Removing Rust From Stamps And Covers

Well I asked a stamp dealer friend the other day for tips on how to remove rust from stamps and covers, I'm sure I can learn more from starting a thread and hearing others methods. I have added two images of my first attempt, I was pleasantly suprised with the results, I'm sure with more practice and tips I will perfect it more and be able to add once ugly items to my collection.
The advise I was given was as follows:
Practice first on common copies or covers before trying to restore a gem.
Using common bleach dilute with with water( I forgot his suggested mix) I used 5mls bleach to 100mls water lighly saturated the affected areas with a cotton bud areas soaked in the mix.
Then used a clean soft cloth which I had dampened with warm clean water to remove excess bleach solution.
I did do this three times each time letting the cover dry in direct sunlight on a window sill - he tells me this is important step.

I did learn to keep the bleach solution away from inks used to address envelopes - I guess you would need to be carefull with postmarks - really in most cases its the edges on stamps that most affected.
Further feedback graetly appreciated.

Sydney the cover seems a bit wrinkled from the process. Has that disappeared with time.

Thanks for that the cover is back to normal, I could of pressed it but is finre now.

Sydneyboy,




Given a choice, the 'original' cover has more value and appeal, resulting from your chosen method out of the three states of Matter.






Disappointing this 'friend' gave such destructive advice. Some Dealer!!.

Hi Sydney.

Very, very unpleasant topic. It is a topic that upsets many people.

It is seen as cheating, trying to make something look like something that it is not.

Trash is trash, the rust will come back and destroy what ever it is stored with. The spores from the rust can not be removed. In the plant world we burn such things because it is so dangerous and damaging.

I throw out stamps or covers with rust. Even if it is a $125 KGV. I have trashed over $2,000 worth of 1970 Captain Cook covers. But experimented with the growing of the rust and looked at how it spreads in the process of storing it with clean stamp material including covers.

Did your friend tell you about what I have mentioned?

I am trying to say this in a friendly way but it is unpleasant.

If a friendly person will not tell you who will?

Always Happy Stamping. KGV

What about putting rust items in a mount? WOuld that slow or segregate the rust from the rest of the material?

Ajnabii,

Putting rusty items in a mount may or may not prevent the rust from moving to other stamps.

Would you take that chance.

I wouldn't . Most probably this experiment will have results that will make me

Well, I had some stamps with rust I got from a lot and I just dispensed with them awhile back.

Hi KGV Collector, I did not by any means wish to offend anyone! I really are appreciative of your scientific knowledge of the topic and to be honest never realised that rust was a living organism but rather thought of it as a chemical reaction that occurs. I then thought of the process as a restoration process for my own purpose and curiosity, not to deceive others, probably saw it in the same light as how people restore antiques/paintings etc. It is interesting that a local recognised stamp dealer will provide my this advise but not the in depth knowledge. How ever I read a lot of stamp auction catalogues and I do see from one source in particular they mention if there is signs of rust but will sometimes add "the items should clean up OK" so this suggested to me that people do this. I will also add for the record that I would not on sell any item to anyone that I have tampered with, that certainly was not the object of the exercise.
Do you think if this is unsuitable discussion thread I should try and remove it, I have no problems with this.
Regards
Sydneyboy

Goodonya Sydney!

Some years ago now I rang a couple of stamp people that sell a fair amount of stamps and asked them what do they do with used stamps that have no cancel on them? My real motive was to find out what to call them.

The replies shocked me!

One said that have you not got a circular rubber stamp yet to make your own 1/4 corner cancels?

Another said that I have become very good at drawing them with a lead pencil on the stamp!

I still shake my head at these replies in disbelief!

So many people want to forge perfins, reperfs, misperfs, regums, reprints, change colours and all the rest of it.

The more we hear about these things happening, the more it hurts the honest people.

Even one of the bigger stamp dealers in Aussie called Blue Owl was busted making stamps look like OS perfin in recent times and they are trying very hard to make up ground now.

I was accused of selling a 11/2d Green KGV with a false perfin at a cost of $1.99.

I posted another perfin OS on SCF as I had it on sale on ebay. It was a 4d violet. As a large image it just did not like right to me.

Finches come to my rescue and we worked it out it was a reperf on one side and the perf OS could be questioned as well.

The stamp had sold by then so I refunded the $100 or so straight away.

So you can see why to make something look like it is something else is such an issue to many of us. KGV