Poly Sleeves in the UK. Do they exist?

[MintyWhite]

Dear All,

I have been looking around for some poly sleeves so that I can store my posters flat, with relative protection in a box, under my bed. I'm going away for the next 18 months so would like my posters to be flat in an acid free environment, rather than rolled.

The problem I am having is actually finding reasonably priced poly sleeves in the UK.

I looked into bagsunlimited, however due to the weight the postage was just over what I was paying for the sleeves themselves. Then there are the import fees aswell.

I would appreciate any advice on storing posters. My preference is to store them flat so that I can still appreciate them and my collection consists of 1sh's, B1's and B2's.

Also if anyone knows of any reasonable vendors, it would be much appreciated!

Thanks,

MW 

[marklawd]

I use polyester pockets from www.preservationequipment.com.

Mark

[quadbod]

Hi, Mark!

Do you use one of their stock sizes ... if so, which do you find best suits a standard UK quad?

Presumably, the sleeves are open along one short side?  Any problems inserting the posters?

Thanks!

Best wishes,

Terry - www.quadbod.co.uk

[marklawd]

No, I order a precise pocket size of 1207mm x 795mm - 100 microns thick - open one (short) side. This is the largest size that will comfortably fit in an AO plan chest and both one sheets and quads are easy to insert.

Mark

[Tob]

I finally bit the bullet a few months ago and I bought about 150 sleeves from bags unlimited (a combo of 2 and 4 microns and for one sheets and quads/B1s) - including the postage and import taxes/duty it came to around £280. Pricey, but that works out at £1.85 a sleeve which was cheaper than I could find in the UK at the time.

I'm happy with the bags, they're good quality and offer decent protection, especially the 4 micron ones. You can fit 4 or 5 posters in each sleeve should you want to.

[quadbod]

No, I order a precise pocket size of 1207mm x 795mm - 100 microns thick - open one (short) side. This is the largest size that will comfortably fit in an AO plan chest and both one sheets and quads are easy to insert.

Thanks, Mark!  That looks quite tight on the narrow dimension but very generous on the length.  Without putting you to too much inconvenience, do you have any images of your posters in their new homes?

Terry - www.quadbod.co.uk

[marklawd]

The width of the plan chest dictates the width of the pocket while the excess length of the polyester/mylar "seals" the poster securely. If the length was shorter there is a greater possibility of the pocket opening and the poster being exposed.

Mark

[quadbod]

The width of the plan chest dictates the width of the pocket while the excess length of the polyester/mylar "seals" the poster securely. If the length was shorter there is a greater possibility of the pocket opening and the poster being exposed.

That all seems to make perfect sense.

Thanks again.

Terry - www.quadbod.co.uk

[paul waines]

Temperature control must be a issue here if posters are stored in bags....? More so if they are sealed, or are we talking so air can get in  to the bags, so they breath if you will...

Do you keep the temperature down Mark...? just curious as I keep my posters in a darkened room, and No heat what so ever. It's cool in there even at the hight of the "British" summer...

[marklawd]

These are not poly-bags Paul. The two sides of the polyester pocket "seal" the poster in an airless and flat archival environment. The pockets are kept in plan cabinets (within a normal centrally-heated domestic room) so they are effectively in a dark environment. 

Mark

[paul waines]

That doesn't seem quite right Mark. If you seal a poster in a bag, and "warm" it. Not to a huge degree, say 22/3 degrees, it must sweat silghtly, due to the nature of the paper. and inks...?  Darkness is only a small part of the problem with paper, heat is another...  I have most of my Magazine collection in bags, but they are not sealed, They are kept in the dark and also kept cool....  I think sealing them in the bags, and letting the temperature get up to Central heating Temperatures won't do them any good in the long run. 

[marklawd]

I am not using bags!...... and the radiator in the room is nowhere near the plan chests. I followed the advice given by my paper conservator nearly 20 years ago in this storage arrangement so I really have no worries.

I cannot recommend polyester or mylar highly enough as a storage medium for posters.

