New Zealand 1935-36 Pictorial Watermark Help

I'm having difficulty differentiating between the single NZ & Star wmk and the multiple NZ & Star wmk, on these pictorial issues.
The problem I'm having is that on some of the single NZ wmk's, they appear to be off center enough where it looks like a multiple NZ wmk. or is it really a multiple NZ?

Also, on the long stamps, or slightly larger stamps in the series, should there still only be a single NZ & star, or will multiples show because the stamp is larger than the small stamps

Any help in figuring these 2 wmks out will be appreciated.

What you want to look for is the configuration of the NZ's and the Star.
The single NZ Star watermark will have the NZ directly above the star.
The multiple NZ Star watermark will have one row with NZ above the star, but the next row is shifted so that you will see NZ above the star and then an NZ Star below and to the left and to the right of the NZ Star. (Sorry I don't have a picture for you or this would make more sense, but both the Gibbons and Scott catalogs do have pictures of the watermark.)
The watermark will be seen more than one time on the longer stamps, and they are a good way to spot the Multiple NZ Star watermark because you will see how it repeats.
A good way to isolate the watermark is found using the 2/ or 3/ Perf 12-1/2 issues (SG 589d, 590b or Scott 215, 216a). These stamps were only issued on the paper watermarked Multiple NZ Star.

OK, so looking at multiple resources about this, the single NZ & star are lined up horizontally AND vertically, in the sheet. While the multiple NZ & star line up horizontally, but are staggered vertically?

I also see several places that mention the "mesh" of the paper, and you can differentiate between the 2 by how the stamp "curls". Of course I had to try that, and indeed I can see the curls going in different directions. I tried stamps with the same design and separated into piles according to how they "curled". Then I checked the wmk, using standard methods (fluid) to verify and I find that doesn't help. I still see wmk's that look like single NZ's in both piles.

If I could find some with clear pmk's that predate 1936, I would think that would be an indicator that they are from the 1935 set, but I'm not getting very lucky with that either.

I admit it can be challenging Make sure you check the perforations also, because some only exist on one type of paper.
Statistically, the Singe NZ watermark was used for less time than the Multiple NZ watermark, so if you can't decide between the two, it is more likely to be the Multiple NZ.

Have you figured out how to define the Perf 14-13.5 watermarks yet on the 2/ and 3/ values? They measure half at 14 and half at 13.5 across the top or bottom. You need to use something like the Stanley Gibbons Instanta Gauge to figure this one out.

Here is a link to a website that might help you. Unfortunately they don't have the watermark displayed, but they do go through each of the values and discuss some of the characteristics.

http://www.nzstamps.org.uk/index.html

Thank you both for the links. One I was familiar with, the other 2 I was not. I think I have a grasp of the 2 wmks, at least for most of the stamps I have. I do have a few that I could not id with any accuracy, so will put these aside for now.

KGVI - I came to that exact conclusion regarding the wmk's. My pile of single wmk's is considerably smaller than the multiple. I have been remounting an NZ collection, onto fresh Steiner pages, and the previous owner must not have had a good grasp on them either. Many of the ones that were mounted already, I am finding, were in the wrong spots.

To answer your question about the 13-14 x 13 1/2 perfs, no, I havne't figured these out yet either. Although, looking at the links you provided, I believe I understand what to look for, I just haven't gotten that far yet.

Unfortuately, I do not have an Instanta gauge. Mine is the typical one that was popular for a long time...the aluminum one with black printing on it. I've got several of them. I really should get an Instanta though, especially working more with worldwide issues.

I do have another question though.
On the 1d stamp, the 2 choices I am seeing for perforations is either 14 x 13 1/2 or 13 1/2 x 14. I have one which appears to me to be 13 1/2 x 13 1/2, but I cannot find any mention of it. I don't have any specialized NZ literature, so I can only go by the various websites, my Scott and a SG for reference. Am I seeing things? Maybe measuring wrong? I mean I had no problem differentiating between the other 2, but this one just doesn't fit.

If you don't have an Instanta Gauge, you can do it the old fashioned way - count the number of perfs in a 2CM space.
Another option is to compare a known perf with an unknown one by lining up the perfs and see if they match all the way across.

The 1d - Perf 13.5 x 14 SG 557b (Single NZ Watermark) has been on my wantlist forever. The top and bottom should be 13.5 and the sides 14.
I think it was a coil stamp and is very uncommon.
I am not aware of a 13.5 x 13.5 version.

Don't forget that perforations are "rounded" more often than not, so a perf measureing 13.75 will be rounded up to 14, while one measureing 13.7 may be rounded down to 13.5. An instanta gauge will be of great help with accuracy.

The 13.5 x 14 come only from plate B2 (one of the four used for the first printings) using die 1 and only come with single watermark.