"Expertized"

I keep seeing this and want to know how you proceed to FIND someone reliable to do the "expertizing". And while I'm certain pricing may vary by locale, is there some sort of guideline one might anticipate as fair?

Expertizing services are available through both APS (its American Philatelic Expertizing Service) and Professional Stamp Experts.

Information on fees, submission requirements, and guarantees are available on their websites.

I've looked at the APX services and their web says 90 + days and it's all done by mail too. That's a long time esp for a large volume which may not be worth their time and my money.

I guess what I'm asking is how one should go about finding someone locally, who is reliable to make some estimates. I'm having difficulties finding an active club within a two hour drive.

Where I am located they have stamp shows every so often. I think you could bring the items to a show and have a few dealers look at them.

For US stamps, I highly recommend Bill Weiss. He is extremely knowledgeable, his work is well-recognized, and his fee is relatively low.

http://www.stampexpertizing.com/

Most people don't get stamps expertized unless they expect the item will retail $100++, as it usually is not economical otherwise.

Note that there is a distinction between getting something expertized (authenticity) as opposed to getting it appraised (value). I'm wondering if what you are really looking for is someone to appraise your items?

I just need some help on the older items; ID and approximate values would be nice. Post 1935 is easier than pre.

I did find a stamp show tomorrow and another on Sunday. :) They both are regular shows... ie monthly. That will help a lot I think.

In that case, you are not looking for an expertizer nor an appraiser. You are simply looking for someone to help you ID some stamps. Some dealers might be willing to help, especially if you are actually offering it to them for sale. Other dealers might ID a couple for you, but if it a large number of stamps, they might ask you to pay an appraisal fee -- after all, they have to make a living off of stamps.

Good information all! Thank you.

Hello forum, I want ask for someone who can "give me" grade for my US stamps, of course with certificate, there are only one authority for grading - PSE or more experts? thank you