Sun Science No Die Cut Press Sheets

The USPS is getting as bad at the US mint with sell outs in a matter
of a few minutes. I called the stamp center at exactly 7:00 am to try to order a sun science press sheet with no die cuts.
I was on hold for 77 minutes before getting a person telling me they are sold out and that they still have over 200 calls in their queque.
She said they have 80 operators taking calls. How is the average collector ever supped to get these sheets. The USPS needs to print larger quantities to avoid creating modern scarcities.
The only bright side is that I was told that starting in 2022 they will be offering a subscription services for these items. I wonder how many subscriptions they will allow before they are all booked up.

I called at 5:28AM PST, waited an hour and just hung up.

Just like having real time inventory control, it must not be easy to start people on a subscription program that has periodic releases. It's much simpler and easier to print an arbitrary amount of press sheets and sell them out fast like they've been doing for years.

I called at 8 NY time, on hold for 18 minutes and then purchased my sheet. Pursued this one only 'cause I like space. But creating artificial rarities is wrong.

I tried to get the Sun Science imperfs and called exactly at 7am central. I was placed on hold for over an hour. When they picked up I was told that they had just sold out.

It is clear as day that the intention of the USPS is to create "buzz" and scarcity. No other reason to throttle supply like this. If there truly are 80 operators on the philatelic lines you can pretty much extrapolate the numbers of collectors/buyers trying to purchase these items. The USPS knows full well what they are doing because they keep doing it and it works for them.

IMHO, the USPS is intentionally causing shortages to spur overall interest in stamp collecting. I'm guessing that the earlier 2012 era NDC stamps with production numbers like 300-800K made collecting them trivial while the more recent 2016 numbers of less than 100K force scarcity varying entirely upon individual demand. For the USPS, selling $100-350K less of stamps with less work for the tradeoff of an overall push for consumer/collector interest is likely a USPS goal. Just look at the other "collectibles" the USPS sells, definitely not money makers.

When I was trying to buy the Droids NDC sheets, the customer rep mentioned they weren't doing staffing differently for the release and 20-30 on the phones was normal.

I would think one possible way to avoid these problems is to order online a hard copy of the philatelic catalog which comes with an order form. I got one --- without asking because I had had some delivery problems with them and as a minor compensation they sent me a catalog. The catalog provides upcoming issues so you could send in your order form in advance to get the press sheets without die cuts. I don't collect these as I find them cumbersome and don't exactly get the draw of these -- except when the stamp design benefits especially from the absence of die cuts.

The next catalogue will be out in July and you could call USPS Stamp fulfillment to have them send you one on an ongoing basis. The order process wasn't too bad although the online remains the one that is clearest and consistent with good packaging. However, the mail-in order form does offer the chance to have sent to you a pane of 4 rather than one stamp or whole sheet and other special orders for stamps already issued. You pay an extra fee but it is worth a try. I will give it a go when I receive the July catalog and IF I see something that I find attractive.

You can't order press sheets in advance via phone. I suspect the same is true of mail orders.

What is the Sun Science Scott #

don't know what a good "source" would be, but the online sellers are using 5598A-5607A and 5607C

I checked my hard copy catalog - yes you can order Press sheet of some stamps with or without die cuts in advance. Look at the online version. I was able to order in advance some panes in advance and the catalog did seem to offer a similar advance order for press sheets. However, the catalog can be confusing with its little symbols so read it carefully and call the telephone line if unsure.