496 Coil Line Pair... Worth Grading?

Pretty well centered 496 coil line pair. Any thoughts on whether this would be worth sending in for grading?

Thanks for your opinions in advance.

Bob

You need a cert anyway, so yes, ask for a grade. Looks like an 85 to me., maybe even a 90.

I agree that 85 or 90 sounds about right. If there was a chance for a 95, I would say yes. But this is a relatively inexpensive rotary pair so I personally would probably opt to save the cost of a cert. You don't mention whether the pair is MNH or not. If previously hinged, a cert makes little sense to me, even for a line pair. If MNH, then it's a close call.

MNH

Assuming that PSE will actually grade a multiple, each stamp appears off in two directions, so 85 seems a likely grade.

From the PSE Website. Sure looks like they grade multiples...

Of course they grade coil pairs and strips.

It all depends on what a graded line pair would return. Right now from my observation returns could be quite good depending on what you have into the pair

Looking through the Siegel Power Search(great resource) I see this line pair hammered down in 2018 with a 95 grade. Mine seems to be about the same so 85 seems a bit pessimistic. Beauty of course is in the eye of the beholder.

Bob

Hi Bob,
Both images you posted today are the same. (You have to name the files differently .)
Don

Sorry Don.

Brain freeze on my part. Problem fixed... I think.

Bob

Bob, I'd submit it as a Scott 496a (small hole variety). Just eyeing it up, I think it has a chance. And I think it will grade higher than 85 (90/95, IMO).

Thanks much Ken. I was also thinking 90 with an outside shot at 95.

Frankly, I tried to figure out the small hole vs large hole thing awhile ago and wasn't particularly good at it(more so with Liberty Coils). Kind of like my failed endeavors at determining tagging varieties.

What happens in terms of the fee if one submits as 496a and it is not so? Also the Siegel Power Search shows a mix of PSE and PF graded examples. I have been operating under the assumption that PF was the way to go but is this so with graded examples?

Bob

Bob, for the "small hole" varieties, the easiest way is to compare the diameter of the perf hole to the distance (length) between perfs. If the distance between perfs is larger than the diameter of the perf hole, then there's a decent chance it's a small hole variety. If the distance between perfs is less than the diameter of the perf hole, then it's a large hole variety. This rule of thumb is much easier than trying to actually measure the hole to tenths of a millimeter. This also allows you to "eye things up" on ebay & Hipstamp and find some of these scarce varieties lurking among the junk.

All major certifying agencies charge based on what the stamp is actually certified as, not what you submit it as. You can sumbit as 496a and if it's a regular 496, they'll just charge you the minimum fee, whatever that is, and nothing more. All those 596 wannabe's (552's & 632's), fake 519's, fake 388's, fake 356's, etc. are only charged the minimum cert cost, never $1,000's...

For graded items, I'd only send to PSE. IMO, that's the only expertizing body whose certs are unequivocally accepted by the serious collectors of graded stamps... For non-graded items, I prefer PF.

Both stamps are closer to the center perfs then they are to the outside perfs. The pair is also uneven, so the right stamp is much closer to the top then the bottom while the left stamp is more even in that regard. I also think the left outside margin is just a tiny bit wider than the right outside margin. That total combination might make it difficult to get a 90.

From PSE:

Coil Singles, Pairs and Line Pairs
Starting in 1908, the United States began to issue stamps in coil rolls. These first, experimental coils were made from the 1902-1903 regular issues and consisted of 1¢, 2¢ and 5¢ values perforated 12 horizontally and 1¢ and 2¢ values perforated 12 vertically. These early coils generally did not come well centered. Even though scarce to rare, PSE does not grade these any differently than later, more common coils. The early, experimental coils were followed from 1908 to 1922 by various 1¢, 2¢, 3¢, 4¢, 5¢ and 10¢ Washington-Franklin coils perforated 12, 8.5 or 10. Subsequently, the lower values of the 1922-1925 regular issues, the 1938 Presidential and the 1954 Liberty regular issues were issued in coil form. Additionally, in the early period, a few imperforate coils were issued and several firms issued privately-perforated coils. Coil rolls continue to be in widespread use today. Grading the centering of the government coil single stamps at grades of Fine and below is basically the same as for fully perforated sheet stamps. Close to touching on one side or two adjacent sides is Fine. On the other hand, at the higher grades, some differences exist. While for a perforated sheet stamp, Gem centering requires four larger than normal, visually equal margins, a coil single requires only that the two perforated margins, and the two imperforate margins be larger than normal and visually equal. It is not required that the perforated margins and the imperforate margins be equal to each other. Invariably, the perforated margins on Gem centered coils will be smaller than the imperforate margins. A number of example coil singles in all centering grades are illustrated in the photo section that follows. Grading the centering of coil pairs and line pairs introduces additional considerations. There are three factors: the size and balance of the perforated side (or end) margins, the centering of the perforations in the middle gap, and finally the size and balance of the two imperforate margins. For the centering grades of Very Fine and below, PSE uses similar criteria for coil pairs as for single sheet stamps or coil singles. Thus, if the design is very close to touching, the centering grade for most coil pairs is Fine. Some rotary press coils however, have small gaps between the designs so their perforated margins always will be small. At XF and above, the criteria for coil pairs are different. Gem centering requires equal (and larger than normal) perforated side (or end) margins, essentially perfect centering of the perforations in the middle gap, and equal (and larger than normal) imperforate margins. Grading between Fine and Gem requires a subjective judgment regarding the relative importance of the three coil pair centering factors. PSE has graded thousands of coil pairs, and has an extensive photo reference collection to insure consistency.