US 8c Violet Brown Sherman Issue Of 1894, Scott 272 Mnh

Its been several decades since I contracted the MNH virus, and as much as I swore up and down that I wouldn't get sucked into the 'grading' malady, I find myself with more and more stamps in my U.S. collection that have been graded.

I just added this 272 to my Scott National album, and although the centering is a bit off towards the east, I was wondering if I should send this in for a cert to confirm it is MNH, and maybe even a graded one since the centering isn't too shabby. Aside from any opinion(s) you all may have regarding graded stamps, do you think this stamp is worth sending in for a graded cert? And if so, which service to use to do so. As I understand it, the APS doesn't do grades, so unfortunately they're out.

If you send it to PSE, you can designate on the submission form that you want a graded certificate. On that same form, there is a column labelled "Min. Grade" wherein you can put the minimum grade number acceptable. If the stamp grades less than that, your certificate will not show a grade.

My eye says this stamp will only grade FVF75, based solely on centering. Personally, I rarely have a stamp graded unless doing so made a very significant difference in the SCV. That's where a copy of the latest Scott Stamp Values US Specialized by Grade comes in handy.

Grading is more than centering.
There is a short perf at top and several others which are irregular reducing overall eye appeal.

Vielen Dank, uboatnut ! Just for giggles I'll probably send the stamp into PSE, leaving perhaps '80' as my grading cut-off. If you have nothing better to do, would you be so kind as to post a few values from the Scott Grading catalogue for this stamp (I will get around to ordering one for my own use; a good suggestion of yours as my graded certs pile, all from auction buys, seems to be expanding...).

John, I was aware of the short perf at top (hard to miss) but the price was way right for this stamp, so I took a tumble. Appreciate your input as always.

Once the cert gets returned, I'll add a scan of it to this thread to provide closure to this learning exercise of mine, while perhaps it may be of some use to others.

Hi docgfd
The centering measures 71. Maybe get a 75 at PSE?
Would be nice to see what the back / gum looks like.

From the 2022 edition of Scott's US Specialized by Grade for a #272 MNH
VG50 = $37.50
F70 = $70
FVF75 = $130
VF80 = $210
VFXF85 = $325
XF90 = $700
XF-SUP95 = $1,600
SUP98 = $6,500

Yes, I'm aware that centering is only one of the grading factors, but since I can't see the reverse, I commented only on centering. I did check to confirm it had not been reperforated.

HarryG what app are you using to determine centering?

Sorry for asking.

Windstorms yesterday and today (today's adding in snow squalls) caused back-to-back power outages here in the Catskill Mountains, so I've been playing with the woodstove instead of my stamps. At any rate, the power is back on (for now) so here's a scan of the stamp's flipside:
(Edited to add: the white specks in the image are artifact occasioned by a dying scanner).

I think you can see it right on the screenshot. I am not a fan of the centering fad, but to each their own.