Advice Please On Used Stamps With Hinge Remnants.

I have been sorting through my collections and have taken out a fair number of nice, older, used stamps of various countries, which I don't need and which I am thinking of selling. They are all clean, very good to fine, nice items with good cancels, but have some hinge remnants. These vary from small, light remains to the whole bit that is stuck to the stamp. What are the views here? Should I soak these used stamps to remove the hinge pieces? Use 'Stamplift' on each stamp individually? Not bother removing the hinge bits and list them as they are? All advice on this will be greatly appreciated.

Terry

The front of the stamp is the most important issue. As long as the hiunge doesn't show through and not somehow distorting the stamp probably better to leave well enough alone. If the stamp is a low value why waste the time you are not going to change the price once hinged always hinged. If it is a high dollar stamp is it worth risking a thin or tear trying to remove a stubborn scrap of a hinge? If you have a lot of time to spare and want to clean the back of the stamp up then you made the stamp more marketable. Was it worth the price difference you will get and the time you spent? That is the question you will have to answer.
Nick

Thank you Nick. Your good advice is how I am inclined to go on this. Since posting I have picked out a few of the worst and heaviest hinged stamps. Some I have soaked and are much improved. The remainder I have teased the hinge remnant off with 'Stamplift" and the results are not as good as I would have expected. I will now have to soak these anyway to get the resultant ripple out of he stamp. None of this has, as you say, added ay value. I was really concerned with the appeal to prospective buyers.

Terry

Hi!
Good advice from Nick, and I agree. I would also add that any loose ends of the hinge be cut away. I've got a pair of decal scissors that work really well for this.

In any case, let the buyer do with them as they would - and do the work or not.

Hi mobilman44,

Thank you. The advice so far is to leave them be. So I will. Decal scissors? Are you a model maker? I tinker around with Sci-fi stuff, mainly 50's style rocketships (retro rockets, eh?) Here is a pic of one Photoshopped into some artwork.

Terry

One reason to remove heavy hinges, especially on better items, is to look for hidden damage. The buyer will be most unhappy if he finds the damage weeks later, and by having a clean stamp offered for sale, where you can scan both sides, I would not hesitate to ask 10% to 20% more, and you will probably get it.

Every used single I offer on SCF has been soaked and pressed, not only removing hinge remnants, but also surface dirt. I always soak reddish-purple stamps by themselves, as they have a tendency to bleed on other stamps while in warm/hot water. One of the best (worst?) examples would be #1036, the 4c Lincoln, when I soak the precancels I find.

I agree with Doug. I got some great deals on ebay because I suspected the awfully hinged backs made the stamps look terrible. That kept bidders away. A good soaking made them pristine.

All comments have their merits. It really depends on the value of the stamps and what you expect to make off of selling them. As Doug2222 said, if anyone suspects hidden damage they are likely not to bid which means lower sale price. If they don't have much value to begin with then it really doesn't matter.

But I qualified my comment: "...especially on better items,"

Hi Doug,

What you say makes sense, so single better/higher value stamps will get the bath. Along with any dirty items.

Terry

Any used stamp I get is given a wash in hot (as hot as you can tolerate) water with a dash of dishwashing liquid, a rinse in hot clean water and dried. It is not just the hinge but the dirt too.

I only soak 10 stamps at a time and only soak like colours together.

I'm a big fan of clean backs, and so I soak 'em off. That's just me.

Matt

This is all really good information. I just removed about 300 stamps that were hinged to stock 3 ring paper. Almost all are used so a soaking they will go. Thanks to all!

Same with me. I have mountains of stamps to soak because I get rid of all the gum remnants left behind on my used stamps. They look so much better when they've been washed and dried nice and flat, no more wobbly stamps.

In that regard, boo to the Netherlands Indies! I have a bunch of stamps that I can't soak because I don't know enough about how to tell whether the design will come off or not, for all those issues that come sometimes with water-soluble ink. Polish Zodiac definitives are also a risk, but I've found that the fluorescent copies are OK 98% of the time if I get them out of the water as soon as the gum comes off. (That's more of an issue with on-paper stamps, which I have in massive abundance for these nifty Polish designs. No problem with the non-fluorescent copies, their designs won't dissolve in any case.)

Ryan