Where to buy Playbill Binders? (besides playbill.com)

[LightsOut90]

Posted: 9/15/15 at 12:28am

Ok so I need some help if possible, I have a HUGE playbill collection that I'm ready to put in binders, the Playbill shop sells binders for $32 each but these only hold 18 playbills, id have to but at least 15 of these things to even make a dent, can anyone suggest a place to get cheaper binders of conversely binders that hold more then 18 playbills, any help is appreciated.

[Markie27]

Posted: 9/15/15 at 3:05am

Hi!  I bought cheap regular black binders from Staples and once on Amazon but they are really not that good and I ended up using them for my extra Pplaybill copies.  The official playbill binders are really the way to go if you really want to take care of your playbills.  I already have 11 of them but they are definitely worth it since most of my New York Theatre playbills have autographs so the acid free plastic covers really help.  Oh and you can put 20-22 playbills in one binder.  I usually rip off the adds in the playbills to make them thinner (usually the middle pages and one just a few pages after it).  

[Kempster]

Posted: 9/15/15 at 7:08am

Agreed the Playbill.com binders are the best.   Keep an eye on ebay there is someone who sells brand new Playbill.com binders 4 for $75 with free shipping.

[Mr Kelly]

Posted: 9/15/15 at 7:22am

I have a playbill.com one which I think is fantastic. I put 2 playbills per sleeve and find I can fit 36 playbills in one folder this way. 

[neonlightsxo]

Posted: 9/15/15 at 8:22am

Make your own.

[ChrisTyler12882]

Posted: 9/15/15 at 8:24am

You can get them from Theatre Circle on W44th St or One Shubert Alley in between the Shubert and Booth.

[neonlightsxo]

Posted: 9/15/15 at 8:38am

^ The OP is asking for cheaper, I'm sure the theater shops won't be cheaper.

[ChrisTyler12882]

Posted: 9/15/15 at 8:49am

I just noticed that. Oops. 

[NJ_BroadwayGirl]

Posted: 9/15/15 at 9:27am

As someone who recently did this, here's my take. There are a few older threads on here that I searched through and from the advice within, I purchased a small binder from Staples (6" tall I think) along with a bunch of these 8.5" x 5.5" sheet protectors: http://www.staples.com/Staples-5-1-2-inch-x-8-1-2-inch-Sheet-Protectors-Clear-25/product_616224?akamai-feo=off

 

They do the job, but the quality isn't great and the playbills don't fit perfectly in the sheet protectors  - also the top is exposed. So I returned them and ponied up for the Playbill.com binder. The main reason, as others have said, is that I wanted to protect my signed playbills. The Playbill.com product is really of a superior, archival quality and the sleeves fold over at the top so no part of the magazine is exposed. 

 

Playbills I care less about currently live in a box so at least they don't get dusty. If you aren't concerned with putting Playbills in plastic sheets, consider this cheaper version: http://www.playbillstore.com/binders.html  It's way cheaper than buying the sheet protectors that don't fit and the binders from Staples! I'm considering getting one for my unsigned bills. 

Updated On: 9/15/15 at 09:27 AM

[loliveve]

Posted: 9/15/15 at 10:05am

You could get a 2 or 3-inch Avery binder, and then use the Playbill sleeves in that binder.  Since the sleeves are 6 for $8, it could potentially be cheaper, if you can find the Avery binders on sale (otherwise, they are about $12)  To be honest though, any large binder is expensive. It may be better to get smaller binders (1.5- inches or so) and then use the Playbill sleeves for the protection. 

An alternative= using the bags like those used to protect comic books and storing them in boxes.

[broadwayboy972]

Posted: 9/15/15 at 10:21am

I'm a poor college student and what I did was order the Playbill-sized binders (pretty cheap) from Amazon, and they each hold a good amount of Playbills. Avery also sells acid-free, archival-safe sheet protectors in Playbill size, also on Amazon for cheap. 

[Jayar2]

Posted: 1/4/16 at 1:51am

Does anybody have long term experience with the Playbill binders?  I have two Playbills per sleeve, and I am wondering if there are any long term issues with the acid paper in the sleeves by keeping two in the binder. Anybody else do this?  Should I invest in more binders and sleeves so that I can go to one per sleeve?

[Movidude742]

Posted: 1/4/16 at 5:03am

It is not a guarantee but keep an eye out the last hour of the Broadway Flea MArket

Last year I came upon a table that had 3 older playbill binders full of old magazines that were all they had left and sold me for a buck each.  

I don't know that the playbills in there were of any interest to me and I will probably put them out on a table next year, but 3 of the old brown binders for 3 bucks cannot be beat