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Top tip, when inserting gatefold sleeves into these, insert a piece of paper or card first and slide the cover underneath the paper/card and it is super smooth. Saves a lot of hassle

I've been using a combination of outer sleeves but once I learned about Polypropylene sleeves I've stuck with them. The VSS sleeves are really awesome - though they can be more expensive than others so I have not gone 100% VSS... yet. The cast polypropylene that VSS uses is stronger and gives/stretches a bit more than the BOPP sleeves so that helps with larger/thicker album covers. I love their dual pocket sleeves for single albums though, as you mention, this can be a pain if I want to see the inside of a gatefold. So I recently bought a batch of the VSS gatefold sleeves with flaps - some of both sizes. The MoFi and Tone Poets, etc. require the larger sleeve. Regardless of size, they're really great. For some albums I still keep the vinyl outside the record sleeve putting it between the record sleeve and the outer sleeve. I do this for those records where the gatefold is old or for the MoFi releases since I feel that putting/pulling the record in/out of the gatefold will hasten seam splits. The vinyl is still very secure in it's own inner-sleeve and sitting inside the outer-sleeve within the gatefold. I guess, ideally, it would be nice if VSS offered a gatefold version of their dual pocket design, but it's not really that necessary. I have tried gatefold sleeves from another company I found on Amazon. The material was BOPP and they fit nice - EXCEPT they weren't centered properly. The gap on the inner side of the sleeve was too far to the left - about a quarter inch. So, when the album was inserted and centered on the seam one side of the outer sleeve would be too long and the other would have the edge of the album extending past the outer sleeve. If I centered the album to the sleeve then the gap would be shifted over and then, when closing the gatefold, the sleeve would bunch up. Fairly disappointing since they were a lot less expensive than the VSS sleeves and would have been good for my lower value gatefold albums. Overall, very happy with VSS. They cost more but the value is there. It's all about whether you consider it worth the price.

Can't believe I started my vinyl journey just two years ago but I was lucky enough to hear about VSS early on. I love Mike's innovation. I was using two of the sleeves with flaps and pocket to store my gatefolds but the one sleeve options are much better. That being said, as a lot of newer ones have a raised inverse spine (learned that term from Mike) that can interfere with the closure as that gap closes when you close the jacket. Some of mine are low enough so that when closed, it's ignored and closes smoothly. I really like his newer single pocket sleeves without flaps and they're really useful for older albums.

Covers 33 , have supplied me with high quality gatefold vinyl for more than a decade, great company, delivery normally next day.

@gman5218

Жыл бұрын

Second that. Been using them for years . Top company

@soundmatters

Жыл бұрын

Thanks for the recommendation. I'll check them out. Got a link?

@krupboom

Жыл бұрын

I've used them for years but I have now dumped all my PVC covers as they de-gas and cause vinyl fogging. I didn't believe it either but my Analogue Productions Rickie Lee Jones was one of the albums i found affected by it. Am slowly moving to the VSS via Mint

@desmondmccarthy7509

11 ай бұрын

@@krupboom totally agree. I used Covers 33 products for around the last 15 years.....oh dear, I have wasted literally thousands of pounds on covers made from toxic PVC. My belief is that the damage comes when the PVC sleeves get warm and emit more gas. Lucky my collection is in a cool room but I am literally having to change every cover bit by bit and after many different trials VSS seem the best especially for specialist LPs of different sizes.

VSS sleeves are amazing. I started with the dual pocket single tape and loved them. I'm using the dual pocket single tuckable flap now and I love them. I had like 20 of the taped and gave them away. So easy and super nice.

@soundmatters

Жыл бұрын

Great stuff. Yep, some superb designs for sure

Yes! I bought some of these from Mint Sleeves the other week. Very pleased with them, will be getting more!

@soundmatters

Жыл бұрын

These are my favorite product from them yet. The dual pocket sleeves have their place, but there are times when I don't like to have the record stored outside the sleeve -- particularly if it makes it a tight fit as I worry about warping. Where I DO really like the dual pocket designs is for very old records where the jacket has some wear but is a collectible piece. The dual pocket really stops me from deteriorating the cover any further while still giving me access to the record.

