Canal Zone Anybody?

OK, I see. The numbers that you are using are the numbers that refer to the picture of the stamp. The catalog number is the first number, placed before this A number. In my Specialized the catalog number is cursive.
Your block of 25 cent overprints is C3, the unoverprinted stamps are 105 for the one cent and 106 for the 2 cents.


Peter

Thank you for the update. What about the lower right note that I said maybe a B2??? I can find that one in the catalog.

It is in the catalog - just read carefully. It is either 73 or 84. You need to ID the underlying stamp first though to find which one you have


Peter

The 2c Washington is Scott 73 (A157). The As in CANAL have the flat top, overprint Type A.

Been collecting CZ for 25 years. Love the variances. #15 is the only one I don't have yet. It's NOT the price. I just haven't seen any I'm really keen on. I DO HAVE a 157a. Got it last Friday (PSE and PFC certs) and I'm totally thrilled.

Congrats on the 157a. Michael Aldrich sale last week saw very strong bidding. Many of the items going above SCV with the fee. I lost rack of time and missed my targeted CZ lot, but picked up a few more Hawaii numeral positions.

Baseline: I'm just the opposite. I have a PSE-certified (genuine, unused, disturbed OG) #15, but lack the 157a (yes - because of the price). I've seen two in auctions this year, but I'd rather use that kind of money filling several spaces in my US collection rather than just one in the CZ.

My daughter-in-law is Panamanian, so just to remove temptation on my part, I gave my entire CZ collection to her, my son, and their young son in honor of her family heritage and to serve as a history/cultural learning tool for the 3 of them. That opens a space on my shelves for another US album.

Hey NumOnes - Thank you. I had bid on three other 157a in the past and factored in the additional fees to come up with my max bib. I then came to the realization that I'd never win. I'm not buying for selling so I focused on my bid only. In time, the value may cover the total expenses but right now the extra cost is what I'm paying for the acquired knowledge and feeling that "I finally got it!"
Good luck on your future bidding.
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Hello uboatnut - I got tired of dancing around the decision since I'm not interested in errors of which there are plenty of in CZ, as you know. Getting a #15 would be more in line with a collection than variances and errors for sure. (and I will get one yet :-) ) The 157a is one "Holy Grail" that was within reach and now I can focus on my CZ variance collection and get back to enjoying the quest. Last year, I did pick up a complete set of the unissued CZ69A-G. Sent them off for cert and I can tell you, that wait was tough. Good luck on your next album!
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I got a mint set of CZ69A-G as well, but they're not certified. I was never interested in the multitude of variance issues for which the CZ is infamous. Quality Control truly sucked in the early days.

For the past two years, I've been trying to get as many of the unused CZ booklet panes as possible. Wound up with 22 of the 25 moderately priced panes (missing 38c, 55e, and 61f). I found specimen panes of the last two, but I don't want specimens. Like 157a, price kept me from pursuing the five - dare I say "rare" - truly expensive ($6500 - $15,000) panes (39f, 52c, 52d, 53d, and 102a).

UBoatNut - The pane and booklet bug bite hasn't taken full hold of me just yet. Sure sounds like you have a really nice acquisition going. Congrats. I do have my toe in the water with a small pane series I'm working on. It's the youngest four (163a, C48a, C49a and C50a). I'm at 20 of 24+ variations (sans the elusive C48a.2 and C50a.4) This chineese virus has had me stuck inside so much, I'm flyspecking everything! Lol

Beware the bite of the pane bug! It is expensive and frustrating. 'Tis a perfect example of the slippery slope concept. I got my CZ album pages from a Canadian gentleman who created them with AlbumEasy. We corresponded quite a bit as I modified them slightly to suit my collection. When I noticed that he had omitted the booklet panes and the Official stamps, I created the pages myself and added them to his. Of course, once one has pages, the universe commands that they must be populated. More of that slippery slope.

All of those pages are available as free PDF downloads from the AlbumEasy website. If you also have or download the free AE software, you can DL the corresponding TXT files and make whatever alterations you want. Scroll down to USA POSSESSIONS near the bottom of the page. The files are CANAL ZONE and CANAL ZONE BOOKLET PANES.

Come over to the Dark side! but beware - it is both habit-forming and resource-sucking.

https://www.thestampweb.com/albums/free-downloads

I too picked up the CZ pages years ago and then found Album Easy. Excellent tool. I'll need to go back and download the booklet pages. (Oh boy! Now what am I getting into?!) You ae so correct about keeping the universe balanced.
I think I'm picking up some speed on that slope already, since I was just informed of three more variants of C48a. Before delving into the other panes (which is the gateway drug to full booklets), I will be looking for a #15 AND a nice (complete) UF1. I have two cut corners.

Speaking of booklet panes. Here is a prize from my SFE on CZ 68/69. Uncut specimen booklet panes of the unissued 68 booklet.

An older version of the exhibit is on the SEAPEX site... https://www.seapexshow.org/SEAPEX20...frame01.html br / This is before I had the triple pane with the order number at top.

For me, Canal Zone, CZ stamps are more interesting and diverse to collect than just about any others.