as clippings on paper, which is a pity because they look bad in the album like that.
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I found several good videos on Youtube.com by searching "self adhesive stamps removal." I use Coleman fuel and get good results. Have to do the work in a well vented area, I go to my covered patio, an don't allow open flame or smoking nearby.
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"I can say that the new glues stick very well and are a good deterrent to reuse."
Supposedly this was the main reason behind the SA stamps and in reality it is a complete fiasco! Using simple rubbing alcohol you can remove just about any American or British stamp with the gum intact and affix it on a new envelope with no need for soaking, drying and using a glue stick. SA stamps are much easier to reuse than the old stamps!
Then our Canadian SA stamps soak fine. The US and British ones do not. Since stamps are meant mostly for us, the collectors, I cannot believe we do not have enough power to change the glue on those stamps!!!!
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JanSimon
Can you let us know how you get on with European sourced products?
Such items should also be available in the UK ( well until 2019 anyway LOL !! ).
..... and don't blame me I didn't vote to leave !!
Malcolm
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I will, once I get to it.
So did you vote to remain, or didn't you vote at all? Your single vote would not have tipped the balance the other way, anyway. I really like Great Britain, but sometimes you Brits behave very silly.
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I voted to stay.
However I did mull it over for a long time and didn't finally make up my mind until the day of the vote. My heart told me to leave ( and still does ! ) but in the end my head won !
Without wishing to get into the realms of political or moral discussion ( and I do not look for any responses-which would make it a politcal descussion and hence fall foul of the moderators ), I am of the opinion that the EU is very seriously flawed and fundamentally and institutionally undemocratic and unethical,which is what informed my heart but of course economics is what informed my head.
Malcolm
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There is a time in every man's life when he is presented the choice between morality and financial gain.
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07:25:14am
Cognitive dissonamce.
Something that we are often presented with
in these disunited colonies.
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Benque
I would agree. However in my case it was a choice between my personal morality and everyone else's economic well-being which in itself presents a moral conundrum.
As I am fond of saying to those who look for simplistic answers to ethical questions "There is no black and white, there are only different shades of grey"
Malcolm
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I am returning back to this thread with some more thoughts.
1. It is extremely hard to determine the perforation size, mainly when the stamps have very closed sizes, see 3051 and 3051A or 3634 and 3635, etc. and the envelope color is almost as the perforations color.
2. Many stamps are damaged when are removed from the back paper or booklet. Without removing them from the envelope, there is no way to find this out.
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There are also reasons to not leave stamps on paper. The most obvious, and one that the philatelic press and many postal historians seem to ignore, is that covers and envelopes are often made with lower grade paper loaded with acids. I won’t post any of the thousands of cover images I have which clearly show how the stamps on them have toned by being stuck to the acidic covers they are adhered to; but folks can go look for themselves on eBay or Siegels. For covers or stamps on paper over 50-75 years it is very difficult to find any that have not toned.
Over the years I have rarely even seen mention of this significant issue; how does one neutralize a cover or the paper a stamp is adhered to? Is pouring some loose baking soda in the cover enough? Can a baking soda solution be sprayed on? How do we check for an acid paper cover? (There is a commercial neutralizing product but I do not know anyone who has used it.)
Obviously we need to be acutely aware of any poor environmental conditions (keep temp between 60-70F and never allow RH to go over 70%) but what can we do to neutralize our material? I have done a fair amount of discovery on this issue and frankly this information has not been easy to find and understand.
But the one thing I know for sure, this is a horribly underrated issue in our hobby and one that is definitely causing damage today. Does it matter for ‘penny stamps’? Probably not, but if we are to be good stewards of the material that passes through our hands this is an issue that deserves our attention.
Don
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If the general census becomes that the stamps should be cut off. I the future what will be the correct paper margin to be left in determining value? I would guess 1mm.
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11:14:35am
I checked this section almost 90% but I did not see a discussion about this subject. When I collect used stamps, I prefer to have them off paper. This way I can see the face and the back. Keeping the stamps on paper takes more space, plus that the "stamp" now is very thick!
