Stamp Collectors Collect Everything Except ...

I've never heard of anyone collecting missing perfs. This stamp has three:





Anyone know of other cases of missing perfs?

This doesn't have any

Who's a comedian?

Collectors do not refer to them as missing perfs,
but "blind perfs" and they are very common.

I think we're all comedians here, jimjam

Anthony just beat us to it. I envisioned Rod posting a photo of a small tin full of tiny round dots collected from the waste bin of a perf machine. But looks like he gave you a serious answer this time.

Also, the blind perfs are interesting when you can see a larger block or full sheet with a recurring pattern caused by missing or damaged pins.

Kirk

Don't you hate it when the perforation machine hasn't quite got rid of the paper, so there are tiny half-attached circles that are horrible to pull off without messing up the stamp, but look awful if you leave them?

Aren't they like those "hanging chads" of the US presidential election in Florida in 2000?

I prefer to call them "hanging bills" Chad has gotten a hard time since then. I think he is upset.

More seriousness for KirkS

Here is a stamp with a hole lot going on...

we have "syncopated perfs", "blind perfs"

hanging bits, and bits that have not fallen off






The reason this happens because of the extended "down time"
for the perforator.

The Pin heads have to be removed, and placed on a
horizontal grinding machine where the wheel is run
back and forward until all pin faces have been addressed.

The more you sharpen the pins, the quicker they wear and have to be replaced...time and money.

The pin heads...


The grinding concept:

Excellent info Rod.

I have previously seen photos of the pins, but I assumed the machines worked like a press or a punch that was lowered onto a sheet of stamps OR that the pins were on the wheel so it rolled over the sheets. I have not seen the grinding concept.

Thanks for drawing it out for us.

Kirk