Sewing Machine Perfs

I've just finished sorting a mixed bag of 2000 stamps (bag being the operative word as many stamps were ripped, creased etc..but thats another story), and came accross half a dozen Vietnamese stamps with sewing machine perfs.

At first I thought..'these are a bit raggedy-arsed' but after a while I came around to thinking that these type of stamps have a certain charm all of their own..a bit more character to them than the perfectly machined regular perfs you usually get :)

Anyone know if any other countries make/made extensive use of the Sewing Mcachine style perf?

How have you established these are sewing machine perforations?

Pics would be neat!

To be honest I'm just guessing from pictures I've seen elsewhere.

I'll try to post some pics when I get home, then I'm sure someone can tell me that I've got it wrong

I read in a magazine once that some of the early Australian stamps had sewing machine perfs. can not remember what magazine, I will see if I still have it
Horamakhet

Barwani State, in India, experimented with sewing machine perfs:



(SG 23c, the 1927 4 Annas orange-brown, sewing machine perf 6 to 10)

but gave it away after this issue. It wasn't a howling success.

According to Gibbons, and received wisdom, some of the early stamps of Bussahir State, again in India, were perforated with a sewing machine, like this



1 Anna vermilion of 1895. I'm not sure, though: the perforations look too much like ordinary, common-or-garden-type perforations to me.

These are the stamps I suspected of being sewing machine perfs, tho I am sure that someone with some actual knowledge will tell me they they are just poor quality

The question of other counties that used the sewing machine perf...
Colombia circa 1899-1903 had many issues with the sewing machine perf, as well as imperf and perf.

Jim Jackson

Also a few stamps from Bolivar and Tolima.

Maiden,

Welcome to SCF! I don't collect Viet Nam but my 2009 Scott catalog lists both stamps as being perf 11 so I think poor quality is the correct call.

Steve

...and some early Tibet...and some American revenues...and...

Hi

During the 1000 days war in Colombia issues can be found imperforate, perforate and sewing machine perforated: Scott 167(SG 175) to Scott 308 (SG 241). In 1944 a set was issued for the 75th anniversary of the General Benevolent Association of Cundinamarca: Scott 508 (SG 596) to Scott 513 (SG MS601). The miniature sheet can be found sewing machine perforated. However,the catalogs do not list the sheet as sewing machine perforated.

Regarding the sewing machine perforations, I have found some issues with a different hole size on different sides of a stamp. The stamps were actually perforated by feeding the sheet through a sewing machine. If a needle broke, the needle was replaced and perforating resumed. If a different sized needle was used as a replacement then one got different hole size within the same sheet and thus a stamp had different holes on different sides.

(Sorry I do not have a scanner so I cannot show examples)

Jerry B

ALthough it seems that my examples are not sewing machine perf, I am quite intrigued by this this method, and will certainly keep an eye out for stamps of this ilk.

Thanks to everyone for all the info provided :)

Sewing machines were used for experimental perforating
of Yemen's first issue 1925-1929.

Some Danish revenue stamps were cancelled by sewing machine.