US #63 Used - Opinions On Condition

I collect US used, and have filled in a lot of low-value gaps through online auctions.

For medium-value (catalog $50 to $250 or so) stamps, I would like to build my confidence in distinguishing sound copies worth either bidding on or making offers for.

This is a stamp that I bought for between 25% and 50% of the Scott 2015 catalog value. I see that a couple of the perts are a little short and there is a pencil notation on the back. The centering appears at least Fine to me, and I like the light cancel.

I would appreciate opinions from others on the condition of this stamp.

As noted some short perfs and that bottom right folded over perf makes me want to reach into the screen and fold it back. You can find very nice copies of this stamp for $10.

It looks like there was some work done on those bottom perfs under the U, just below where the 63 is on the reverse. Possibly added.

wow this is too deep . anybody want my collection

When it's an old painting we call it restoration ? Well in case of a small repair we call it conservation. The Penny black is now 176 years old, how long we have to wait to restore stamps ?

Not sure...
But if we just use the term 'alteration' then I suppose the age wouldn't matter?
Don

Not a good analogy. Most paintings are 1 of a kind, Penny Blacks are over a million.

Back to your question Gabriella77us, it appears you are on the right track and looking in the right places from your comments. The stamp shown is beautifully centered east and west but is lacking the same centering north and south. Though sometimes hard, always be willing to pass on a stamp that doesn't measure up to your ideal. The reverse looks great aside from the pencil marking. Light cancels are good if naturally light and not altered. The face being clear of cancellation seems to make stamps more valuable as it is the center of attention on most stamps.

Relying on the photo supplied in an ebay listing can sometimes be deceiving, especially as it relates to color shades. I admit I still have a lot to learn about spotting some bogus perfs, or as pointed out repaired perfs. Other items not mentioned above:
Filled thins can be hard to ID with fuzzy photos. Ask for clearer ones.
Stay away from the British Connection sellers and make sure there is a return policy that suits you.
Watch the small print for 'Restocking' Fees.
Tears can sometimes be very hard to spot on a computer screen.
Using a magnifier with a computer screen helps a bit.

I hope this helps some and is not too redundant.

Adding perfs to a fairly common but popular stamp is not usually "restoration". It's usually an attempt at fraud, by trying to improve the look (and therefore the value) in a way that many collectors will not easily be able to distinguish. It should always be mentioned when selling a stamp and the price should reflect it as well.

Gariella, your stamp look good, you happy with your purchase, that's what count, just try delicately to unfold the perforation and forget about these added perforation , without solid proof it's only speculation, you will find a lot of it here

For the restoration thing, check my new tread

I think this is a rather nice stamp, though I must say the color looks a little muted to me. Perhaps it`s just the scan and I don`t doubt that this is a more common condition than others.

As for restoration of stamps, I don`t think we`re at that point in history just yet. The emphasis should remain for now on preservation.

You'd be surprised at the number of philatelic items that have been restored.

Obviously being happy with it is the most important thing. However my remarks about possible added perfs are a bit more then just "speculation". I have experience in looking for such things. There is physical evidence of something funny going on there. It's possible that some are simply additional perf creases, but something had definitely happened to some of the bottom perfs which is visible from both sides in some cases.

And even if you right, and I'm far of say so, it change what ? The stamp still look good.

It's a mentality transfer by many peoples that a stamps have to not be repair. A stamp can be repair to make it look it better.

( same thing with the OG collector who look at mint stamps with hinges like if it was a contagious sickness ) )

If it's done by the owner for it's own collection , it's not a problem, if the owner sell it and inform the buyer it as been repair , it's not a problem . No if seller want to be criminal that's another story, I'm not.

Beside repair a perforation is not an alteration, it's a repair, an alteration is more when you make perforation on a large margin stamp.


It's all come to individual taste, if you have $ 1000 , some will purchase a perfect stamp, other will fill 100 pages with less than perfect stamps.

Filling pages with hundreds of defective or repaired stamps is fine if that is what one wants to do, PROVIDED that they are sold as defective or repaired since the value is much lower except in the case of a few extreme rarities. That is the real issue here.

Thanks to all who have replied so far.

Caper123, good notes about what can and can't be seen in computer listings. I did return a stamp once that had a small crease not visible in the photo. The seller in that case was very polite, refunded my payment immediately and apologized.

Revcollector, can you explain better what makes you think there was "work done on those bottom perfs under the U"? I have seen some examples of stamps that originally had a straight edge and perfs were added to the whole side (reperfed). I thought that a key tell in such cases is that the perf tips look too even since they were originally cut instead of torn apart. What are you seeing on this stamp in particular?

KGB, the color looks OK to me. It may not be the brightest ever, but I am all right with that. I did see the recent thread on #63 color variations with awesome pics from essayk. I just want a decent copy of the most common color, not looking for the rare varieties.

As far as "restoration" goes, I would like to know if the stamp has been tampered with to try to make it look better. I may decide I like it just as much anyway, but I would like to know. Right now I have no plans to sell it, but if I ever do I need to be able to describe it correctly.