Cardboard coin holders Questions

Several questions as I just recovered my 50 year old childhood collection:

1. I notice some coins, I have purchased, have glued and then stapled holders. Are these superior; for what reasons?
2. The local coin dealers sell the no-glue cardboard type:
a. What is the best staple "technique"?
b. Is a tight seal essential?

3. The largest of the four basic holders available "silver dollar type size" staple poorly and appear to be not useful. Do folks use them?

Thank you. Steve

 

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I have never thought of the cardboard holders as being a permanent solution for protecting coins. The only exception might be for coins that are valued at extremely low premiums. Any coin going into a collection for an extended period of time, should be in an airtite style of capsule. If you thought enough to buy it above face value, then spending an extra dollar or so to preserve it, is the proper way to go. Cardboard holders are best for transporting a raw coin or to store it for a very short period of time.

 

Thank you. I'm referring to US and World coins with values in the $1.00 to $100 range. Not rare, available, traded on eBay, at local coin shops, etc.

 

This subject has been discussed quite often in the past, and the search box, top of the page in light blue color can get some other threads. Safety and protection from chemical reactions and physical damage are the key. Any holder has a mixture of good points and not so good points. Proper storage in regards to environmental gases, including water vapor, sulfides, etc. will result in the majority of protection. Flooding, fire, forgetting where you buried the slabs in the yard, will result in damage in any holder over time, as the holders are not air tight, even if they are Air-Tite ™. Most damage occurs because the collector doesn't remain vigil over the years and check the coins for problems.

The answer is extremely personal among collectors, rather like "Which is the best breed of Dog to have as a pet". Everyone has an answer, even if it is a Cat

 

Thanks, desertgem! Did so... I'm just referring to basic common coins:

1.Why in stapled OR glued holders? Are these superior; for what reasons?
2. What is the best staple "technique"?
3. Is a tight seal essential?

I'm not asking about valuable coins but, just putting material together from years ago that are $1-$100 in value.

Folks: Many of you have 1000's of coins... How do you handle the holder issue?

 

Considering the glued vs. stapled, the Stapled are superior IMO, if:

You use stainless steel staples, and a stapler that flattens the ends flat against the cardboard and not in a loop to avoid damaging adjoining coins. And a tight seal is essential to prevent environmental damage.

Why not glue? Less and less of such cheaper mounts are made in countries that do not publish MSDS so you can't see if the adhesive can outgas chemicals that might cause damage. Also in my hot area ( desert) I have seen some of the glued ones lose the strength to hold properly after several years, especially large coins.

Here is a photo of 3 coins that over 20+ years developed toning in the area where "steel, not stainless" staples eventually corroded a little, and since they pierced the inner mylar area, the corrosion/toning eventually spread to the coin.

 

I hate 2x2's for that reason, as soon as I buy a coin in a 2x2, I always take it out

 

i have coins that have been stored in stapled cardboard 2x2's which are then placed in 20 slot three ring binder pages for 30 plus years with no ill effects..

 

I use cardboard 2X2s for low-value coins.

I staple them on all four sides.

After I staple, I take a flat-nose pliers and flatten the rounded prongs of the staples so that they won't scrape the mylar windows on other 2X2s when stacked upright in chipboard boxes. They make staplers that automatically produce "flattened" staples so that you don't have to do this.

When I break them out of the 2X2, I carefully pierce the mylar window with a penknife and remove the coins that way.

I eventually migrate the better ones of these low-value coins to air-tites.

I store them all in a dry, sealed metal box.

2X2s are NOT tight-sealed at all, and I don't think they're expected to be.

Silver-dollar 2X2s work well for me. Just purchase the right kind. I staple A- and T-size air-tites into these so that they stand up and don't roll around in storage.

 

Great answer. This is the way to use 2x2s.

 

i have this type stapler purchased specifically for my 2x2's, works perfectly, punches thru a folded cardboard 2x2 easily...http://www.wizardcoinsupply.com/product/max-flat-clinch-stapler-full-size.html

 

Thank you all for the timely and expert advice.

 

Nothing wrong with cardboard 2x2's for long term storage. More important is what you choose to store those 2x2's in. I'm a big fan of food-grade ziplock bags as a final layer of defense against oxygen and humidity, our enemies. Pack them with a dessicant packet and maybe a shiny sacrificial Cent (to attract any atmospheric chemicals first), and you've got a pretty solid solution.

 

Thank you again. Merry Christmas to all, BTW!

 

Agree 100%! 2x2's are fine, but they require proper storage themselves. If you do what Dave says, they will be fine for decades. I also recommend putting those ziplocks into tupperware-type containers. I think coins would last centuries like that.

 

2x2's are cheap and do a reasonable job. One of the ways I use them is to put a coin in a 2x2, fold it and then slide it into a 2x2 Mylar page holder. The coin is kept from moving around, and if you do want to remove it, there are no staples to mess with. BTW, that toning/corrosion from the staples was scary!!!

 

The glued holders were designed for speed and to eliminate staples with no thought of the out-gassing of whatever glue they use. I would avoid them.

Staples "should" be flattened as several have mentioned, but many people don't.

The seal is Mylar against Mylar, which is far from perfect, but better than nothing.

 

My only worry about Tupperware is the inability to evacuate the air from them; I envision (yes, I'm paranoid; doesn't mean they're not out to get me) trapping "bad" air in there to slowly work against the defenses you've created. Then again, probably better than non-airtight storage for most cases, because a transient atmospheric condition could set you up for failure. I'm suspecting that there are collectors in Europe who got some ugly surprises from their stored coins after the recent Icelandic volcanic eruptions spewed volcanic sulfur into the atmosphere over Europe.

 

What would you store your bag in then?

The tupperware layer is the outermost. While there is air trapped inside, it minimizes any fresh air from getting to the bags and creates a pretty static environment. IMO, it's the constantly changing and moving atmospheric gasses that cause havoc with coins. Everything wants to come to equilibrium, if the environment is pretty static, it will minimize the movement of gasses.