Storing and enjoying cards in binders

[whitehse]

After I sold the majority of my collection 20 years ago I went back to collecting the sets I put together as a kid, starting with the 73 - 77 time frame. This collection I sold included complete sets from the early 60's, a few 50's complete sets and a variety of stuff that was all in binders.

With the current collection sleeves and top loaders was my storage method. I hated leafing through the top loaders and went to card savers but it was such a pain to pull out the boxes and look at the sets I generally never did. Last year, after I completed my '56 Topps set that is in card savers, I started the 65 Topps set and decided to put them in pages as I had a stack of them laying around. I never really loved the design of the '65 set but soon changed my mind as I put them in pages and admired the beauty of the design. Fast forward to the last few months and I have now put all of my sets, except for the '56 in sleeves and am happy I did it. It is so much easier to just grab the binder and look through these cards and truly enjoy them and not just collect them.

[jchcollins]

Just being honest - and it's fine if I'm the only one - but I hate binders, and have for a long time. Today I have my first two childhood sets (1986 and '87 Topps) in large binders, but that's the only thing of consequence - to me, even if they aren't worth much monetarily.

Growing up they all just seemed to fall apart, and eventually the (less than 21st century quality Ultra Pro) pages seemed to get sticky or develop other problems. Of course, storing at least 2 cards front and back in each pocket probably didn't help me out much either.

Don't get me wrong, I don't disparage any of you who are binder fans. It's certainly more compact and economical in terms of storage for those of you who are given to caring about such things. But 95% of my collection is singles and stars, not sets, and just in terms of the physical space - stacks of toploaders, mag cases, and slabs aren't necessarily going to ruin me in my personal space at home assuming I collect for the next 20 years on roughly the same budget. In terms of the two sets I am actually working on right now - '67 and '72 Topps - I'm doing it the hard way, stubbornly collecting both in penny sleeves, card savers and toploaders, and then putting those into boxes.

[bb66]

Vintagevault13 that sounds awesome----love the stories.

[nolemmings]

I know I've posted this before a couple of years ago, but I thought some may have missed it (more likely most don't care).

I use 8 pocket pages and then keep each card in its own penny sleeve so I can pull it out with little fear of damage. It also tends to keep the sheet slightly "sturdier", although my biggest fear is still curling of the corner pockets.
I use mylar sleeves to provide an even stronger sheet. They tend to stick out a smidge, which is a slight distraction but also makes them easier to pull out.

Here are two examples--the Braves are stored in the usual penny sleeve in the larger size for 52-56 Topps, and the Twins use the Mylar. Sorry I did a lousy job of getting them still and aligned--these scans are from a couple years ago:


I view the binders calendar style rather than book style; i.e. on my lap or table turning the pages up and over rather than left-right. A little out of the ordinary but really no big deal at all. I recommend this approach--just start with one set and see if you like it-- you can always scrap the idea and find another use for the 8 pocket sheets, I would hope.

[Vintageloz]

Originally Posted by nolemmings

I know I've posted this before a couple of years ago, but I thought some may have missed it (more likely most don't care).

I use 8 pocket pages and then keep each card in its own penny sleeve so I can pull it out with little fear of damage. It also tends to keep the sheet slightly "sturdier", although my biggest fear is still curling of the corner pockets.
I use mylar sleeves to provide an even stronger sheet. They tend to stick out a smidge, which is a slight distraction but also makes them easier to pull out.

Here are two examples--the Braves are stored in the usual penny sleeve in the larger size for 52-56 Topps, and the Twins use the Mylar. Sorry I did a lousy job of getting them still and aligned--these scans are from a couple years ago:


I view the binders calendar style rather than book style; i.e. on my lap or table turning the pages up and over rather than left-right. A little out of the ordinary but really no big deal at all. I recommend this approach--just start with one set and see if you like it-- you can always scrap the idea and find another use for the 8 pocket sheets, I would hope.

Hi Todd

Can you post a link to where you get the Mylar sleeves?
Thanks
Chris

[nolemmings]

Originally Posted by Vintageloz

Hi Todd

Can you post a link to where you get the Mylar sleeves?
Thanks
Chris

Sure. Here's one I have used:

https://tcverify.com/

[bammerbb]

These posts brought back a lot of memories from my childhood. I started like a lot of folks with rubber bands in a shoebox. At first I had Yankees in one box (my favorite) and everyone else in another.

Now, I'm going back to binders. This all came about because I am sick of PSA being so far behind and gouging at $200 per card. If I want, I'm going to SGC for higher end cards and the rest will be in binders, inside a penny sleeve, then in a 9 pocket sheet (Ultra Pro only). Has anyone used the pages for the graded cards? I do like the way their holders look with the black plastic holder. I plan to buy the graded ones and not worry about grading myself. And putting a Street & Smith's with them is a nice touch. I used to get either a Street or a Baseball Digest every year. Sometimes I even purchased a team or Jay Yankees yearbook. I would like to hear everyone's thoughts on the pages for the graded cards. I'm going to check to see if there's on that SGC holders will fit.

[YazFenway08]

If you are talking about those 4-pocket, recessed pages that look like the graded cards “snap” into, I am interested in feedback on those as well. I just can’t seem to get the regular 4-pocket ultra pros to work right with slabs.

It seems those graded card pages were discontinued years ago by ultra pro (?) and the few I see on eBay are really expensive and not sure of the quality.

I love the idea of having a binder where 98% of the cards are secure in the standard 9 pocket sheets and the top stars/rookies are graded and displayed in two front pages. That’s kinda how I collect my sets anyway.

[HOF Yankees]

For the longest time I have been both a graded and raw/ungraded type collector but then when I started set collecting I noticed myself buying more Raw 1960 topps cards and putting those in the binder and it wasn't until now or a year or two ago that I may just get only raw cards and I love them. As mentioned I love reading the backs, the bios, stats, World Series cards, checklists, league leaders and the baseball thrills.

Now I may cracked out all my graded cards and start putting them in the binders since I am not going to sell them.

[wdwfan]

Wanted to throw my nickel's worth of 2 cents into the fray.

I just put my entire 1958 Topps set into penny sleeves and into binder. I used the Ultra Pro Premium penny sleeves, and the fit was a little snug on the card. But they slid perfectly into the pages each time. Never any crimping or messing up. I wanted to use penny sleeves so I can put the BV on the back of each card.
I also used the Ultra Pro Platinum pages, and everything worked just great.

I've already picked up the sleeves for my 1957 Topps set, and I've got the pages ready. As soon as I get this big lot I've got coming in and get them into their spot in the set, I'l put them into sleeves and into a notebook.

[homerunderby]

Got all my Yankees in binders...cdw albums never UltiPro...I leave spaces for all the cards I don't have yet.

Got several Gothic Cabinet Craft bookcases to hold them, added a made to order bookcase from a small business here in San Francisco and it looks great. You just can't use Ikea or big box store bookcases, they aren't strong enough for these heavy binders.

Something about looking at those rows of binders (over 100) and thinking about all the work and care that went into getting all those cards.