Centering Question???

Can one of you U.S. experts please post what you consider to be "typical" or "average" centering for issues in the 300's, 400's, and 500's?

I guess what I'm trying to figure out is how rare true F-VF and VF stamps from that era are.

Gregg, a simple rule of thumb by Harris after this it can get really technical.

Thanks 1775mac, I did not know where the division was in the scott #s to determine centering.
Marty

They are neither rare nor difficult to find. Keep in mind that Scott prices stamps at VF. Even XF stamps are not difficult to find, even at catalog price or below.

It's the "Superb" grade stamps that are "relatively" hard to find, or should I say, difficult to find at a low price for Scott #~300-500.

Also, keep in mind that some stamps are notorious for having poorly centered stock. The Kansas-Nebraska overprints are an example. A complete set of VF+ MNH is not as easily achieved as one might think, and it's not unusual to see them retail/sell at or above Scott catalog.

Nice info! 1775mac, khj

Thanks 1775Mac. I've been wondering about this myself.

Thanks for the info - Over 40 years collecting, and I've still got a lot of learning to do!

You and I both Gregg,thanks Tom for the example this thread is a big help for those not in the know.

As much as I dislike numerical grading, it does present one advantage -- it solves the problem brought on by the current method of multiple "era-based" grading. It's annoying to have to know (especially in the classic era) when VF means 4 clear margins, or 3 clear margins and one touching... There are some classic era stamps in which the margins are so wide, that VF is almost the same as with the modern era.

Scott occasionally puts in some footnotes, and that helps, but it really doesn't come close to covering all the bases. Greg asked a really good question, and it remains a problem even today. Even among dealers, there are differences in opinion regarding what is Fine, Fine-VeryFine, Very Fine...

In the internet age, you get the scan, take a good look at it. YOU decide if it's centered good enough for you. And as I mentioned before, it's really not that difficult to get sound Very Fine classic era stamps at catalog value or below. Remember, Scott values AT the grade of Very Fine.