Years back, US Postal changed the glue. As result, most of the stamps cannot be soaked to get them off paper. On top of this situation, the ink used to cancel the stamps is penetrating the stamps very hard.
There are few ways to remove the stamps, but all make the ink to be seen on the back of the stamp. Many collectors do not like heavy cancellation. I am showing just a stamp for this discussion.
Virgil
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this post
Auctions
re: Recent US stamps on or off paper?
virgil,
there have been many discussions, both about the distaste for stamps that don't soak, as well as the best ways to soak those that will release.
Few of us are fans of self-adhesives, but we might as well bemoan the coming of combustion engines. Both are here to stay.
many of us have changed our collecting habits, however, either using an end date that often relates to the coming of SAs or now collecting full covers.
USPS changes all the time, and, for collectors, many of them aren't welcomed. We don't get a say, and our dollars aren't significant.
David
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11:30:03pm
re: Recent US stamps on or off paper?
Maybe there is a better method than mine to get the stamp off paper. If the reply is not important for the community, can I get it privately? Virgil
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this post
re: Recent US stamps on or off paper?
Virgil, personally, I don't see any reason to use all those chemicals to soak the self-adhesive stamps, and the hours it seems to take to get one stamp off the paper,if it is at all possible to begin with. Who knows what the long-term effects will be on the stamps and the collector? No one. I simply cut around the stamp, keep it on the paper, and place it in the album.
Anyway, there are those who want to soak, because that's the way it has always been done...
The American Philatelic Society has information about ways to do this, both on a video and text. Here is a link to the APS site. It is item 2 on the page:
https://stamps.org/Tips-and-Links
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re: Recent US stamps on or off paper?
I like Michael just keep them on paper. This also keeps the cancel from soaking or spreading more on the stamp.
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03:37:42pm
re: Recent US stamps on or off paper?
It is quite possible that in time the adhesive will degrade and the stamp will just fall off.
Just like receipt "printed" with a heat source ends up as a blank piece of paper.
Malcolm
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this post
Approvals
re: Recent US stamps on or off paper?
To answer the question of how these stamps will degrade over time, just look back at the first self adhesive Christmas stamp. Those have aged poorly and gum stains have seeped to the face. Maybe that has been taken into account and the new stamp stickum will perform better.
I can say that the new glues stick very well and are a good deterrent to reuse. Especially since the Forever Stamps will always be good for first class postage.... unlike trying to fit 25 three centers on an envelope!
Login to Like
this post
Auctions - Approvals
re: Recent US stamps on or off paper?
I wonder how many members are familiar with (or not familiar with) using 100% natural, non-aerosol (air propelled) Pure Citrus Orange Air Freshener to remove Forever stamps from paper, packing tape, cellophane, and Scotch tape. I have been using this routinely, and even do it semi-routinely for a major Stamp Company - about 1,000 stamps at a time. I purchase it at Home Depot. I am very willing to send Dr. Joanne Berkowitz's original article to whomever might want to receive it.
5 Members
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Auctions - Approvals
re: Recent US stamps on or off paper?
I would be very interested in that article. A few weeks ago, I have been made aware of certain European equivalents for this Pure Citrus stuff and that has rekindled my interest in trying to get these sticker stamps off paper. Before I knew what I needed, I just left them as clippings on paper, which is a pity because they look bad in the album like that.
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12:56:25pm
re: Recent US stamps on or off paper?
I found several good videos on Youtube.com by searching "self adhesive stamps removal." I use Coleman fuel and get good results. Have to do the work in a well vented area, I go to my covered patio, an don't allow open flame or smoking nearby.
Login to Like
this post
Approvals
re: Recent US stamps on or off paper?
"I can say that the new glues stick very well and are a good deterrent to reuse."
Supposedly this was the main reason behind the SA stamps and in reality it is a complete fiasco! Using simple rubbing alcohol you can remove just about any American or British stamp with the gum intact and affix it on a new envelope with no need for soaking, drying and using a glue stick. SA stamps are much easier to reuse than the old stamps!
