What Is This? Is It A #114 Or A #125

Hello quigngt. Are you saying you checked out your examples and found two potential 114a/125 stamps with pressed out grills? I looked into my secondary US stamp album and found another with no grill. I got really excited at first. I checked this stamp by the same method advised by nilram88 and did in fact find it to be an altered pressed out example. The first stamp does not show any indication of having a pressed out grill and I was hoping that some of the professionals here could tell me if there were any other way to test.

Phil, Kim mentioned that a certain type of light could also reveal the points in a pressed out grills. Try sending him a message and ask him. I have not been able to find the grill on another of my 114s but the odds are so great against it that I can't justify paying the price to have it expertized.

Actually, matttod1 mentioned using the UV lamp in this thread. But Marty is probably correct, I think I had mentioned it another thread awhile back.

I use a filtered 365nm UV lamp. Even the smallest of breaks in the paper will light up and I've used it with pretty good success to find grills where none were apparent, and also to find additional grill points for proper ID of grill size/type.

However, I've never tried using a relatively low-power long-wavelength UV lamp, so I'm not sure how effective they would be. The filtered lamp I use is research grade, so it is of noticeably higher wattage; I used it to light up full panes of stamps when I was actively collecting tagging varieties.

Hello Kim, I do not have your email address. Can you help me with this? I tested two stamps both appearing not to have any grill under 20x loupe. After soaking in watermark fluid and holding to ultraviolet light, one of them shows what appears to be a very extremely faint shadow of a partial grill. I assumed I did something wrong with the test on the first stamp and tested it again. Still no grill. Who would you recommend to look at this stamp for me?

Hello KHJ, Maybe I am not using the correct UV lamp as mine is vintage and probably not filtered. What model lamp should I be using? I found another stamp in my collection which is a #116 which does not have an apparent grill. Same test, no grill.

Phil, new members cannot access the email system. Just give it some time and keep making quality posts and you will be out of new member status very soon.

Having a filtered lamp helps in certain applications, but probably doesn't make much difference for this issue. The easy way to find out if the UV lamp you have is usable for detecting grills, is to simply test it out on a stamp which you know has a grill.

If you want an inexpensive but generally recognized expert opinion, I would recommend Bill Weiss. Just google his name and check out his website.

Thanks khj. I will get in touch with Bill.

Wow, thank you for all of the insightful information on checking a stamp under fluid and simultaneous LED light angles.
I have had a multitude of 114's, around 1000, and this is the only example that I ever found with no grill.
I have seen a pressed out grill, or a weak impression before, so I know what one looks like.
I guess this stamp will have to be certified after all is said and done.
Thank you again for your help.

I know that I originally replied that "I was absolutely positive it a #114" all cocky and sure of myself- but now, after reading all this material I really regret it! Because you got me searching my stack also on this one and scratching my head. It'll be interesting to see this play out as I love learning new things here. Thank you. Once again I'm humbled.

I wonder what the experts use to determine a pressed out grill? Has anyone had the experience of a certificate being wrong?

ahall, from what I understand there are no experts that will cert a used no grilled version. I wish someone would develop a laser (or something) that could determine if a stamp had ever been grilled.

Anyone ever hear of the outcome in this case? It seems that there are many threads like this that get you to the edge of your seat with a rare discovery and then the original poster disappears. It certainly didn't read like a troll stirring things up. Thanks though for the valuable information that was added.

Is rubbing charcoal from a pencil over the back of the stamp a possibility to determine possible grill points or concavities / depressions?

There isn't any charcoal in a pencil. Graphite but not charcoal.

Thank you!