1-St Day Covers, 1934 & 1938

Any value in these 1st day covers ?

Bump, anyone ? Bueller ?

Unfortunately, Unitrade does not price the Special Delivery as a first day cover; my guess is that it's a fairly pricey item. On the other, we have to adjust "single" to "block" valuation. Two roadblocks to your question.

I also thought that the Special Delivery cover would be a fairly pricey item. I threw a dart and listed it at $56.00 not knowing a thing about it. I searched ebay, Delcampe, & Bidstart but could not find a similar cover. That is until the day I listed it I found someone selling one for $15 which told me perhaps I might be asking way too much.....

Here is another one I found in the cover pile.

The following is only based upon observations I found when searching those FDC's on-line:

The first scanned cover actually is the First Day of Issue postmark for the 6-cent Airmail (Canada C6) and while it doesn't contain the other stamps, a recent ebay listing for that item (uncacheted) was listed at $9.99 with no bids. While it may be suggested that the addition of the other stamps makes it valued higher, the postmark really has no connection to the other stamps so at best those additional stamps can only be valued as used specimens.

The second scanned cover (Canada 209) has a single uncacheted FDC listed online at $12.50 (again with no bids). If US FDC's are any comparison, the Scott Catalog suggests that a FDC in block format is worth 1.5x the value of a single FDC, which in this case would make the value $18.75 or so. However with no bids on the auction site, it would seem the cover is either overpriced or is in low demand.

Or both.....

The first scanned cover is ALSO the first day of issue for the Special Delivery stamp, Scott-Unitrade #E8, which Unitrade doesn't even price. It is ALSO the first day of issue for the 10c in carmine rose, Scott-Unitrade #241a (c.v. $30).

It is in fact a TRIPLE first day cover, all 3 stamps, which explains the odd franking, and I would guess it's a 3-figure cover to the right fanatic.

Sorry, I stand corrected. I mistook the E8 for an E6 which was issued a couple of years earlier. No matter, it is difficult to find a combination cover for sale with all three stamps affixed.

Incidentally, one website suggests that the E8 stamp was issued in a limited quantity of "only" 200,000, which helps to justify why the value of that item is well above that of most stamps from that period.

Philatelists who do not collect covers have a difficult time determining the value of a cover. Catalogues are of no use since there are so many variables to consider. I don't think it's an issue worth agonizing over when listing on ebay. If it's worth a lot, you can bet that it will be spotted. A few weeks ago, I purchased a cover for a fellow collector that was listed at around $10. 14 bids latter I picked it up for $225. I normally don't spend this much but I knew that it was too good to pass up for my friend.

When looking at ebay prices I suggest you look at vendors who are Cover specialists. They know how the market works. There is a Swedish dealer who starts most of his covers at 50 cents knowing that cover collectors will establish a fair price. Canadian cover dealer Roy Lingen sets his starting prices at $3.00. If the cover is "good" watch out! Last year he was selling an Italian FDC (early Overseas Mailers-hand painted). It sold for $300.

The point is that it's difficult to predict what a cover will sell for. The trouble with setting a high price (throwing a dart and getting a high number) is that you are limiting your cover market to those who collect that particular area. High end cover dealers do this because they know to whom they are selling .

The reality is that most stamp collectors do not understand the cover market. To do so requires an investment in time as well as an interest in it. Stamp collectors want to fill blank spaces and use catalogues to figure out what they should pay for the gaps. Cover collectors often buy items they haven't seen before that look interesting without using a catalogue.

I have specific criteria regarding the price I am willing to pay for a cover. I imagine other cover collectors follow a similar approach.

Having said all that, I haven't sold any covers. So the above comments come strictly from a buyer.

It never hurts to list too high. The cost is minimal, regardless. It's hard to go the other direction. My listing for Stallzer's first cover would begin: "TRIPLE First Day Cover, 15 June 1938, Canada Unitrade #--, --, and --," etc., etc., and I'd start at $75. If it doesn't sell the first time, I'd scale back to $50, but no lower.

Doug

I have to disagree with your advice.

Catalogue prices are irrelevant. Cover collectors simply don't buy into them. We follow actually realized auction prices for the pricier items. And we know what we want. As a stamp collector you don't. You are dealing with a different world than you are used to.

I suppose if a you paid little for the cover, a high price might make sense to you. I wouldn't rely on the "fanatic" factor. Cover collectors are a bit smarter than that!


Here are a few covers that are very special. Why are they desirable?
If you want to sell covers and get a high price you have to know what you are talking about.









My objective is not to be nasty or to show off. I am trying to share my experience and knowledge about covers with you. I assure you that I am not trying to be mean spirited. It's important for collectors to be realistic about their holdings.

I agree with lorddenning to an extent.

A $5 Columbian on cover is still a $5 Columbian. There won't be much of a market for this kind of cover, first day usage or not, because it will be philatelically used. However, the fact that it's a highly desirable stamp will guarantee it fetches fair market price based on the catalogue value.




Lorddenning is right about this as well. It is a numbered, philatelic cover sent from a major city to a major city. Other than the franking, it doesn't have much else going for it. There isn't even a cachet to look at ...

If you really want to know the value of these covers, put them on ebay with a .99 start & no reserve, and stop worrying about the $$ some collector might be willing to pay in his weakest moment.

Brian

"...put them on ebay with a .99 start & no reserve,"

With all due respect, terrible advice. I have 46 cut-down copy paper boxes of covers, so probably over 40,000 altogether, accumulated over 50+ years. And twenty-some specialized foreign catalogs to study them the best I can, such as 8 Gibbons, 6 Michels, Sassone, Facit, Maury, MacDonnell-Whyte, Sieger, Prifix, SBK, Seven Seas, Sakura, Unitrade, and many more; that's sufficient detail to get me to a specialist, if necessary.

I would not know what makes lorddenning's Canadian covers scarce, and would probably toss them in a deal, so monitor my SCF auctions for occasional gross ignorance.

There's no point in selling at all if you don't try to rope in the fanatics.

Stallzer and I go way back, relatively speaking. Ask him about other stamps and covers that proved to be much better than expected.

"...Ah, but a philatelist's reach should exceed his grasp, or what's a Heaven for?"

I have come to Doug many times with questions about different covers and his valuations are always spot on.

*Edit* I found the link I was looking for concerning the FDC with the $1
Chateau on it. I currently am listing it at $99.00 based on this

http://www.ebay.com/itm/Canada-FDC-...em19d846bdbb

It was all I had to go on.

I find starting everything at 99c hard work.

Some of the '99c' starts go no further, and sell at 99c. Maybe thats all they are worth - its an imprecise business. But there is no profit left - the work involved in research, scanning, cropping, listing, posting, etc for 99c is not cost effective IMO.

Listing fewer covers at more realistic prices after researching and waiting for the right person to spot it may be more productive. One cover at $50-$100 or 50+ covers at 99c....I know which is the easier.

lorddenning,
I am no cover expert, but let me take a few guesses based on my limited knowledge.
The Canada Scout FDC is a scarce "Velvetone" cachet (I collect FDCs and am always outbid on these)
The 7c jet is a single usage during a short period when the airmail rate was 7c to the US. Later to increase to 8c when the overprinted the stamp with "8c"
The UPU cover I speculate has a value based on the corner address showing that is was mailed from the UPU conference itself to an address overseas. Perhaps also, the two stamps together make up the correct rate to that location (perhaps a non-UPU country). These are guesses that I would have to research, but if I did not know enough to investigate it would not look special.
The censored cover I have no clue as I only collect Canada

How did I do?
PS: wouldn't this make an interesting topic/challenge for cover collectors? Has it been done?