Then our Canadian SA stamps soak fine. The US and British ones do not. Since stamps are meant mostly for us, the collectors, I cannot believe we do not have enough power to change the glue on those stamps!!!!
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this post
05:49:56am
re: Recent US stamps on or off paper?
JanSimon
Can you let us know how you get on with European sourced products?
Such items should also be available in the UK ( well until 2019 anyway LOL !! ).
..... and don't blame me I didn't vote to leave !!
Malcolm
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this post
Auctions - Approvals
re: Recent US stamps on or off paper?
I will, once I get to it.
So did you vote to remain, or didn't you vote at all? Your single vote would not have tipped the balance the other way, anyway. I really like Great Britain, but sometimes you Brits behave very silly.
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06:13:23am
re: Recent US stamps on or off paper?
I voted to stay.
However I did mull it over for a long time and didn't finally make up my mind until the day of the vote. My heart told me to leave ( and still does ! ) but in the end my head won !
Without wishing to get into the realms of political or moral discussion ( and I do not look for any responses-which would make it a politcal descussion and hence fall foul of the moderators ), I am of the opinion that the EU is very seriously flawed and fundamentally and institutionally undemocratic and unethical,which is what informed my heart but of course economics is what informed my head.
Malcolm
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this post
06:44:47am
re: Recent US stamps on or off paper?
There is a time in every man's life when he is presented the choice between morality and financial gain.
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Silence in the face of adversity is the father of complicity and collusion, the first cousins of conspiracy..
31 Aug 2017
07:25:14am
re: Recent US stamps on or off paper?
Cognitive dissonamce.
Something that we are often presented with
in these disunited colonies.
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this post
03:48:43pm
re: Recent US stamps on or off paper?
Benque
I would agree. However in my case it was a choice between my personal morality and everyone else's economic well-being which in itself presents a moral conundrum.
As I am fond of saying to those who look for simplistic answers to ethical questions "There is no black and white, there are only different shades of grey"
Malcolm
Login to Like
this post
10:59:35pm
re: Recent US stamps on or off paper?
I am returning back to this thread with some more thoughts.
1. It is extremely hard to determine the perforation size, mainly when the stamps have very closed sizes, see 3051 and 3051A or 3634 and 3635, etc. and the envelope color is almost as the perforations color.
2. Many stamps are damaged when are removed from the back paper or booklet. Without removing them from the envelope, there is no way to find this out.
Login to Like
this post
re: Recent US stamps on or off paper?
There are also reasons to not leave stamps on paper. The most obvious, and one that the philatelic press and many postal historians seem to ignore, is that covers and envelopes are often made with lower grade paper loaded with acids. I won’t post any of the thousands of cover images I have which clearly show how the stamps on them have toned by being stuck to the acidic covers they are adhered to; but folks can go look for themselves on eBay or Siegels. For covers or stamps on paper over 50-75 years it is very difficult to find any that have not toned.
Over the years I have rarely even seen mention of this significant issue; how does one neutralize a cover or the paper a stamp is adhered to? Is pouring some loose baking soda in the cover enough? Can a baking soda solution be sprayed on? How do we check for an acid paper cover? (There is a commercial neutralizing product but I do not know anyone who has used it.)
Obviously we need to be acutely aware of any poor environmental conditions (keep temp between 60-70F and never allow RH to go over 70%) but what can we do to neutralize our material? I have done a fair amount of discovery on this issue and frankly this information has not been easy to find and understand.
But the one thing I know for sure, this is a horribly underrated issue in our hobby and one that is definitely causing damage today. Does it matter for ‘penny stamps’? Probably not, but if we are to be good stewards of the material that passes through our hands this is an issue that deserves our attention.
Don
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like this post.
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re: Recent US stamps on or off paper?
If the general census becomes that the stamps should be cut off. I the future what will be the correct paper margin to be left in determining value? I would guess 1mm.
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