The Philatelic Foundation Grading Upgrade

Let us not forget that one of the grading companies also releases a publication that skyrockets values of common 1930's stamps at a rate of up to and beyond 600% to enhance their grading business. I'm sorry but I don't care how nice a national park stamp is and if it graded 100, it's not worth $5,000 and never will be. Keep chasing the "number" but I'll stick with the old eyeballs and the grading standard that has been in place for 100 years and still works fine.

That is your right.

Note: The PSE numbers come from sales figures not the other way around.

Many pre 1940 perforated blocks are composed of several singles with variable perf centering. So a block might have mostly F-VF centering but one gradable stamp. I have seen dealers buy plate blocks and break them up right in front of me for that reason.

For that matter, I know of dealers who have soaked gradable C13-15 examples off the more common types of covers as well. It's not just imperfs.

Dealers have always been breaking up blocks for nice singles. Nothing new.

An ebay search this AM for "XF" in unused 19th century US stamps returned 3299 results almost all without a graded cert.

https://www.ebay.com/sch/i.html?_fr..._odkw=superb

How many were actually that well centered? I think that you know. And if they were that well centered what about faults and other issues? Who knows.

I love grading especially in the interweb world where you purchase based upon hope and trust that is in large part unfounded unless you have a relationship with a great dealer like Rupp or a house like Siegel.

It is when they are scarce blocks. Dealers were not breaking up better MNH plate blocks, which they do now. I know of a dealer who broke up a mint block of four of 294a because it's easier to sell four singles then one block. That idea was understandable before 1920 when collecting was still young and inexperienced, but not now.

The issue, has already been pointed out in a number of posts, is not that something has previously been done but rather if the practice has increased.

If folks want to ignore that they are supporting something that is damaging the hobby so be it, but please lets be intellectually honest with the logic.
Don

Has the practice increased? Let us be honest.

And it's not just the quantity but the quality level that has changed.

Let us take a MH superb 245 block for example. Siegel PowerSearch shows that none of the blocks sold by them since 1965 have been broken up regardless of how high the singles would have graded and there are some beauties to be had. One particularly block of four that has outstanding singles within was sold in 1965 and again in 2015 intact.

I do not believe that people are running around willy nilly breaking up these types of blocks.

Beware the broad brush.

The direction is not that 'it has always been done', the question is 'has it increased'.

If folks want to buy and support graded stamps then just say, 'I do not care about this issue' and move on.

Everyone here is 'allowed' to collect whatever they want. If folks want to support the CTO industry so be it. If folks want to support postal services selling large amounts of current issues, so be it. If folks want to support companies like Franklin Mint selling instant 'collectables', so be it. All of these things could be said to be damaging to the hobby but we all have the freedom to do whatever we want.
Don

Is grading for coins also mostly related to centering?
Are blocks broken for single coins?

Coin grading seems to work and has less discussion, stamp grading is very different and should just be called "centering grade". Calculated centering is the only new thing in the grading we are talking about, all other aspects of grading exist since 100 years. So only centering is responsible for high prices.

No, we cannot predict the future, but we can surmise in a systematic fashion.

Q/ What factors are driving the adoption of TPG?

Q/ Any reason to think that these factors will diminish?

Q/ Is it likely that another solution will arise, and replace TPG?

One thing driving TPG is that more & more people know less & less about their stamps.

Part of this is the time they spend keeping-up with Breaking Bad et al, and part of this is that there is more & more to know (newly exposed fakes, newly reported postal history, etc).

TPG offers a shortcut to confidence, imperfect as it may be.

Its future looks bright.

Cheers,

/s/ ikeyPikey

I believe coin grading includes whether or not there are post production imperfections, how well the coin was struck at production, etc. The NGC uses what is called the "Sheldon grading scale" which goes back to around the 1940's and grades from 1 - 70.




Seems like a what came first the chicken or egg debate.