How To Tell If A Stamp Has Been Reperfed.

I want to know how to detect damaged altered and repaired stamps.

I have exactly the same problem: I started collecting stamps with my daughter about 1.5 years ago and I just cannot tell if a stamp has been reperfed. Are the experts really able to tell for sure if a stamp has been reperfed, assuming that the reperforation is well done?

I had some stamps certified as REPERFORATED by PF, and some of the calls seem almost random.

Perhaps one of the more experienced collectors could give some hints...

Alex

To be 100% frank, I am skeptical.25 years ago, I took my collection to stamp show in NYC. I showed dozens of stamps to various dealers. There was no rhyme or reason OR CONSITANCEY in what was reprefed or regummed. I think the dealers guessed at random!

I have been reading guides and trying to understand myself how the detection of reperforation works, but, except in trivial cases, some of the calls just seem completely random.

Here is an example, for whoever might be interested in testing their knowledge: I'm uploading 3 images of 3 stamps I have, a #240, a #297, and a #325. All of them have recent PF/PSE certificates, two of them have clean certificates, and one of them is certified as reperforated on one side. Can anybody tell me, from the pictures, which one is reperforated, and on which side?

The bottom of the 5¢ Pan American.

I'll bite. I also think it's the 5c Pan American, but the right side. The perfs are too round.

I would like to see the same stamp submitted to these expertising committees a few different times to see if the experts will be consistent with their calls.

I was going to guess the 5 cent but top because of the small dip coming across.

Oh now I have confused myself. Looking at the first stamp along the bottom it looks to have a different perf. than the top.

Bottom stamp, at top

5c Pan right side

The certificates are PSE 01164709 (clean certificate for #297), PSE 00119766 (clean certificate for #240), and PF 490511 (reperforated at left certificate for #325). So, according to the experts, the bottom stamp is reperforated at left and the others are good. How can they possibly tell for sure?

I just resubmitted the clean stamps to PF, without mentioning the PSE certificates. If I get back anything but clean certificates from PF, it would be a good time to reconsider if it's really possible to put together a large collection of fault-free classical American stamps.

Alex

Alex: This is the 2nd time I've read thru the thread from 2012 that you had started re reperf'g. It is truly an endless subject! But, the thread stopped short at your 1/11/12 post which indicated that you were going to send some already cert'd "clean" stamps to PF to see if they concurred. Did they come back clean?

If you click on his name, it will take you to his public profile. On that page you will notice that he has not logged in to the forum since 2012.
Don

Last year I sent a stamp to be certed, and in my communications with the cert issuing authority regarding a matter unrelated to the perfs, was told that they had found it to be a reperf.

But with my next communication with them they told me they had changed their minds, and felt that it was not a reperf. So the cert makes no mention of any reperforation.

How could they tell such if a stamp was reperfed with the proper machinery and was aligned correctly?

Entire books have been written about identifying damaged and altered stamps. Having a clear understanding of how perforations were applied to classic and early 20th Century stamps would be helpful. The most common problem with reperforated stamps is "lifeless" perforations that are too clean and lack pressure ridges and pulled fibers caused by the perforating pins pulling the paper through the perforator. Then there is measurement and alignment. Before Richard Kiusalas started selling perforation gauges, fake perforations were often the wrong gauge, Other visual clues like unevenly spaced or misaligned holes or holes aligned between rows become evident with enough practice. In many cases, fake perforations look bad, like the left side of the 3 cent Monroe for the Louisiana Purchase Exposition. Some fake perforations are truly hard to spot, like a pair of stamps probably done by Kiusalas where the only clue from a distance is that the perforation tips form too much of a straight line. Up close the tips have the characteristic beveled filing pattern that Kiusalas used. Some perforations don't fail until a marquee (bounding box) test is performed on a computer to determine of the perforation rows are parallel. But like any other rule that may be broken, perforation rows on the outside margins are sometimes not parallel to the interior rows.

It is exceedingly difficult to fake perforations convincingly, but some dealers complain to expertizing services which may cause some of the most competent alterations to be overlooked. Even cheap stamps are affected, because Kiusalas used to fill orders in quantities of 100 to H. E> Harris. One can easily speculate what happened if the order was a couple of stamps short of 100.

The bottom line is that experienced dealers can tell. Some may not pass that information on to buyers, but most do.