Why I Despise Grading

With ownership rights comes the responsibility of comprehending what one owns. If an item has has historic significance simply by existing in it's current form, then it should be respected and treated as such. It's existence should not be ended for all time because of ignorance (which I doubt in this case, since the description made it plain), or misplaced greed. Liberty is not license.
When stamps are altered, it is almost always a cheap stamp altered to look like a scarce or rare one; this is not altering in the usual use of the word. This was the destruction of a genuine unique item in order to create a philatelic "unique" item.

Could the U.S. revenue stamp dealers, U.S. revenue stamp societies and U.S. revenue stamp experts somehow get together on this issue and present a unified statement against such a bad practice?

No one will do anything about this kind of thing, it has been going on ever since the grading craze started. There have been many scarce and rare multiples, plate blocks etc., broken up over the last 15-20 years. This post is mostly just to allow me to vent while reminding collectors that it continues to happen and so rob the hobby of important philatelic properties.

Since perforated stamp centering cannot really be changed much unless trimmed and reperforated, is this mostly an imperforate stamp problem?

The only thing anyone can do is not bid on an item such as this one. There are collectors who will not, and there are collectors who will not care. Just as in any other area of life.

No, it is just more obvious with imperforate stamps. Many plate blocks have been broken up because one or two stamps within are gradable.

Who are these dealers and/or collectors that are doing this? There must be some that are the biggest producers of this cut up material.

A look at dealer ads will tell you who sells them regularly, and clearly they look for them constantly. Collectors mostly buy them rather then create them; eyeball grading is a developed skill that most collectors lack. Which is why third party graders exist in the first place.

Q/ How about changing the exhibit rules?

That is something that motivated collectors can do that will reduce the market value of these items.

Cheers,

/s/ ikeyPikey

Do you really think that the societies will do the so called right thing here? Unless you have an insider connection on your side, they probably won't take any notice.

I disagree, I have seen a number of times over the years where a stamp came out of a watermark check appearing cleaner. (Although I admit that this was with Ronsonol.)
Any grime which could be dissolved with a petroleum based solvent could be affected; and obviously no water-based grime would be affected.

Perhaps I should stop eating potato chips while working on stamps!
Don

Abhorrent practice. Not only does it destroy multiples, but the resulting piece is, IMHO, repugnant. It is so clearly not a natural occurring stamp. One can only hope that the revenue collecting community shuns such practices. Alas, with outside "investor" money now pouring into revenue stamps by "collectors" concerned only with obtaining the highest graded examples, I'm afraid the argument would be futile.

As far as dealers, the one who is highest profile is Steve Crippe, gradedstamps.com. He has a large inventory of manufactured singles that have been graded by PSE.

The only way for this butchery to truly stop would be for PSE and PF to reject such contrived pieces for grading or to penalize them, neither of which will ever happen. PSE and the PF are the entities to truly blame IMO, as they enable and encourage this practice.

Bingo Dan. What I don't understand is how the newly created single has added value. That portion has not changed one iota. The only difference is the adjoining stamps have been destroyed. Can someone here explain to me how the stamp in question has been "improved" in the eyes of the grading organization? I really don't understand.

51Stud-switch to salted peanuts

PSE was grading long before the PF; if those groups didn't do it someone else would. It's the buyers of this material that drive the market, not the grading services. It's someone paying $1900+15% for a graded 332, a stamp issued in the several billions, or paying the astounding price of $19,000+15% for a 299, $35,000 for an E1, $25,000 for an E2, and $16,000 for an E6.