What Do You Do With Your Excess Stamps ?

Hi!
After a 40 year hiatus, I recently got back into the hobby in a big way. I collect only uncancelled US stamps (about 90% MNH), from the beginning thru 1999.

In starting out, I was amazed at the low prices on groups available on ebay. I confess I went overboard buying collections that yielded duplicates of what I already had. I've now ended up with over 500 excess US stamps, about 75% MNH, the rest with hinge remnants. Dates run from the late 20s thru the 60s, with most from the 30s - 50s.

I suspect I'm not the "Lone Ranger" in this situation, and was wondering what you all do with your excess stamps...........

Thank you!

Is there such a thing as excess?

But seriously, I started selling my duplicates at my stamp club. We are fortunate enough to hold an event every 4th Saturday where the club members get to pretend to be dealers. And since most of my fellow club members are retirees, they don't have access to, or are unwilling to buy stamps online. It works well for all of us :)

Brian

Usually trade for stuff you need or want and some folks (with the proper criteria) run auctions and sales here on the forum or any other auction site. I know my response was less than enlightening but I figured I'd chime in anyway...lol

to the board if I haven't said that yet!

Welcome Mobileman

I think you'll find a LOT of us had a big hiatus in the middle of our collecting lives -- mine wasn't 40 years, but I tried to collect as a kid, quit, then started in earnest as an adult.

After a couple weeks and fifty posts, you can sell or trade them here on SCF in large or small lots. You'll need to be a site supporter, but that would be only a fraction of ebay fees.

Kirk

Welcome!
What I would do:
1) Trade them at allstampparadise.com (85% of the time its good)
2) Give them to new Philatelists
I haven't sold any since I haven't gotten my hands on any catalogs..

My story is like many others. Returning to the hobby a few years ago after a long hiatus, I was really surprised at the extent of my inventory of excess stamps. It's recently become far larger since, over the past year or so, I've purchased several collections and some kiloware. I don't throw out good quality stamps, so the stuff is building up and proper storage is becoming a space and time-consuming problem. I don't live in an area where I can easily give material away to young collectors.

I started moving some material through the trading threads on a rival forum but that is hardly making a dent. I've reached the magic 50 posts on this forum, so will soon start looking for opportunities to give away or trade some stuff here. The problem is a lot of my excess material is common and not likely to attract a lot of interest but we shall see.

I donate covers to the AFDCS and all other material to the APS.

My wife would like to wave a magic wand and have them gone..its true, theres stuff I have not looked at in a long time..just gathering dust..its hard to let go !!

Revenuecollector..speaking of the APS...i received a letter from them yesterday..and I thought "what do they want now?" And out fell a check for 5 dollars ! Unknown to me..someone had put my name down as sponsor on his APS application..while I am happy to have another 5 bucks in the slush fund...i was really happy to see another supporter of the APS ! Made my Day !

Welcome to the Forums, MobilMan. I may be an oddity here as I started collecting at age 10 (in 1960) and never took a hiatus longer than a few months.

Funny that no one mentioned using the old stamps as postage. Does everyone pay on line these days? I've been using excess 3, 4, 5 cent stamps, and other denominations, on letters ever since my dad passed away at the end of 1992 and left a bunch behind. I just mailed off an order to the USPS for 50 stamp coils of 42 & 44 cent stamps, which will enable me to continue using the small denomination stamps.

I've also given some odds & ends as donations to the Rocky Mountain Philatelic Library, and then taken a tax write-off.

I've noticed a number of the folks I've bought from use older stamps as postage. Some have been from the 30s, many from the 40s and 50s! I would find it really hard to use a "MNH" stamp over 20 years old for just postage. Somehow it doesn't seem right. Oh, all those cancelled stamps that my suppliers have used have been cut from the envelopes and put in a box - awaiting someone that would use them.

Postage is the best bet ! It's the only way you'll retrieve face value for them. Most amything past Washington Franklins won't bring face despite being MNH.

Like most others, I'll be trying to fill the blank spots that others have in their collection. Sometimes I just give them away and other times I'll try to "auction" them at the stamp club.

csheer, your project does sound awesome.

I keep every single stamp as long as it is in decent condition so no such thing as "excess" for me.

As of the moment. I have no excess. Am waiting for that day to come, hopefully sooner than better!

We buy a new, very large sealable plastic tub and fill it full of current, worthless definitives, Christmas and those out of control single letter rate issue that the PO prints and uses to the max. All because I just can not burn them or give them to a charity so some poor person ends up with them in mass. At a guess we have over 100kgs of the stuff.

Has anybody got any ideas on what to do with all this? Other than wall paper.