It can be tricky removing to stuck down stamp hinges
from some stamps. There are two different methods that can be
used;
1. By applying pressure
2. By using water or other moisture .
1. Pressure.
Place the stamp in an approval card or any other container/holder
made of acetate or similar material with the gummed side up. With
the stamp securely held under the acetate, use a pair of tongs or
the back of a spoon, or another similar roundish metal object and
put downward pressure on the hinge area, rubbing hard while applying
the pressure. Unless stuck badly, this should loosen the hinge
enough to peel it off successfully.
2. Water/moisture.
Various implements can be used to apply water/moisture to the hinge
to loosen it. Preferred tools are Q-tip or small artist’s paint
brush; some merely use a finger. I use a fine-point brush and make
the point of the brush smaller by cutting off the tip, leaving only
about 5mm of brush. Apply water/moisture (aside from water, a
preferred moisture is old-fashioned spit!) only to the hinge
remnant, being careful not to allow water to spill over the edges of
the hinge directly onto the gum.
To prevent the
likelihood of this happening, I squeeze off all excess water from
the brush, and then apply the wet brush lightly to the hinge
remnant. I use lukewarm water, which will help melt the gum under
the hinge slightly, hopefully enabling the hinge to be carefully
peeled off. Because we have squeezed off all excess water to prevent
spillage over the hinge edges, it will usually be necessary to apply
multiple water brushings to the hinge. Allow sufficient time for the
hinge to start to “bubble” up from the stamp before attempting to
lift off the hinge. Avoid digging around the edges of the hinge to
try to get it to lift. Often this digging will cause a thin. Let the
moisture do the job, not your tongs. Once a bubble edge starts, you
can then carefully get the tong tips under the edge and carefully
try to peel off the hinge. If it will not peel smoothly, stop and
repeat moisture application. Some old-time hinges are quite heavy
and difficult to remove/lift, so often patience is required.
After the hinge is successfully removed, a light brushing over the
area where the hinge was stuck can result in a smoother appearance.
The gum which was lost in that area can sometimes be “replaced” by
transferring gum from another stamp (I have often seen selvedge gum
use for this purpose). I will describe this process in another
article.