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Discussion - Member to Member Sales - Research Center
Long time viewer first time caller living in Kansas born and raised in Sweden tuning in. My late grandfather had a massive stamp collection focusing on Denmark, and particularly Danish Railroad stamps. I was always impressed with his collection but when he passed in 1996 we had to let it go. However, I've been in touch with his friends over the years and although I've never really had a collection of my own I've always had an interest and always looked at stamps with awe and wonder.
Now, approaching thirty, I realize I am much younger than the average person in the fold and also much older to start a collection. It seems like a great deal of people start their collections at a very early age. I didn't want to start a collection without being able to be serious about it and have the proper means of investing and storing the stamps. After all, they are historic documents, all with a story to tell.
My main interests at this point are 1. USA, 2. Germany pre-1945, and 3. Abyssinia/Ethiopia.
Looking forward to engage in the discussions.
/Christian
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Hello Christian
sounds like you have given this some thought. Storing and organizing are two good things. All sorts of possibilities on both fronts, and all available for dirt cheap or Rockefeller rich.
Do you have some ideas on storage (I added organizing)?
You will have no shortage of US and German collectors here, although Absynnia might prove a challenge, at least on this site.
David
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Hello David,
"sounds like you have given this some thought. Storing and organizing are two good things. All sorts of possibilities on both fronts, and all available for dirt cheap or Rockefeller rich. "
Indeed, I've given it about 25 years worth of thought. My main goal, as everyone else I imagine, has been to put food on the table. Now when that's done I can finally start collecting some stamps. Joke aside, I've greatly been looking forward to starting again. I got my first catalog from my grandfather when I was 4, that was about the extent of my collection until now.
"Do you have some ideas on storage (I added organizing)? "
I've always been a big fan of simple conformity in terms of storage. I am a big fan of the Leuchtturm hard board books of 16-64 pages. In my humble opinion it is better to have a few volumes covering a certain country than to have massive binders. However, at the same time I am a firm believer on that every system is good, as long as the stamps are safe.
When it comes to organizing it kind of depends on country. However when looking at the U.S. I tend to look at it as a book where the definitive series are the beginning and introduction to each chapter. It's very chronological that way. If there is a series of commemorative stamps issued over a number of years then they all would be put together in my album at the spot where the first one appears chronologically. Germany and the German Realm up to 1945 is a bit different considered the different territories and eras.
"You will have no shortage of US and German collectors here, although Absynnia might prove a challenge, at least on this site."
Regarding Abyssinia/Ethiopia collectors here in the fold - the longest road and the largest house once started with a single brick. Hopefully I can be a part of building that small community and part of this discussion board.
Christian
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Welcome to the board. I've been collecting since I was 8 or 9...can't remember. I'll be 46 in a couple weeks. Anyway, I have a wide variety of interests and am always looking for better ways to collect and store my stamps. Several years ago I discovered Steiner's www.stampalbums.com and have used his pages to create several albums, including Ukraine and Philippines. I'm starting to use his pages for Germany and will do it for some French areas. My ongoing goal is to focus on certain specific countries/areas but I also personally think it's a great idea to have a worldwide collection at least for reference purposes. I long ago gave up the idea of using WW albums so am using stock pages/stock books instead.
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Thank you kye1,
A lot of people started at a very young age I've noticed. I like to read a lot about the events or cultural aspects of the stamps I am collecting. With that in mind the collection will become narrow by nature.
Thank you for the link to Steiner's. I will make sure to take a look.
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Welcome to Stamporama!
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Welcome to Stamporama.
Jim
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I started collecting stamps at about age 10 and continued for the next six years or so, then discovered girls, then joined the Navy, then got married, then sold my collection for $20 (!), then worked and worked and worked, then got hooked again at about age 35. My youthful collecting introduced me to the hobby, but I knew very little about stamps until I got back into it. So 30, as far as I'm concerned, is a great age to start collecting. Welcome aboard.
Bob
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Hello Bob,
Thank you for the welcoming words. Glad to hear I am not alone in getting a bit of a later start. I took the liberty of taking a look at your website. It seems like our past has crossed paths. I lived in New Mexico myself for a couple of years, both Albuquerque and Santa Fe, before I wound up in Kansas.
Christian
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I suspect far fewer people collect an early age these days. When I was young ( and you don't want to know how long ago that was), collecting stamps ( among boys ) was almost obligatory (SOOOOOO Educational don't y' know ). However even at that tender age only a small number were really interested, a great number were going through the motions.
