How Do You Rate This One?

PSE: Professional Stamp Experts
Based, I believe, in Newport Beach, CA.

Okay, I just spoke with Kelleher about sale 676, lot 1097, the 1c Banknote. The sale manager confirmed to me that the lot had initially been passed as unsold, but some time later in the sale they received a request to reopen the lot, which they did, and it sold at the start level to the person requesting. Obviously that was some time after I had tuned out from the sale. The fact that it sold to a floor bidder at the advertised start level verifies that there was no book bid already at that level, or the floor would have had to advance one increment over $500. Against a consignor reserve the manager confirmed that the lot was not sold back to the consignor but actually sold to a new owner, so it goes into the history books as a proper realization.

That's the story.

Rhett, your hunch that the lot had been reopened was spot on. Are you by any chance the new owner?

Don, if you had tried "pse philatelic" you would have nailed it right out of the gate. I just did.

No, I am not the buyer of this one, essayk. My reopening theory was merely based on experiencing that happening in previous auctions.

I"m new to board, but that stamp you posted definitely has 95-98 range centering. I don't see the grade 100 perfect BOX that would deserve this grade, and the inclusion definitely detracts from perfection- there are two barely shorter perfs..at top right and left. I would have gave it a 95J. If it had no inclusion, a 98J. I think a 100 grade was a gift for your 1200th post. hahah.. regardless, nice stamp!

Hi All,

just noticed this post, so I thought I would give some input here. This stamp is an XF-93. See attached image here



Using EzGrader (v2.0 which is not released yet)it measures as a 93. I would have also deducted some points for the 2 short perfs at the top & a few points for the stain & inclusion. My opinion is that this does not warrant a 100.
When I purchase stamps, I look to the math first & even with the naked eye, I can see it is not perfectly balanced.

On a side note,I am looking for stamps to grade as a measure of accuracy for EzGrader v2.0 .If you would like to submit a stamp to me to grade, I will be happy to do so
thanks marios

Hi Marios!
How can anyone be sure that the original image has not been manipulated?



Same stamp on both images above; one on right after manipulation.

I am unsure of the wisdom of grading stamp using images; you not really grading an image?

Question on the alignment lines; obviously the image is not perfectly straight. But the alignment line on the left has only three places where it 'breaks'; yet the alignment line on the right has twice as many? How can that be? Does this not indicate that the lines are not truly parallel? (The purple lines do not match up to the same number of breaks as the green lines.)



Don

Hi Don,

you can never be sure that a user has not "Manipulated an image"
EzGrader is meant to be used by the user on HIS stamps & his scans.
Scans from an unknown source are always suspect when it comes to grading.
The breaks in the detection lines are artifacts of screen presentation. There are only so many pixels on the screen. A perfectly straight line will always display properly on a screen. Now take any image editor or display program & draw a line (one pixel wide)at an angle. You will always get "breaks" as you call them. I call them jagged lines as there is no way for a screen to properly display a one pixel wide line at an angle. Internally, Ezgrader has all the math & dimensions it needs to calculate accurately.

Also, keep in mind that many stamps do NOT have perfectly straight edges & many times the design is slightly rotated relative to the edge of the stamp (ie designs are sometimes slightly twisted clockwise or counterclockwise)

Marios

The trailer permit stamp has to have had perfs added, they were issued in panes of 10 (2x5). That means every stamp has one or two straight edges. It's always important to know how a stamp was issued, this will help to spot at least some manipulations. Of course this type of manipulation is just one more reason w3hy grading stamps is such a terrible idea.

Yes, revcollector; that is why I used that specific stamp (in other thread, trying to illustrate the issues with image manipulation).

As Marios stated, you can only use this grading software if the image is your own (although I am unclear why his demonstration used the original posters image).

And of course his software can be used for centering but does not account for issues like the big brown discoloration on the face or any possible thins or gum issues that a stamp might have.
Don

Hi Revcollector,

how can grading a stamp be "a terrible idea". The intention of grading is to put everyone at a level playing field, so that when someone says it is a VF or VF for the issue, you can actually use the math & see what the centering is . Please know that measuring the centering & grading a stamp are very different things. Software like EzGrader is a tool to help collectors accurately & consistently measure the centering of a stamp. Ezgrader makes no attempt to determine if a stamp is faulty, altered or has any special features such as "fresh vibrant color etc, sharp appearance & other adjectives used to describe stamps" ... it simply measures the quantifiable metrics & leaves all subjective measurements to the user.
I rarely purchase a stamp unless & I have measured the centering or have the opportunity to do so after the fact. To me , it is another tool that is very useful. Just my 2c worth, but I respect your opinion. It's not for everyone. Anyways, was just trying to help
Marios

Marios,
I agree that it can help with better understanding the centering of a collector's own stamp. Extending this to 'grading' might be a stretch. As Rev mentions, there is a substantial amount of experience and knowledge needed to understand how it compares to other examples of the same stamp. Heck, even centering requires additional knowledge and experience; for example stamps before the use of electric eye technology are much less likely to be well centered.

The slippery slope comes in when users do not understand these limitations and we start seeing a bunch of online listings with bad assumptions; graded as a '99' when there are actually many problems beyond centering.
Don

Hi Don,

I used that stamp to show what the Centering was for that stamp (one cent franklin). I simply measured the centering to show that it was NOT 100 as stated in the PSE grade of 100. In terms of centering, it is not a 100. That's all I was trying to say. Sheesh. Did not think that this was such a contentious issue.
Marios

No contentiousness, just a spirited, healthy debate!
Sorry, I do not buy into the idea that your analysis of the stamp image can be used to debate the original hands-on PSE grading. Apples and oranges.
Don

Hi Don,

here is how I use Ezgrader to my advantage on repeated occasions. I will use the Canada Sc# 158 bluenose as an example. Finding a truly XF-95 or higher copy is quite difficult. many dealers call their stamps XF, superb etc when in fact they do not meet the bare minimum of centering tests. I have a copy here that I have graded as a XF 98. I am looking for a 100, just for fun. I will regularly peruse online for bluenoses & measure the image of the offered stamp. if the image passes, I ask for a high res scan of the ACTUAL stamp. If it then passes & the price is right, I will get it. In fact, I have purchased many under-graded stamps(centering wise).
I still have yet to find a PERFECTLY centered bluenose. Still looking - it's kind of a "it's the hunt that's the fun"
Marios