Proofs can be an affordable way to fill in for a stamp, for sure. But the market for them is much thinner than for issued stamps. Because that is so, damaged proofs fare much worse in the marketplace than their issued cousins. The three 1861 series proofs pictured in this thread are not worth much because of their problems. The 1c has rounded corners, the left margin on the 30c is dangerously close, and all three have significant soiling. Figure them at 10% of catalog, particularly if you own them and want to sell (which will eventually be your situation if you buy them). This is the kind of material that is best acquired, if you want it at all, in collection and remainder lots at auction, where you are likely to get a little more value for your money. Chances are the seller has almost nothing in these proofs because of the manner in which they were obtained.
This from a guy whose main collection is proofs and essays. Go figure.
As for "real thing," proofs are real, they just represent a different part of the production cycle than the issued stamps do. But when you think of them as surrogates for the stamps, then what they are is lost to what you want to pretend they are. In that respect they are ornamental spacefillers.
But really - proofs are proofs, not intended for use as postage and not the same as issued stamps. They are collected according to a different set of principles than we use for stamps, except when it comes to grading their appearance.
So, use them as spacefillers wherever you like, but please don't lose sight of what they REALLY are.
No Jeff they are on another Forum. I thought they were on ebay at first but they aren't. He said he was thinking of listing them on ebay so when he posted them for Auction I thought he did put them on ebay.
Quote: I Brake For Stamps I apologize. I didn't mean to hi-Jack your thread
Totally OK TinMan! Due your "hi-jacking", I've got an excellent perspective on what I was trying to find out through all the conversation that resulted from it.
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Posted 11/11/2013 6:15 pm