Mark

[paul waines]

Sorry Mark I use the term Bags loosely as in for comics, Mags, posters....A sleeve to put them in.  It's the sealing them, and then the temperature thing that gets me.

Do you have any pics of the posters in the sleeves?   This maybe something I need to buy.

[marklawd]

I posted this image on another thread a few weeks ago which shows a quad safely protected within a polyester (the UK equivalent of mylar) pocket. I had just put it in - over time and under the weight of other posters, creases and foldlines greatly diminish. 




Mark

[paul waines]

Thanks Mark.

Do they slide around in the drawer much?

[marklawd]

Not at all (apart from the top one) because of the weight of the pile.

Mark

[MintyWhite]

Thanks for the replies guys!  

I am still unsure whether to go for Polyethylene/Polypropylene or Polyester(Mylar). I understand that Polyethylene/Polypropylene isn't strictly 'archival', however have read that it will give protection for longer than anyone would be collecting posters (So I would assume longer than the average human lifespan!). Whereas Polyester(Mylar) will protect forever!

Reference: http://www.moviepostercollector.co.uk/mylar.html

For the cost, I am inclined to go for bagsunlimited for Polyethylene/Polypropylene sleeves. As Tob said, it would work out cheaper even with the P&P and import fees.

If people are interested, it may even be worth placing one bulk order. Doing this may dissipate the shipping and import costs so that less per sleeve would be paid. Of course P&P and fees would be calculated per sleeve so one person ordering 10 sleeves would pay less towards P&P and fees that someone ordering 100 sleeves.

Would anyone in the UK be interested? If so, I will investigate further.

MW

[Charlie]

http://www.conservation-by-design.co.uk/productdetails.aspx?id=419&itemno=PYSPOS0009

[Charlie]

http://www.preservationequipment.com/Store/Products/Archival-Storage/Polyester-Pockets/Archival-Polyester--Pockets

[paul waines]

Minty, I will say you get what you pay for....  And Mark is a wise old Owl, I'm contemplating getting some of those myself.   Though I guess it depends on how much you have paid for your posters, or how much they are worth now. There's NO way I would buy them for every poster I own anyway.

Most of my High end stuff is in Selwyns Sleeves, I have about 60 of those which take two posters. the rest are in plan chests with nothing between them; And many others which are still folded and in other drawers, because they have tape marks or some other damage I don't want my "clean" posters to come into contact with.

I will just say, if you are careful about light, and Temperature, these posters have lasted many years and are still in good nick, without our help. I don't think they are just going to fall apart over night...

[MintyWhite]

That's a fair point Paul.

I primarily want the sleeves so that I can appreciate my posts without too much 'handling contact'. When I think about it, most of my older pieces are all in archival frames. So I guess, sleeveless in a plan chest could be an option.

But alas, if only I could find a plan chest! There are a few on eBay, but living in Cornwall means that I have to travel hundreds of miles to collect them and taking into account fuel costs, I can't justify it!

I do agree. If they have lasted this long, they can't be 'that' fragile!

MW

[Ari]

Did someone mention Cornwall? BASTARDO!
One day... one day....

[paul waines]

Don't give up on those plan chests Minty,  I was the same, I live in the North east and every one was down South. Then one came up for sale about 20 miles away, which I bought; And within 2 months another turned up, so I bought that also. Both were cheap too, £50 for the first one and £30 the other...Keep Watching the Skies....er, I mean Ebay...


You'll love Cornwall Ari, I've been on Holiday there a few times, it's Jollyfine.

[Ari]

I know, I have a good reason, its called Jamaica Inn.... my favourite book of all time.

[MintyWhite]

I tend to look everyday and I think that's the problem. Ha. I'm looking too much! I was actually amazed at how expensive some of the plan chests can be!

Have you been to the Jamaica Inn, Ari? It's an awesome place. The museum is full of weird and wonderful things! Also, if you're a thrill seeker, it's worth staying the night too! There have been many reports of strange goings on during the nighttime hours.

Thankfully I live quite close, so I can visit and go home again to my lovely unhaunted house! Or so I hope!

 

MW