While we all moan at the declining number of collectors, I think that people are beginning to recognise it as an intellectual pursuit in its own right rather than a money making exercise for it's own sake ( be honest we are all interested in what it is worth ! ).
The advantage as I see it for starting as an adult is that you are far less likely to vandalise collectable material through ignorance.
Welcome
Malcolm
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Hi Christian,
I started collecting in 1966, and never really stopped, although I took a couple of mandatory hiatuses during my college years ($$$).
I share your preference for Leuchtturm stock books. Most of my collection of stamps is so-housed. I like the flexibility to change up where I place stamps, include multiple copies, etc., etc. - the "organization" of my collection. Although, inserting a page is a prodigious task, having to move all the subsequent pages. Taught me to 'plan ahead'! So, anymore, I only place about half the stamps on each page as will fit.
After 50 years of collecting, the number one objective has become FOCUS! But, the deeper you delve, the more opportunities for branching out that occur. For example, what started as Clipper mail has branched out into censored Clipper mail, undelivered Clipper mail, and then Aerial mail in general. Just this week, I resolved to focus on non-philatelic covers from the earliest innovative steps in Aerial mail carriage. For example, "what can I find from the first delivery of Clipper mail by land-based planes", ie, as the flying boats were retired in 1940-1941. Before I can do that, I need to understand how carriers transitioned to new equipment.
I find the circumstances that drove logistical compromises or innovations to be fascinating - in short, the postal history. That has drawn me away from collecting 'stamps' towards collecting covers that convey much more context than an individual stamp can.
Another 'hot' collecting area for me now is German Inflation mail. Such an intense period in postal history! All sorts of logistical compromises there. For example, upon currency revaluation on December 1, 1923, the stamps denominated in billions of Marks continued to be used as if ELEVEN zeros had simply been lopped off. Thus, a 5 billion Mark stamp was inferred as a 5 pfennig stamp! All through 1923, you see numerous examples of stamp shortages, underpayments, overpayments, and cancellation innovations. Like, when the postage due is 80 billion Marks, a few billion either side of that number doesn't matter much. Also, it must have been infuriating to see Official mail being sent for a tiny fraction of what the general public was paying. Fascinating!
Stopping my ramble there!
-Paul
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Welcome!!
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Hi Christian,
Not everyone started early. I started 3 years ago when I was approaching 66. I wanted to do something for my grandkids (4 of them). Stamps seemed to be a likely topic. so I started collecting US stamps for the years they were born. All four are now about 75% complete in MNH conditions.
Of course, sidetracks happen, and I've assembled small book of Stamps issued in the state of Virginia. Also working on Airmail. (No Inverted Jenny yet). Now I'm looking into Disney stamps from around the world. Might have to rethink that one, Over 4500 have been issued so far. All excess stamps go into Steiner pages from 1900 to 1980.
Mikey
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Hello Mikey,
That is such a nice thing to do for your grandchildren. My grandfather actually did the same for me with coins and gave it to my parents to take care of until I came of age. During his lifetime he also assembled a topical Disney collection for me, however that one is still at the care of my parents.
Keep it up, I'm sure they'll appreciate it -
Cheers,
Christian
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Welcome to forum, and, it is never to late to start. By your messages, I think you have a pretty good idea how you want to collect. If you ever have questions, I am sure the members in here are more than willing to help.
Chimo
Bujutsu
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I may have started young, but stepped away as I had a family and the kids grew up. I don't think my books came out for 30 years. Now a few years ago was going to get rid of it and after looking at it and working to get it ready - picked up a boatload of stamps. Figured I was getting back into again and learning it all again.
I like the intellectual challenge of each stamp. And many end up intriguing me in ways I didn't expect. A good session for me is learning something new. Also feel good when I can correctly identify(I hope) the stamp I have in hand. Read the hard to see watermark, the differences in color or other subtle differences. So frustrating, can I have another.
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John, my story is similar. I collected up to 1980 and everything went into storage, I carted it to four houses over the years. About three years ago my wife had surgery and we were in the house for her recovery. I needed a project so I decided to sort it. And the rest is history!
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Ditto here - started young, put it away to raise a family and work for a living - and after gathering dust in boxes for decades, decided to clean it up to get rid of it - but that's when it pulled me back in! Seems to be a common thread around here.
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Hello everyone,
Long time viewer first time caller living in Kansas born and raised in Sweden tuning in. My late grandfather had a massive stamp collection focusing on Denmark, and particularly Danish Railroad stamps. I was always impressed with his collection but when he passed in 1996 we had to let it go. However, I've been in touch with his friends over the years and although I've never really had a collection of my own I've always had an interest and always looked at stamps with awe and wonder.
