US Stamps Alum, Collected In The 70´s

Good day everyone,

I just registered and I hope to find some help in identifying a stamp collection.

There is a big album with US Stamps collected in the 70's. I have been looking online for the past days, however there are so many differences regarding prices, colors, editions that it overhelms me :)

I am looking forward to make it a new hobby, but I think it will be a long way...

Any input about the above photos will be greatly appreciated. If the pictures abe not good enought, I am thinking about hosting them in a higher resolution on an external website.

Thank you so much :)

Welcome!
I agree that you have a good start on a new hobby. Do not quit your day job and in fact you might need a second job to help grow your new hobby! You can start by spending some time reading lots of the older threads here and on Stamp Smarter https://stampsmarter.org/. This will give you many days of reading/learning and help you come up to speed without spending money on costly reference materials. Once you have a better understanding on your enjoyment of the hobby, you might then consider investing in other reference materials.

Your images above are fine, no need to post new ones.
Don

Agree with Don's comments above. Would check the 6 and 8 cent small banknotes (Garfield and sherman) for presence of I or R watermark (Scott 271a abd 272a). U likely, but you never know unless you look.

Welcome to the board and a great hobby!

You've got a great head start here. If you want to get into this hobby, After doing some reading and exploring as Don suggests, one of the first things you might want to consider is to buy a used Scott's catalog (1A US Specialized) which will be a great source of information and help you identify the issues that you have and what you don't have. You can find a catalog that is a few years old for much less than a new version and it will give all the same identification information for these issues. They are always available on ebay. Values don't usually change rapidly so it'll give you an idea of "relative" value. I've been collecting since 1972 and I always buy two year old catalogs, use them for a couple years and get another.

Short of buying one, you can get your feet wet by checking them out for free at most public libraries too.

As Don mentioned there are great online resources that you should explore.

The stock book is a great place to keep them. You won't need one right away but there are a number of stamp albums available for sale and very good pages to download and print for free. As you have questions this is a great place to ask them. Other basic tools you might need (if you don't have) are a good magnifying glass and tongs (specialty tweezers for handling stamps).

Conversations about all these items are available on this board and can be found through the search feature.

Quoted for truth. In my opinion starting with stock book/stock pages (i.e. Vario pages) is the best way to begin since they support 're-organization' as your knowledge and collecting desires take form. Once you have a better idea on your collecting(s) direction, you then will be in a much better position to make costly album purchasing decisions.
Don

Hello everybody,

I cannot believe that only 3 hours after asking my question I received so many wonderful ideas! Thank you all so much for your time :)

I had a first look at Stamp Smarter and it's library of books seems the best start in my hobby. I do have a full time job (Don, I will not quit it, no worry - I am stil dependant on it and I also have a lot of fun doing it) and my time is quite limited. However, it has been so exciting to find also the history behind every stamp and I am really looking forward to discover more!

I am also grateful for the ideas regarding the first aquisitions I need to make - thanks again! I did try some PC software (LignUp Stamp Search) or an android app (Stamp Identifier) , but not realy the best results. The Scott Catalogues may seem the "old-fashioned" mwthod, but I still like my information on paper instead of digital, so here I go...

I was thinking in buying a Signoscope T3 to check the watermarks..Putting stamps in water of some fluid scares me a litte!

I am still "digesting" all of your tips - Thank you so much!!!

Good luck. I'd suggest not springing for an electric watermark detector at this stage - they're quite expensive and not necessarily a big step-up from lighter fluid, which you shouldn't worry about. You could pick one up cheap in the "accessories"sections of stamp auctions in due course.

51Studebaker was right. I am also a newbie to this forum, but not to philately, and I know one great thing like Archilochus's Hedgehog. I learned it the long hard way and am still learning. The great thing in collecting is to focus-not necessarily on only one country or area of interest, but rather just do some research on different countries and areas to find what interests you the most--The history of the country, the art, culture, the flora and fauna, etc., etc., etc. After you focus and start to build a collection(s) then branch out slowly and, most of all-enjoy and LEARN from this wonderful hobby.