A "Returnee" To The Hobby With Basic Questions & Comments...

Hi!
I'm back in the hobby after 40 years off. My interest is unused US stamps, and my purchase activity is primarily ebay, Nola Stamp Shop, and some with Mystic (which I recall from my early years).

My other hobbies tend to be seasonal, and I was wondering.. Does the stamp activity do likewise, or does it stay the same year around?

I see large price variances on stamps from ebay, Mystic, and the Scott's specialized catalogue. Why ?

It seems like many of the present day collectors are older (I'm 68). And likewise, when I was a kid in the '50s, it seemed like a lot of collectors were very young. If my observations are correct, this is very much like my other hobby - model railroading.

I am absolutely amazed when I look at MNH stamps from the early 20th century. Of course millions were printed of many issues, but I am still in awe of what is out there - in large quantities - in "new" condition. Am I alone in this?

Hey, hope I don't wear out my welcome. I am just very pleased to finally have someone to really talk to about the Hobby!

ENJOY,
Mobilman44

Welcome back to the hobby Mobilman

Mystic is way overpriced for stamps but their albums are great. Scott Catalog prices are basically retail pricing to be used as a guide. Those are the prices many "old time" dealers in shops sell for. Same goes for almost any "price guide" for any collectible. ebay is the best gauge (for almost anything) to see what it's really worth. ebay has the largest audience.

mobilman44 -


I don't know about anyone else on this board, but over the last 10 years when I too restarted my stamp collecting, it was a seasonal thing with me, generally ending when fantasy baseball started. Since I have joined this board, it keeps me more interested in the hobby because of all the new knowledge I gain and the many different stamp collecting subjects that I see that I would never have been interested in before. It is also keeping my stamp budget quite depleted. I hope you enjoy this forum as much as I have. regards, yakboomer.

Hi Mobilman,

I, like you am also returning after about 15 years or a little more. This time I actually have the ability of expanding my collection through purchases unlike my childhood where I depended on the generosity of older collectors :)

Concerning your question on stamp pricing:

Firstly, like you I am also in awe when I see a stamp or even better a block from the 19th century or early 20th century that is in mint condition.

Anyway, back to the subject. As you only are interested in Mint stamps of US you must be prepared to shell out more especially for the older stamps. I would say mint stamps on a minimum can cost 10-20 times more than the same stamp used or even more.

If I were you I would absolutely avoid Mystic and Stanley Gibbons (SG) unless you really really need / want something and you can't find it on ebay or through any other sellers online. As for catalogue pricing, as someone else already pointed out, it is more like a price list for stamp dealers. (Mystic, SG, other regular dealers)

Here are a few options:
1. Check ebay all the time (It pays to have a scott catalogue for the US on hand to check your pricing). By rule of thumb I would not pay for anything more than 20-30% of Catalogue Value on ebay, unless it was exceptionally rare and didn't pop up all the time. (So if catalogue values it at $ 1, I would not pay more than 30 cents)
2. Join a stamp club where you can share with other collectors (a lot more sincere and honest than dealers)
3. Be more active on this forum, there are folks here who auction stuff regularly that you might need.
4. Visit your local stamp dealers, forge some relationships so he charges you less for your stuff.

ebay is the best gauge for prices.

If in the case you are going to spend a large amount on your collection, I would keep a track of all purchases and maintain a record of all prices you paid. So in the case you want to get rid of it, you know the minimum you should pay.

Another thing, I would not be too picky for a mint older stamp. If you come across a nicely centered, good condition used, do not hesitate, it could act as a space filler and make it easy on your pockets too :)

I am only focused on Queen Victoria era stamps for the time being so this is what I have done.

I bought an old Scott Catalogue for $ 5.00 from a dealer in order to trace the stamps I am looking for by scott numbers. I use ebay and other sites to look up price as Scott prices are too good to be true.

I went down to the dealer today and his prices for some of his stamps were outrageous. Hence, why I have decided to stay on ebay and that too on very very affordable bids. Once my collection reaches a decent amount of stamps and I am missing the more rarer stamps I will be ready to shell out some more.

Anyway, enough of this long boring post. Good luck with your collection!

