How Much Have You Completed For A Country Collection?

What a fun hobby, it is like the greatest search you can go on. Right now I am looking to fill some of the voids though there are some that I will never fill.

My main collection is US MNH stamps. I pretty much have all the years from the 1930's to 1990 filled. I have some easy holes between 1991 and 2013 to fill. Of course the earlier years are hard and I had to change plans and go to used stamps mostly because of cost.

I doubt I will ever complete most of those years even half way. But it is still fun as I search for faults or even damaged stamps.

Ever time I find something to add to the classics it is a victory even though the stamp may not be the most high priced pristine example.

The fun is trying to complete your collection, not to have a complete collection.

For me it is the journey not the destination.

I realize that I will never have a complete US and/or WW collection (not ever!), but I so enjoy adding each and every stamp.
Just to complete a set or series is a tremendous satisfaction. There are always going to empty spots that need a stamp and that is the fun of the hunt.

Same boat here.

For me, adding any stamp to my US album that I don't already have is awesome whether it's from 1886 or 1986

I've occasionally thought about collecting a country that for geopolitical reasons had a definite start and end date like the Ryukyus, the Viet Minh, or White Russia, but have always been too busy with other stuff. I imagine that there would be a good feeling about the completeness of it, but with the downside that there isn't more to work toward. Rather bittersweet isn't it?

My collection could never be complete, there is always more to learn and more needed to demonstrate what I have learned.

Hi!
I got back into the hobby last year after a 45 year break. My original goal was USA stamps from 1847 to 1970, with MNH for what I could reasonably acquire. Well, it didn't take long to expand the range to 1999. I lack only a handful from 1940 on, but of course had to come to grips that "used" stamps would be the norm for most before 1940. As I picked them up, I found that the postmarks added character, reminding me that somebody "back then" actually used this stamp to mail a letter!

I've listed out the remaining stamps I need (by Scotts #) and grouped them into 4 price ranges (based on a recent Scotts catalogue). Number 1 could be had for less than $10, Number 2 for less than $50, Number 3 for less than $200, Number 4 for less than $500, and of course Number 5 is beyond that. What this has done is to allow me to more easily search on auction sites for what I can likely afford at that time. So far, its worked out pretty well

Define complete.

I thought I had all of the USA Special Delivery stamps....until I looked in the Scott Specialized Catalog.

I recently thought I had all of the AM POST (Allied Military Government) stamps of occupied Germany....Until my Michel Deutschland Specialized catalog arrived....

I think a person has to define completeness for themselves... I collect World Wide stamps - Will never be complete, but it's fun. I even collect bogus issues, fakes, cinderellas....whatever comes in the door goes into one of my album pages.


:-)

I'm not sure I care about "complete", whatever it means. I like having so many stamps around to work on that I never tire of the hobby. Most countries can't be completed by most people because of the expensive rarities. I also think stallzer may be alluding to the different ways of tackling a country or a specialty (think of the guys and gals that try to reconstruct sheets like the penny black or the NZ adverts). Although I'm not a WW collector, I think they may be the happiest philatelists. Every stamp is a treasure!

Im a worldwide collector the thought of completing anything is not in my plan .

I am in the same camp as floortrader I, as most others, will never have a complete country collection which was never my intention. My goal, at this point, is to keep the duplicates down. Over the years I have inadvertently accumulated a sizable number of duplicates. I like to hammer one country for a while then move on to another, eventually rotating back to countries I've worked over previously. Some of my favorite countries are fairly heavy in size and scope, some are almost untouched, but not many. The one country I've all but ignored, as far as mounting, is the US. I've acquired many, many items but only the favorites or the most elusive are mounted. As I always say...next week I'll...

I have really enjoyed this thread and have gotten alot of information from everyone's posts. I too am returning to the hobby after a 35+year break. I recently bought a stamp collection at an estate sale. The collection was a small but thourough collection of Europen countries R-T from the mid 1940s. So that along with a my Harris beginner book from 1972, thats what I am starting with. I glad someone pointed me in the direction of the Steiner Pages, because I can create my own album with what I have, what I've acquired since then and what I choose to purchase/trade. For now I am building an album based on stamps from Spain and Sweden, with Romania, Switzerland, Turkey and Hungary waiting in the wings. I am having second thoughts on the Hungary because there is a whole bunch of "Magyar Posta" out there...lol.

I have learned alot of history, geography and current events by just with my small collection.

My rules are - once I get 200 stamps from one country then I can start an album - it takes care of the "I now have a stamp from Uganda so I need to start collecting Ugandan stamps issue"...lol; and to not have too many duplicates...btw does anyone need a Franco stamp? lol.

If you want to collect something that is really fun; but may drive you crazy; try the 1914-26 Ceres issues of the Portuguese colonies. I have comprehensive and "complete" collections of Angola & Mozambique; plus good selections of the other colonies. I put "complete" in quotes because something new always comes along; whether a different shade, a cancel from an obscure village, etc.

"A perfect collection is not attainable.....but if we chase a perfect collection .......we can catch a excellent collection " a spin on a saying by Vince Lombardi.

You can never get a "complete" country collection I reckon - so you get all the regular stamps then you find out some were issued as imperfs then you find out that some have flaws then you find out some ........... and on it goes