What Was In Your Mailbox Today??

In my experience PayPal is more favorable to the buyer BUT they initially refer you back to ebay for resolution. You can't get PayPal to intercede until ebay has made a decision.

The biggest issue with ebay is that sellers use distance, inconvenience, and expense to try and derail the return process, which causes ebay to rule in favor of sellers if there is any form of delay. You won't get money back for the shipping portion, which in the case of material sourced overseas can be quite high, and you won't get your money back for shipping the item to the seller for a refund. I've been in situations where there was $40 that would have to go for shipping both ways; it's all just a scam. Sellers practiced in these methods understand the psychology of returning items better than the buyers understand.

If you're not happy with being forced by ebay to pay for shipping or not be refunded for the shipping fee (and why should you accept it if the seller hasn't stood up to his obligation) then there's PayPal.
My personal favorite is my local credit card supplier which is obligated to my country's regulations about buyer's rights, and neither ebay nor PayPal have any say over it.

Rob Roy I know you are right but I'm reluctant to go to Amex every time I have an issue so I am not targeted as a problem customer. Perhaps I should start doing that since I use it for all my PayPal transactions anyway. There is one particular transaction that has been a major problem for a few months; I should handle it through Amex. Thanks for the prompt.

shermae, I meant to point out that there are 3 separate entities that are responsible to correct any injustice in your transactions, each with its own independent agenda and priorities, so negative responses or actions by the seller are far from being the last word.
Actually, if it's a big amount of money and you feel that it's a clear-cut case, there's the court too.

Today I had several Argentine stamps arrive, mostly from the 70s, but also an 1858 15 centavo and one from 1934. My Argentine collection now comes to 1011 stamps.

Shermae, those are nice French airmails (well, according to Scott they're airmails, Yvert says otherwise). A sweet mint set such as yours is a valued addition to any collection.

Here's a little trivia item: both of the south Atlantic airmail conquest stamps show errors -- not in printing, but in French spelling! The word "conquête" should have a circonflex over the first e, but instead has an accent grave "è"

SHERMAE--- Nice sets ,always enjoy to see what other collectors are picking up .

Thanks guys. Just need to find the missing value from the Swiss set. Shouldn't be too difficult.

Received this nice Ethiopia airmail set to add to my airplane thematic collection.

My GB River Wildlife stamps with first-class phosphor error (see the modern stamps section for details)



and a few more specialised Machins

And a couple more

@ NSK - Do you rely on others' identifications when buying, or are you more inclined to buy general lots and sort the stamps on your own? I've seen lots of Machins for sale with identifications but I always question if most sellers can be relied upon to provide accurate IDs.

I, normally, buy specialised Machins from Mike Holt (died a decade ago), John M. Deering, or B. Alan (closed down last June).

The big lot I posted last month was from B. Alan. They published the Connoisseur Catalogue (CC) and have a good reputation. DFor some stamps, I have to figure out which stamp it is, but I am missing all the varieties for that CC number. I assume the most common for the CC number. There was little risk involved.

The last two lots are from private ebay sellers. One appears to be somewhat more professional. There is a bit of a gamble involved. The first lot were mainly coil and prestige booklet stamps. The pictures on ebay gave me some confidence they were the correct stamps, when seeing the cut perforations. The margins help recognising the booklet stamps.

The last lot even had detailed descriptions of the cylinders (colour and phosphor). The positive approach is to consider the seller had these by the sheet or has broken up cylinder blocks. Also, some stamps have labels or margins attached that help in narrowing down the possibilities.

You made a valid point. Most these stamps are very basic. There were a few that were more than £ 1, or £ 1.25. The 4½p one should be a PUI (phosphor under ink). It is somewhat recognisable from a picture. At less than £ 5, it was by far the most expensive stamp. There are a few PCP1/PCP2 that are over £1. From what I have checked, they are as described.

With very few specialist dealers remaining, it beats buying many lots hoping the one I want is there. So, yes a bit of a gamble, but probably the most efficient one. And I have not had a reason to mistrust these sellers. I must have a closer look at some to be sure.

Tha

From ATA from GASS...