Hi Mobilman,

I collect British Commonwealth postage dues and have been successful in buying bulk lots, removing what I need and selling what is left. Because I collect an area that can be seen as 'difficult', making it simple is a good way to earn some money and to fund the expansion of your collection.

We have much more access to much more material in the internet age, stamps are the perfect commodity to transact on. When I buy on ebay (and I buy plenty), I will always ask, "What else do you have?"

You can update to a catalogue three or five years old but please please please be very careful about being tempted by mint never hinged material. If you see something you want on ebay, google the seller's name and use www.goofbay.com to learn more about the seller than www.ebay.com/b/260/" rel="nofollow">ebay ever tell you.

Increase your buying power by accepting hinged material, there are too many dishonest sellers on www.ebay.com/b/260/" rel="nofollow">ebay purporting to have large reserves of never hinged material. It costs very little to have a stamp regummed and even the experts can be fooled by the quality of regumming these days.

Enjoy this fine hobby.


John

Thanks for that goofbay link!

Hi 64idgaf,

I agree with what you say about re-gummed stamps. It doesn't even have to be total re-gumming. There are simple techniques for re-distributing the stamp gum once the hinge remnant has been carefully removed. If the buyer is not told then this is fraud. Unfortunately there are too many dishonest traders. I buy mostly Mint hinged and used with interesting postmarks. I get a lot more stamps for my dollar this way. Just got this beauty for a good deal less than a single MNH stamp. I like this better...



Terry

Hi!
Thanks all for the insight (and the link). I'm an old hand at ebay, and actually hit 1000 "100% positive" yesterday. Most all of my stamps have come from ebay. While I tested the waters at Mystic, I realized that their prices were pretty much out of my league.

I had the good fortune to meet one dealer on ebay - Nola Stamp Shop (www.nolastampshop.com)- early on, and frankly Bill Athens is more or less responsible for getting me back into the hobby. He took the time and enthusiasm to answer all my newbie questions. I ended up getting the Scotts National albums, binders, slip covers, and a ton of Scott mounts from him, as well as several stamps I could not easily get on ebay. His prices - in my opinion - were very reasonable, especially for the supplies.

Moneywise, so far all of my stamps from the late '20s on are MNH. Before that timeframe, many/most are uncancelled with hinge remnants. While I have not yet bought a cancelled stamp, I fully realize that I will eventually come to the point that "used" is all that I could afford for many, many issues.

My main lifelong hobby is model railroading. Ten years ago I joined the Kalmbach Trains Forum and have been very active on that site. It has been a major help to me over the years, and I in turn have helped out several on that Forum in turn. I already see that this Forum is very similar, and I look forward to participating with you all for years to come.

Gotta say........ Thank you all for being here!
Mobilman44

May I also suggest www.bidstart.com. Sometimes I find some pretty good deals on items there as well.

Hi mobilman44,

I'm back into stamps again also after a layoff from it. Found my best deals on ebay.

Also, there seems to be some fairly good prices on this site here - http://www.stamps2go.com/default.aspx although I haven't bought from there just yet myself.

Hi again,
Seems like there are quit a few other "returnees" to the Hobby. Actually, its very similar to my other main hobby - model railroading. A lot of us "war babies" and "boomers" were into stamps and trains as kids. And then along came cars, girls, work, marriage and kids of our own. So, the trains and stamps were put aside (at best) or sold or given away or (horrors)- thrown away.

But time goes by and many of us are retired, and the kids are gone, and time and money are more available. Soooo, its back to those things that made us happy as kids - stamps and trains.

Hi mobilman44,

You have scratched an occasional itch for me. Model railways. I haven't had a train set since I was a boy. Over the years I have had the occasional thought of putting a decent one together. Other stuff got in the way every time. I am retired now, sooooo maaaybeee. I have always wanted to build an Old West railroad with various relevant features dotted around. One in particular that I would like to re-construct in miniature is the shoot-out scene at the rail stop at the beginning of "Once Upon a Time in The West". What fun that would be, eh?

Terry

Terry - very attractive block - nice centering and nice cancel.

Mobil - there is some seasonality to the hobby - it tends to be a bit slower in the summer when some do outdoors things and then it picks up more in the winter when the weather traps more of us indoors.