How To Store And Display Awards.

[ANZAC]

Hi Philip and welcome to the Forum. Documents are really not my 'thang' but there are plenty of members here who are into the paperwork side of collecting. I'm sure there will be plenty of ideas for you to consider.

Brendan:thumbsup

[EricFG]

By the way, I didn't think you Yanks had accents?

I speak normal, the rest of you people talk funny!

If it was your cat China doing the narrative, then I picked up on a slight NY accent.

Actually, yes, I am from New York, although from upstate and not the city. And cats don't talk. They use mind control to get their bidding done!

the only thing I can think of is using the good old gallon-sized freezer zip bag to keep it together. Any thoughts?
Phillip

Hello Phillip. I'm not sure about what those bags are actually made of. Some plastics have bad things in them that react somehow with paper.
There's a little info here: http://www.soviet-awards.com/forum/sovie...ctors.html and I think Art posted about archival items somewhere. I just can't find it at the moment.

[ANZAC]

Hopefully Simon will chime in on this one. He has a massive collection of Soviet Paperwork and has storeage down to an Art form. I'm sure he can put you on the right track on storing such items.

Brendan

[Bogdan]

By the way, the "accent" is New England? We "yanks" have more accents than Muscovites on the Arbat!

Phillip

Phillip, if you are a native born in Lafayette, then I can just imagine your accent. One of my cousins lived there for several (23 or so) years and I visited there frequently and enjoyed talking with the folks there immensly. Being from East Texas, we have our own twang but I love to hear the southern Louisiana accent. And yes, welcome to the forum!

[Dante688i]

Hello Phillip. I'm not sure about what those bags are actually made of. Some plastics have bad things in them that react somehow with paper.
There's a little info here: http://www.soviet-awards.com/forum/sovie...ctors.html and I think Art posted about archival items somewhere. I just can't find it at the moment.

Hi Phillip,

Welcome to the forum!

In terms of using the gallon storage bag for the large file, you should be alright. The main concern is that it isn't a PVC plastic bag. If you are using Ziploc for instance, it shouldn't be a problem as they are made from polyethylene. For storing paper documents and such, it's suggested that the protector be made from polyethylene, polypropylene, or polyester film/mylar (this being the best).

As Eric mentioned, some of us have utilized the products available from specific archival suppliers. I have used products from several companies mentioned in earlier threads:

Light Impressions
Bags Unlimited
Brodart - Archival Supplies

Many of these sites can give you additional information to see what would work best for you. Beyond that, one thing you can look for is rather the protector passes the P.A.T. test. This is a test that determines an item's longer term stability; most archival enclosures are certified as such.

Some of these same issues were discussed in a previous thread that you might like to look through.

Well, I hope some of this information helped. Again, welcome and enjoy the forum.

- Sean

[Roscoe]

Very informative videos.

Where did you get the two pocket page protectors? I went to a stamp shop and got some of the 4 pocket protectors but they didn't have any of the 2 pocket type.

[EricFG]

Where did you get the two pocket page protectors? I went to a stamp shop and got some of the 4 pocket protectors but they didn't have any of the 2 pocket type.

Where else but the interwebz! This guy: budssportscardsfl is the seller I get them from on eBay, mainly because he's close to me.
"BCW" is the brand name of the ones I use and there are probably countless other manufacturers as well. Do a search (eBay or Google) for "page protectors" with "archival" as a modifier and see what you get near you.

[Roscoe]

Thanks for the info. Went to the BCW website and will get some of their stuff.

[deValcourt]

Thanks to everyone for the gracious and helpful welcome. I tried my local hobby shop and they had the four pocket plastic pages that will work in my binder to do as Eric has. Of course, they were more than willing to order anything I want - for a price. Perhaps the e-place may be good for something other than feeding my collecting habit.

As for my accent (Bogdan - that rings a bell) the Russians said I spoke Russian with a Moscow accent, the Virginians wanted me to talk like Justin Wilson (who was neither Cajun nor a cook) and the folks here at home say I still sound like a foreigner. Go figure. It's all in the ear. Talk the way you like and everybody is happy.

I have decided to frame my orders, ranking medals and harder to get badges behind glass over black velvet - I agree completely with one of the fellows who said, (paraphrase0: the red prominent in soviet medals and awards makes a red background a wash. So do many colors. However, I like the idea of a sea-green background like the parade uniform color as another member suggested. The problem is, I also like the idea of displaying them on a uniform. Do you guys see where this is going? Too many good ideas leave me back where I started trying to decide. I will pass for now on the uniform display strictly from the dust-and-cleaning point-of-view.

Another idea for some awards is the Wal-Mart approach, which is working for now on some of my items. Small frames ($1-3 each) with glass and cheap enough that if you mess them up while punching a hole for a screwback, you can just say, 'Oh well' and move on.

Thanks again gents,
Phillip

Great advice and helpful links - especially the Brodart site. Just looking at what is for sale helps with planning how to keep or display my stuff.
Thanks,
Phillip

[EricFG]

Take some before and after shots!