Now, approaching thirty, I realize I am much younger than the average person in the fold and also much older to start a collection. It seems like a great deal of people start their collections at a very early age. I didn't want to start a collection without being able to be serious about it and have the proper means of investing and storing the stamps. After all, they are historic documents, all with a story to tell.
My main interests at this point are 1. USA, 2. Germany pre-1945, and 3. Abyssinia/Ethiopia.
Looking forward to engage in the discussions.
/Christian
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re: New clip in an old fold
Hello Christian
sounds like you have given this some thought. Storing and organizing are two good things. All sorts of possibilities on both fronts, and all available for dirt cheap or Rockefeller rich.
Do you have some ideas on storage (I added organizing)?
You will have no shortage of US and German collectors here, although Absynnia might prove a challenge, at least on this site.
David
1 Member
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Login to Like.
re: New clip in an old fold
Hello David,
"sounds like you have given this some thought. Storing and organizing are two good things. All sorts of possibilities on both fronts, and all available for dirt cheap or Rockefeller rich. "
Indeed, I've given it about 25 years worth of thought. My main goal, as everyone else I imagine, has been to put food on the table. Now when that's done I can finally start collecting some stamps. Joke aside, I've greatly been looking forward to starting again. I got my first catalog from my grandfather when I was 4, that was about the extent of my collection until now.
"Do you have some ideas on storage (I added organizing)? "
I've always been a big fan of simple conformity in terms of storage. I am a big fan of the Leuchtturm hard board books of 16-64 pages. In my humble opinion it is better to have a few volumes covering a certain country than to have massive binders. However, at the same time I am a firm believer on that every system is good, as long as the stamps are safe.
When it comes to organizing it kind of depends on country. However when looking at the U.S. I tend to look at it as a book where the definitive series are the beginning and introduction to each chapter. It's very chronological that way. If there is a series of commemorative stamps issued over a number of years then they all would be put together in my album at the spot where the first one appears chronologically. Germany and the German Realm up to 1945 is a bit different considered the different territories and eras.
"You will have no shortage of US and German collectors here, although Absynnia might prove a challenge, at least on this site."
Regarding Abyssinia/Ethiopia collectors here in the fold - the longest road and the largest house once started with a single brick. Hopefully I can be a part of building that small community and part of this discussion board.
Christian
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re: New clip in an old fold
Welcome to the board. I've been collecting since I was 8 or 9...can't remember. I'll be 46 in a couple weeks. Anyway, I have a wide variety of interests and am always looking for better ways to collect and store my stamps. Several years ago I discovered Steiner's www.stampalbums.com and have used his pages to create several albums, including Ukraine and Philippines. I'm starting to use his pages for Germany and will do it for some French areas. My ongoing goal is to focus on certain specific countries/areas but I also personally think it's a great idea to have a worldwide collection at least for reference purposes. I long ago gave up the idea of using WW albums so am using stock pages/stock books instead.
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re: New clip in an old fold
Thank you kye1,
A lot of people started at a very young age I've noticed. I like to read a lot about the events or cultural aspects of the stamps I am collecting. With that in mind the collection will become narrow by nature.
Thank you for the link to Steiner's. I will make sure to take a look.
Login to Like
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re: New clip in an old fold
Welcome to Stamporama.
Jim
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re: New clip in an old fold
I started collecting stamps at about age 10 and continued for the next six years or so, then discovered girls, then joined the Navy, then got married, then sold my collection for $20 (!), then worked and worked and worked, then got hooked again at about age 35. My youthful collecting introduced me to the hobby, but I knew very little about stamps until I got back into it. So 30, as far as I'm concerned, is a great age to start collecting. Welcome aboard.
Bob
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re: New clip in an old fold
Hello Bob,
Thank you for the welcoming words. Glad to hear I am not alone in getting a bit of a later start. I took the liberty of taking a look at your website. It seems like our past has crossed paths. I lived in New Mexico myself for a couple of years, both Albuquerque and Santa Fe, before I wound up in Kansas.
Christian
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09:03:35am
re: New clip in an old fold
I suspect far fewer people collect an early age these days. When I was young ( and you don't want to know how long ago that was), collecting stamps ( among boys ) was almost obligatory (SOOOOOO Educational don't y' know ). However even at that tender age only a small number were really interested, a great number were going through the motions.