@jameshogg11

Жыл бұрын

@@soundmatters I ordered a selection of their outer sleeves. Still working out which one/s I like best to be honest. Their inner sleeves are good too by the way. I just finished a batch of the 3mil and have a batch of 2mil coming. Interested to see the difference because the 2mil are significantly cheaper!

I have used sleeves from Vinyl Storage Solutions for a while now, and nobody in my opinion makes a better inner or outer sleeve. I have not tried their gatefold sleeves however every sleeve I have tried is vastly superior to any others I have tried. I once made the mistake once of ordering a cheaper inner sleeve (made at the same factory) and you pay for what you get. I threw out so many of them they ended up costing me more. Vinyl Storage Solutions are an excellent company and make incredible products. I use their outer and inner sleeves on all of my albums, their new thicker sleeves are well worth it and better than any others I've tried. I don't work for them and I'm not being paid by them, I am just a huge fan and believer in their products. Designed by someone who knows what vinyl collectors need and want.

Thanks for this video. I used to use two seperate outer sleeves for my gatefold albums. But this gatefold record sleeves look a lot more practical. Also the flaps, I think are better then the glued strips. So for my next gatefold record sleeves, and normal sleeves, I will use the gatefold sleeves with flaps and the single record sleeves with flaps.

@soundmatters

Жыл бұрын

Sounds ideal. I prefer the flaps to the strips too. Happy spinning.

I currently use Spin Care products which I find issue with some of the Clarity range tearing very easily. I wasn't aware that VVS had found a UK distributor and I'm keen to compare them. Thanks!

Looks interesting

im looking for something like this that fits a triple fold LP, my Oppenheimer soundtrack record doesnt fit standard ones

Getting down to the basics, a plastic record sleeve , first, is used to protect the album covers from wear by abrasion. So, what about protecting the album covers from the records themselves? Several things are involved. First, because the records are thick, they spread the album covers open slightly. Then, the records are slightly smaller than the jackets they are in, causing uneven expansive pressure. Most LP's have raised edges which are known as vinyl dams. These cause ringwear to the album covers. Most records have a raised label area. Again this causes uneven pressure on the record covers. British record albums are made of much thinner material, so the records inside damage the record covers much more quickly. An extreme example would be 7" records with the raised serrated ring(for anti-slip) encircling the label which EMI Group and others used. With 7" records inside a picture or custom designed sleeve, the damage happens very quickly and is strikingly evident. As an example, Apple Records 7" 45 rpm singles came in a glossy Apple sleeve or picture sleeve. Most every one of those sleeves I have seen has been damaged by the raised serrated rings. One exception is The Beatles "Something"/"Come Together" 7". Some were pressed without the raised serrated rings. My copies have no wear on the sleeves. Here is a case for storing the record in a plain sleeve, inside a plastic outer sleeve, together with the original sleeve. I haven't seen any kind of damage to the original outer sleeve. OK, all is fine with special gatefold outer plastic sleeves, but if you store the records inside those gatefold album covers, wear with be caused from the record inside those gatefold covers. The records still need to be removed from the album covers. If the plastic gatefold sleeves have a 3rd and separate pocket and it can hold atleast 2 records, storing the records in that extra pocket between the halves of the gatefold cover will protect the covers. Another consideration is that many record companies, like Mobile Fidelity and Analogue Productions go out of their way to create a pronounce spine on gatefold covers as well as even single record covers. To preserve the spines on the gatefold covers, the records should be stored inbetween the the halves of the gatefold covers. For an extra element of protection, if the special gatefold outer sleeves have the 3rd ppocket in the middle, that is great. If not, the records should be placed in their own plastic sleeve. As a sidenote, if any album comes with a custom inner sleeve(like with pictures and/or lyrics), they should be left inside the sleeve as they came. Sliding them in and out will cause wear to the custom inner sleeves.

