4-ring binder stamp albums

[Deleted]

When I last collected stamps, many years ago, the favoured type of album was the springback. Nowadays I get the sense that 4-ring binders - by Prinz or Lighthouse - are popular. How have people found them? What are the pros and cons? Grateful for any advice.

[Admin Bear]

Personally i am a fan of 3 ring binders.. i print the vast majority of pages myself and this gives me great flexibility in adding sections or pages as needed and it is far easier to find supplies such as page protectors etc..

the one commercial album i do have is even 3 ring which i love for the same reason and adding sections i dont wish to purchase is just as easy..

just my 2 cents.

[khj]

Ahhh, I remember the springbacks. Almost nobody uses them anymore. I can still see 4 red ones on the upper shelf of the opposite wall. I've also got a 3-vol Windsor GB and a 2-vol Borek Liechtenstein that are in springbacks. Springbacks are nice, but too costly and not practical as your collection gets bigger.

The # of binder rings is just a gimmick by album manufacturers to force you to continue to buy their brand name (e.g., Lighthouse 13-ring, SAFE 14-ring...). Less rings, then others can get in on the game.  This is why you will often find the OEM stockpages punched with all sorts of hole/slot sizes/positions, but they can't do that once you get into the double-digit rings.

In general, the more rings the better the album will hold the pages (especially heavy pages). But too many rings may make page turning more difficult.

I'm a 3-ring guy because I'm a cheapskate. If you collect WW and you start getting into dozens of albums, the binder cost can add up. If you want to be thrifty, the least expensive binders will be the standard office binder used in your region (in US, it is the 3-ring binder). You will cut down your binder costs by 75%-90% by using them. I have even repunched by Scott/Harris pages just so I can use the 3-ring binders. Also, I wait until clearance sales to buy the binders.

But I must say, those 13-ring binders do look very very nice. The most I've ever seen is the 18-ring in my Lindner Guernsey album.

[Craig]

I'm a three-ringer, but I do love my 13-ring Lighthouse albums.

[RossTO]

Those of us on this side of the pond have to remember that the other side uses a different size paper than we do, 3-ring binders are not the commonplace there but 4-ring are. The question is between ringed binders and springback binders.

Most people I know are using ringed binders now to ease of use. I know I love my lighthouse binders both for the quality and the look.

[Deleted]

This is all helpful. Looks like I'll go for ring binders and save money which can be used on stamps. Thank you all.

[khj]

If you buy the ring binders that are standard to your region (instead of the philatelic branded binders), make sure the binder dimensions will hold your album pages properly. It's not just number of rings, but non-standard album page sizes are another gimmick used by album manufacturers. Even if you buy from philatelic brands, you still need to confirm -- they are not always interchangeable (even within the same brand!!!).

If you print your own album pages or use office-standard binders/pages like some of us do, this is not a problem.

Best wishes! Sounds like you are ready to dive right back in!

[markj]

Now that my focus is on a worldwide collection (upgraded from "A Stamp From Everywhere" to "A Few Stamps from (Almost) Everywhere"), I have been searching for nice binders to house my homemade pages.

Here in Thailand, it is virtually impossible to find nice three-ring binders. Most are a two-ring variety with the rings spaced close together in the center of the spine. Not suitable for anything, really. So, I need to rely on ordering from overseas.

A while ago, I purchased an old collection housed in a Stanley Gibbons "Simplex" springback binder. I really liked how that binder looked on my shelf and so decided this would be the binder for my WW collection. Luckily, before I began purchasing additional binders of this style on eBay -- I tested it by adding a few of my homemade pages. Unfortunately, the A4-size paper (the only size available over here) was just a tad too tall. I could have cut my pages down to size, but in my experience I knew I'd have a bunch of different-sized pages.

I began the search for binders that would hold A4-sized sheets and believe I've found the solution in the Lighthouse Grande brand. The dimensions look good. The binders look nice in the photos. But they are heavy. One retailer in the USA quoted me a price of US $90 shipping price for two (he was selling the binders for about $8 each).

I may have to wait and buy binders on a future visit back to "the real world" (I haven't been out of Asia for more than 10 years now) if the shipping is going to be so darn high.

[Deleted]

In the UK 2-ring binders are the norm. For my home-made pages I have taken to using 4-ring Herlitz binders which I can buy in packs of 3 through Amazon. They are quite light, and a lot less expensive than Lighthouse or Prinz binders. And they are designed for A4 paper.

[MikeC99]

The vast majority of binders in my bookcase are the three ring "D" binders which I really like for my collections. You can easily turn the pages and insert/remove pages. I also have one Lighthouse springback binder and three Lighthouse "Turn Bar" binders that work great for housing my Canadian collection.

The local stamp retailer has one four ring binder but I passed on it because it is difficult to find pages to fit it.
Mike