While we all moan at the declining number of collectors, I think that people are beginning to recognise it as an intellectual pursuit in its own right rather than a money making exercise for it's own sake ( be honest we are all interested in what it is worth ! ).
The advantage as I see it for starting as an adult is that you are far less likely to vandalise collectable material through ignorance.
Welcome
Malcolm
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09:45:14am
re: New clip in an old fold
Hi Christian,
I started collecting in 1966, and never really stopped, although I took a couple of mandatory hiatuses during my college years ($$$).
I share your preference for Leuchtturm stock books. Most of my collection of stamps is so-housed. I like the flexibility to change up where I place stamps, include multiple copies, etc., etc. - the "organization" of my collection. Although, inserting a page is a prodigious task, having to move all the subsequent pages. Taught me to 'plan ahead'! So, anymore, I only place about half the stamps on each page as will fit.
After 50 years of collecting, the number one objective has become FOCUS! But, the deeper you delve, the more opportunities for branching out that occur. For example, what started as Clipper mail has branched out into censored Clipper mail, undelivered Clipper mail, and then Aerial mail in general. Just this week, I resolved to focus on non-philatelic covers from the earliest innovative steps in Aerial mail carriage. For example, "what can I find from the first delivery of Clipper mail by land-based planes", ie, as the flying boats were retired in 1940-1941. Before I can do that, I need to understand how carriers transitioned to new equipment.
I find the circumstances that drove logistical compromises or innovations to be fascinating - in short, the postal history. That has drawn me away from collecting 'stamps' towards collecting covers that convey much more context than an individual stamp can.
Another 'hot' collecting area for me now is German Inflation mail. Such an intense period in postal history! All sorts of logistical compromises there. For example, upon currency revaluation on December 1, 1923, the stamps denominated in billions of Marks continued to be used as if ELEVEN zeros had simply been lopped off. Thus, a 5 billion Mark stamp was inferred as a 5 pfennig stamp! All through 1923, you see numerous examples of stamp shortages, underpayments, overpayments, and cancellation innovations. Like, when the postage due is 80 billion Marks, a few billion either side of that number doesn't matter much. Also, it must have been infuriating to see Official mail being sent for a tiny fraction of what the general public was paying. Fascinating!
Stopping my ramble there!
-Paul
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re: New clip in an old fold
Welcome!!
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re: New clip in an old fold
Hi Christian,
Not everyone started early. I started 3 years ago when I was approaching 66. I wanted to do something for my grandkids (4 of them). Stamps seemed to be a likely topic. so I started collecting US stamps for the years they were born. All four are now about 75% complete in MNH conditions.
Of course, sidetracks happen, and I've assembled small book of Stamps issued in the state of Virginia. Also working on Airmail. (No Inverted Jenny yet). Now I'm looking into Disney stamps from around the world. Might have to rethink that one, Over 4500 have been issued so far. All excess stamps go into Steiner pages from 1900 to 1980.
Mikey
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re: New clip in an old fold
Hello Mikey,
That is such a nice thing to do for your grandchildren. My grandfather actually did the same for me with coins and gave it to my parents to take care of until I came of age. During his lifetime he also assembled a topical Disney collection for me, however that one is still at the care of my parents.
Keep it up, I'm sure they'll appreciate it -
Cheers,
Christian
Login to Like
this post
re: New clip in an old fold
Welcome to forum, and, it is never to late to start. By your messages, I think you have a pretty good idea how you want to collect. If you ever have questions, I am sure the members in here are more than willing to help.
Chimo
Bujutsu
Login to Like
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re: New clip in an old fold
I may have started young, but stepped away as I had a family and the kids grew up. I don't think my books came out for 30 years. Now a few years ago was going to get rid of it and after looking at it and working to get it ready - picked up a boatload of stamps. Figured I was getting back into again and learning it all again.
I like the intellectual challenge of each stamp. And many end up intriguing me in ways I didn't expect. A good session for me is learning something new. Also feel good when I can correctly identify(I hope) the stamp I have in hand. Read the hard to see watermark, the differences in color or other subtle differences. So frustrating, can I have another.
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re: New clip in an old fold
John, my story is similar. I collected up to 1980 and everything went into storage, I carted it to four houses over the years. About three years ago my wife had surgery and we were in the house for her recovery. I needed a project so I decided to sort it. And the rest is history!
Login to Like
this post
re: New clip in an old fold
Ditto here - started young, put it away to raise a family and work for a living - and after gathering dust in boxes for decades, decided to clean it up to get rid of it - but that's when it pulled me back in! Seems to be a common thread around here.
Login to Like
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