US $19.95 Express Mail Stamp 2013 - Grand Central Terminal

Although not yet officially "unveiled" by the US Postal Service, this is said to be the design of the upcoming $19.95 Express Mail Stamp for 2013, featuring Grand Central Terminal:

What is the rationale for releasing a $19.95 stamp other than to make collectors bleed? It's a nice stamp, but having to dish out nearly 20 bucks for only one stamp and for the sake of having a complete collection is really annoying.
USPS already released the rather pointless $1; $2; $5 and $10 stamps. If you add this one, it'll come to $37.95 for these 5 definitive stamps alone!

I use the high values often. I just sent a package to Australia and put a solo use Carmel Mission stamp on it. The beauty of the high value stamps is if used correctly (Solo commercial usage) they resell very quickly for face value if not more.

Yes, I do agree with stallzer on this one. I do not collect mint USA any longer, but I do use dollar value stamps on my mail, especially APS- and AHPS circuit books. It frustrates me to no end when collectors mail me a circuit and it has one of these USPS labels on it instead of a few stamps!

Peter

The problem is that you have to ASK for stamps to be used. And even if you use stamps, I found they still put their sticker label on the envelope and sometimes over the stamps!
Probably 95% of USPS customers don't care whether stamps or a label are/is being used. Those who are money-conscious (like me) print their labels online whenever they can because you can save a fair amount. In case of an Express Mail Flat Rate Envelope you can save $1.20 (equivalent to 6% right now) if you print the label online. For priority mail you even get free delivery confirmation you would have to pay for at the post office otherwise (70c); i.e. USPS makes it kind of stupid to use stamps right now as you have to queue up, deal with some poorly motivated and educated person (which may not be their fault though!) and end up paying more than printing out a label at home and dropping it in your out-mail mailbox at work - just for the benefit of using stamps which may end up being "pen cancelled" and almost philatelically worthless anyway...
The only times I still use stamps nowadays are for letters and registered/insured mail as those can't be mailed from home so to speak.
Again, why continue to issue these kind of high value stamps if you can save money & time by preparing your delivery at home? I don't get it, unless you're a purist, of course! :)

Today, the USPS officially "released" the announcement of the $19.95 Express Mail stamp featuring Grand Central Terminal, as shown earlier in this thread. Here's the USPS text announcement:

Link ?

omxfl: It all depends on the post office. Everything you have problems with at your post office, I have the complete opposite experience:
1. Friendly and philatelic-minded postal clerk who actually goes out of his way to order commemorative and other harder to find stamps like the 45 cent weather vane stamps.
2. No printed labels are used at my local post office - not one single meter exists.
3. All stamps are hand canceled right there and then, usually a 4-bar handstamp.
4. Small post office - no lines. I might rarely have one person in front of me.
5. Nothing to do with the post office, but I don't print postage at home and never intend to - no printer (ink is more expensive than the printer in some cases).
6. Also stamps make for happy buyers.

Moral of the story - go to a small post office, make friends with the clerk(s) and also INSIST that you get the service you want. If you blindly hand them an unstamped package (a small personal scale doesn't cost much) or do not watch them postmark it then you may get less than perfect service.

As for the original topic: I'm sure to use a few on larger packages and registered letters. I find it an attractive stamp.

In response to a request for a link to the USPS release of the $19.95 Grand Central Terminal Stamp:

https://www.beyondtheperf.com/2013-...rand-central

Does anyone's post office carry these stamps? Mine doesn't. Almost everything is done by postal meter machines. Heck, even if you use this stamp, they still print a bar code from the postal meter with a value of $0.00

Mine will carry it. They always have the priority/ express stamps so somebody besides me must use them.

I think the $0.00 label is required to show it was posted at a postal office and is just there due to their regulations.

The label that the post office uses has all the info on the barcode that is necessary for the automated machinery to send the item from here to there! Since they have to place the label approximately where normally the stamps go, the clerks do not object to stamps in strange places. Like on the back or sides!
Also, the USPS computers are set up so you can use stamps; if one uses stamps the receipt will show the line "customer postage" and the label will print whatever amount is still owed ( even if it is $ 0.00 )!

Peter