@jmi5969

Жыл бұрын

Ring wear, is it common, at all? Never saw it, not in my own records, not when crate digging. Probably, it's all down to regional differences in sleeve paper and print? Mine mostly come from vintage continental Europe and Japan, with only a few from the UK, very few gatefolds.

@Matasky2010

Жыл бұрын

You've gone way off the deep end of vinyl OCD. The Lps belong in their pockets, inside their covers. The covers will be just fine unless you treat them like sh*t lol. The Mofi and AP covers are built like tanks, they're not scared of the vinyl they were intended to protect,

@automatedelectronics6062

Жыл бұрын

@@Matasky2010 OK? So how do you prevent the records from tearing through the spines of the album covers? Never heard of seam split? Hmmm. If Mofi sleeves are so great, why do I receive brand new sealed records with split Mofi inner sleeves and also the album cover they are in, like the Mofi 'one-step' of "Fragile" by Yes? On AP's UHQR releases, why do they have the record separated from the album cover inside the AP inner sleeve? Sometimes the record has split the AP inner sleeve. The contents of the UHQR box is usually loose.

@Matasky2010

Жыл бұрын

@@automatedelectronics6062 You just proved my point- seam splits and damage happens during shipping, not when your albums are safely sitting on your shelf. I tell AP/Mofi to remove the vinyl from covers during shipping- just add the instruction in your order notes.

@automatedelectronics6062

Жыл бұрын

@@Matasky2010 They should be safe on the shelves, but guess what can happen when you remove a record from a shelf and put it back? I've had plenty of records over the years, before I began removing them from the covers and before I started putting them in plastic outer sleeves, where the records created impressions inside the covers due to their thickness, the raised label section and the vinyl dam around the edge of the records. Some shrink-wrapped LP's were already damaged like this, brand new. The foreign record pressings with their album covers made of thin paper stock are the worst. I've been collecting records for over 60 years(and still have most) and in that time, I listened to others more knowledgeable than me and found the best ways to preserve my records . If whatever works for you works, keep doing it. But me, I am going to listen to the experts and heed their advice.

What about triple gatefold sleeves any suggestions please

Anyone know a EU store that have them in stock? i'am using KATTA sleeves now but i wanto sleeve my MOFI gatefolds and other gatefolds and or 3x to 4xLP gatefolds too with super clear covers.

@soundmatters

Жыл бұрын

mintsleeves.com/

I have been using vinyl solutions products for the last two years I find them fantastic wouldn’t use anything else now! They even do 7 inch ones for single’s. Wouldn’t use anything else now.

I have a question. Does any of these products fits triple gatefold albums? If not, could you maybe recommend some outer sleeves that do?

@soundmatters

Жыл бұрын

Hey - thanks for watching. To my knowledge, VSS haven't developed a triple sleeve (yet).

@user-ql9mo3ux2m

5 ай бұрын

You can't always sleeve what you want.

What about 3 record sets with a triple fold album cover?

@soundmatters

Жыл бұрын

Hey Chris. Good question. It seems like this product might work? vinylstoragesolutions.ca/collections/12-inch-specalty-sleeves/products/coming-soon-2-mil-joiner-outer-sleeves-sealable-crystal-clear-cpp-25-sleeves-to-a-pack I don't have direct experience with this one though, so be sure to double check with them first. Hope this helps

I didn't know this was a thing

this is a GenX nightmare scenario. no words to follow this.

Greetings to all! I suggest another option for making external envelopes for vinyl: make it with your own hands ;) kzread.info/dash/bejne/kWyfqcOnmNjNgpM.html

These Cost as much as the Album???

@soundmatters

Жыл бұрын

Not each, no. They come in packs of 25. Hope this helps - happy spinning!

Never thought of encasing my albums in plastic. Some of my albums are over 50 years old. There may be excellent reasons to do so, but being opposed to unnecessary plastics, I'm not going to start now

Flaps.

@soundmatters

5 ай бұрын

Flappy McFlapington

4 mm ??? 😂😂😂