Another Expensive Misrepresentation...scott 544-What Do You Think?

https://www.ebay.com/itm/US-Scott-5...AOSw9V9b2qyr

I wish there was a way to message the poor ebay bidder who thinks they have just filled a key space in their album, only to find out (after the 2 week return expires, of course), to the contrary. My concerns to the seller went unanswered.


*** Moved by Staff to a more appropriate forum. ***

I am not knowledgable about that stamp to even determine what it really is as I am not a big us collector.

I don't thik the bidder is too worried, watch the final. It will be interesting. If you check out the bidders account you will see he was in on two items only and a retraction of previous bid is a good indication it is only a shill bid.

Mike

I am curious, Mike....how did you find out the bidder's history? I only see a zero-feedback bidder, but with no mention of who exactly he/she is. Nor can I see their retracted bid.

Rob L.

Click on the i*** next to the (0) for bidder history.

Redwoodandy- you got it! Thanks.

Mike

The stamp is a tall rotary sheet stamp, perf 11 on all sides. What could go wrong?

1. No cert.
2. Low feedback seller
3. No back image.
4. Is the stamp an altered Scott 542?
5. The image may be from an auction site or an ebay listing.
6. Item specifics are populated - red flag if inexperienced seller.
7. Seller location.



What is the likelihood that PayPal will find some excuse not to refund the money if the stamp is significantly not as described (SNAD)?

Two bad listings are also out there. A slightly less expensive listing of a 498 as a 544:



And a "544" listing with a 3 cent bank note stamp image. Other listings are more expensive and show or mention certificates.

Are all 3 sellers just dumb bunnies or are they simply bunny-hunting?

Or are they actually one devious bunny using 3 IDs?

Only The Shadow knows ...........

I think a lot of this is laundering money!!!
I watch stamps on ebay and I scratch my head at how something can go for $5 while the same scott stamp # goes for $100 and to me they looked exactly the same and were both LH - I wonder.....Am I that stupid I can't see the difference??? Why would one go for $5 and the other go for $100.
I've also pretty much given up on catalog value. Does anything really sell for that? How does Mystic stay in business? I look at the prices on some stamps and it so off.

Please keep in mind that the listing pointed out by the OP could be the real deal, but without in-person inspection or a valid certificate, the odds may favor the seller instead of the buyer. The visual difference between the first listing and the 498 listing should be apparent to a philatelist or anyone with experience looking carefully at stamps.

6. Item specifics are populated - red flag if inexperienced seller.
7. Seller location.

What do these mean? Can you elaborate?

Sound, VF stamps routinely sell for full catalog or more (just check any recent Siegel sale), HOWEVER most of the stamps in the marketplace are a long way from VF and just as few are 100% sound....hence the discounting.

#544 (certified), #498 and #542 for comparison. Without certification, it's risky at best to buy without an in-hand examination.

6. Few unsophisticated stamp sellers use Item Specifics. Stamp dealers and experienced part-time stamp sellers often ignore item specifics, in part because of the amount of work needed to populate them. Some of the predefined values offered by ebay are illiterate or don't conform to commonly used stamp terminology. Like the King's English, terminology as defined in the Scott catalog should be used when describing United States Stamps. It was surprising to see fully populated item specifics from a new seller. The attempt to appear unsophisticated fell short.


7. While not definitive, other ebay user names from the same location have offered outstandingly bad listings. The irony is that this listing may not be as bad as implied by the OP. Also, a notorious stamp dealer believed to alter stamps, lurks in the nearby.

The original stamp in this thread was definitely not VF-XF and it was not a flag cancel.

When the above listing image is scaled down, the stamp design does not appear to be the correct proportions (19 x 22mm) for #544, which is no great surprise. I also feel better knowing that the bidder was most probably not legitimate.

The seller on ebay finally responded to me, albeit after-the-fact:
"Well since you did not bye the item I don't think I need to answer any of your questions as I feel like your harassing me right now so do us both the favor and exit yourself from my stuff. Thank you"