Why Do Some Of The Highest-Profile National Dealers List Such Blatantly Bogus Material?

It really doesn't instill confidence when high profile dealers, you know, the ones taking out full page full color ads in publications, are so frequently found to be listing bogus material.

The phrase "trawling for suckers" comes to mind.

I just sent Gary Posner the following message on ebay:




Listing:


https://www.ebay.com/itm/383933308007


Text of listing:

In all fairness, I did get an immediate response. We'll see what happens.

Answer: $$$$$$$


Peter

here is my opinion...
Legacy dealers have traditionally struggled to digitally transition and be competitive over the years; but one of the biggest 'value-add' they could do is screen what they are listing and at least throw something in the description. I would think that building a loyal customer base is still applicable but some of the folks certainly do not act like it. Buyers have to participate too, stop buying cheap crap from unknown sellers and look to build relationships (and be willing to pay a bit more) with sellers who are willing to list material properly. Smart buying is more than 'sort by lowest first'.
Don

A big Amen to that. For the most part you will usually get what you paid for and bargains are usually not bargains at all.

I am not saying that it is wrong to pay 10% for that genuine high cv stamp with problems to fill a space if that is what you need and want to do in order to still feed the cat. The problem arises when that high cv stamp is likely not that stamp at all.

Stating the obvious here but there are so many "dealers" selling so many spurious stamps.

I would never play in the higher dollar revenue pool without checking with someone like Dan if possible. It is way out of my realm.

Truth is though that for every Dan there are ten less informed buyers getting out the old credit card as we speak and both the legacy dealers and the hucksters know it.

Build a solid relationship with a well respected dealer, ask questions at places such as this forum, have a clear understanding of certification policies, research like heck, know the market and you should do OK.

PS: There are sellers like Chris Rupp on ebay that I trust more than most of my relatives with anything. I would gladly loan him the keys to the car and not worry. You need to find that type of person and develop a strong relationship. They will also share valuable insight and knowledge and that is something that you cannot put a price on.

The first problem is that the five highest catalog stamps ($51,000 cat) are all obvious fakes; trimmed perforated stamps. There are a few other fakes with relatively low catalog value. What is left is worth perhaps $500 at auction on a good day, because of the overall condition. So a reasonable retail price might be $750 or thereabouts, assuming that some collector actually wanted it. I suspect that there are only 2 or 3 stamps actually worth owning for most collectors.