Perforation Gauge

I agree with Tony on being old-fashioned. I use a perf guage all the time. Though I must say Rod's formula is extremely useful when you can find the measurement of the stamp image.

I prefer to "Do the Math", as I find it quicker. I have the formula saved in my calculator. I measure the stamp plug in the size, count the holes, plug the number in then hit Engage!




Using the perforation gauge is extremely useful - when I can find it

A couple of comments:

- If you have the image scanned, then presumably you must have manhandled the stamp onto and off your scanner, and back into storage, in the first place. That rather seems to defeat the purpose of the exercise.
- I keep all my stamps in stockbooks, with anything of particular value in a mount, so I can avoid damaging it when I'm handling it. I must say, though, I can't recall ever damaging a stamp while measuring its perfs ... damaging stamps in other ways, oh yes: jabbing them with my tweezers, shoving them carelessly under the strips in my stockbook, dropping them on the floor and running over them with the castors on my chair, allowing the cat to convert them into toys. But for me, the essence of stamp collecting is the stamps themselves, not their images.
- The vanishing perf gauge: That is one of life's little mysteries. I don't know how the cat does it, but when she isn't re-perforating my stamps, she's carrying away my perf gauge and concealing it in places no human would ever think to look. That's why I have two of them - perf gauges, that is.

I need to find me a new perf gauge. I use the cheap black one I got from Mystic a long time ago. This one is pretty good for common perfs but I have a problem when it comes to the stamps that have fraction perfs or if the stamp is on cover. I can handle the 1/2 but when it gets to the odd fractions and the self adhesive stamps it gets harder. It seems to much trouble to scan a stamp just to check perfs. That is just me though. I just started scanning.

Eopie, you are a prime candidate for a small plastic metric ruler and a calculator

When I get home I am going to give it a try on a few stamps. Maybe I can get rid of that bag of odd perfs finally :)

What's this calculator thing? I still use a slide rule!

I'm with eoipe - I use a pretty sophisticated gauge and it can still be really difficult to tell the fractional sized perfs apart.

How about a mechanical calculator? The Curta is an astounding piece of machinery, and the story behind its invention is even more amazing.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Curta

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HYsOi6L_Pw4

I don't want to admit how much I paid for my Curta .... but as an infinitely cool item, I had to own one.

Ryan

Way cool Ryan, I want one of those!