So They Tell Me The Stamp Market Is Crashing?

Most collectors put the nicest copy of a stamp in their collection. And those collections sit on the shelf with a very small number of people looking at them. This is where you will find most of the grade 95+ stamps. I might have one or two. But I'm not looking for stamps to get graded; I'm looking for nice copies to expand my collection. Stuff that would grade 80+ is fine for me -- especially if it has some other cool factor, like a fantastic cancellation or especially nice color.

Hi Dan,
Many community members are mere mortals and do not have decades of experience. Even if a less experienced person find a uncommon stamp, they typically do not have a way to ID it properly. I think this hobby is different than many. If you wanted to take up photography, or enjoy antique cars, or become quilter, you would expected that you would need to invest significant amounts of time and money to come up to speed. But we average at least 1 post a day where an inexperienced person has come into some stamps ( inherited etc.) and has unrealistic expectations. Threads like this, where folks tout great finds, contribute to these expectations. As such, I felt the need to advise the typical new person that these are not common occurrences and seek help with replying to these new community members.
Don

Actually, I don't think the breast surgeon analogy is that appropriate nor do I see why a stamp previously graded would need to be regarded in 10-15 years. Since the grade is primarily based on the centering what would be expected to change about that. I also think that the stated need to update clean certicates if over 5 yrs old is overstated if the stamp remained in the same hands. If you want to make an analogy regarding medicine it would be akin to the pressure created at a university medical center to differ from an opinion given in the community setting or to assume that the community opinion had to be wrong (earlier expertizer) so let's start all over.

Pardon my ignorance: what is the significance of the Hong Kong blocks?

funcitypapa, I thought the analogy appropriate because it was to recerting and grading. With the increase in technology and experience at the authentication and grading agencies, I think a lot of people get new certs every 10-15 years to take advantage of that. I agree with you that, in a perfect world, the grade should not change; I would be more concerned about the condition. Certification judges genuineness and soundness whereas grading gives an appearance score. My reason for resubmitting would be on the certification side. That being said, I have had some surprises on such resubmittals (of items I had held myself since the accompanying cert was new), mostly on the certification end but a few times on the grading end.

Be thankful that it was not the proctologist analogy.

I have learned my lesson painfully... like A proctologist exam.... don't buy or bid on stamps with certs more than 15 yrs to 20 yrs old. Fragile pieces of paper can be mishandled, dropped, creased. Newer the cert, more likely the accuracy! Centering obviously doesn't change!

I've been burned! I'm first to admit it... don't want others to make same mistake. Ok to buy a stamp with old cert, but you should get a discount on it. 20-50 percent discount off same stamp with recent cert imho.

There are still an awful lot of potentially bad PF certs around from the 1980's.

One new technology innovation could make a large numbers of certs obsolete.
Don

Cool thought Don,

That made me think of the guy standing in a running brook that say's "Someday I am going to bottle this stuff and sell it for more $ than gasoline".

LOL, indeed... you mean like the guy who came up with Evian water and made millions? You got to love the courage of naming your product naive spelled backwards!
Don

I know the general theme is that newer is always better but I have been impressed by the number of PF certificates that have had 3 or more certificates over the past, let's say 70 years where the opinion HASN'T changed. I have a Scott 103 OGPH that has been certified two times beyond it's original certification in 1956, the most recent within the last 5 years and a Scott #200 certified so long ago that the certificate number is less than #500 and all of the expertizers including chairman Theodore Steinway signed in a column. It was recertified last year---no change. To continue the medical analogy: penicillin almost 100 years later is still a good drug. But, I can see in this throwaway world of ours how someone might have a differing view.

Unfortunately there are too many certificates that can't survive scrutiny for even a day, let alone 15-20 years. My solution would not be and is not to reward the expertizers with more submissions!

Then, of course, you also have the outrageous cost of certificates. I have to wonder who is worse, NYstamps and Anthony's or the expertizers? At least you have more of a choice if you want avoid a screwing from crooked ebay sellers.

I believe some buyers want recent certs for some item where new technology may reveal previously missed items.

I am debating how many mint 2c Columbians are still around, not used. I suspect your hoard and Rogdcam's are mostly used.