British Regionals, Paper Type Identification Help Needed

Hi folks,

Just trying to sort out my Wilding British regionals. It appears there were two main issues of these for each country, those before 1967 and those after. The later ones were apparently on 'chalk' paper? I'm wondering how best to identify these. The only stamps I have so far with clear date stamps are from 1967 onwards, so could potentially be either...



Here are four Scottish 3d examples. I believe I may have 2 of each paper type here, but I'm not sure which is which, or how to tell. The top two seem clearer and slightly sharper to me.

Any hints and tips would be greatly appreciated.

I have been collecting GB for nearly 20 years and apart from the advice to touch the chalk finished stamp with a piece of silver and see a black mark appear I've never heard how to tell the difference. Is the black mark permanent/ does the black mark apperar immediately? What purity of silver is needed? is there a better method. does soaking or age alter the chalky paper? C'mon someone must have an answer to imperfectais' good question.

I don't think the silver test is recommended these days. If you search for "chalk paper" or "chalky paper" in subjects here you'll find a number of threads.

When I have done this is the past, I used a 925 silver earring post that I filed down so it was very thin yet blunt. To do the test, DO NOT "draw" the mark; you drag the silver so no pressure is applied that might emboss the paper. The line is also lightest this way.

Only try to mark the very very very outer tip of a perf; don't try to mark the margin or stamp design. All of this said, the mark is definitely permanent so be extremely judicious.

Chalky paper from the KVGI era yielded a sharper image than an identical stamp printed on ordinary paper. The ordinary paper example is blurrier than an identical stamp printed on chalky. Chalky paper tends to have a porous surface with tiny little "pock marks" (craters), but I do not know if this is true for all chalky stamps as there is more than one type of chalky stamp. I also do not know if the appearance of QE2 era printings on chalky are sharper than ordinary paper, I only know for sure about pre QE2. I think it's likely that the silver test works the same way on post-1952 stamps.

Lastly, I cannot tell by the images if some copies have sharper impressions than others but you may see the difference with stamps in hand. Having multiple copies to sort will help find chalky vs. ordinary without making a permanent black mark with a silver filament. Hope this is useful info.

Thanks folks. I'll have a search for other threads on this issue, but it seems like the 'eye' test for sharper images may be one way to go.

I'll also see if I can detect any 'craters', and may try to silver test on one or two of the heavier postmarked examples I have here.

Obviously some work to do!

Here is an article that may be helpful. For my area, Germany, I find it easier to determine chalky stamps if they are unused. A used stamp, which has been washed, makes it more difficult or not determinable.

https://www.sandafayre.com/blogs/st...faced-papers

Ok, so based upon the advice so far, I've taken a closer look at the examples I have here, using a USB microscope at two different settings. Here are some closeups, in the hope it may help others with similar identification issues.

It's difficult to line up the same spot, especially at the highest magnification so I concentrated upon the corner of two stamps.

First is what I believe to be the 'chalk paper' version. Note that the closeup shows a clean line.




Next, the 'non-chalk' version. Note the fibrous nature of the paper here, and the slightly less well defined image.




I couldn't identify the 'craterous' nature of the print associated with the chalk papers, but I think that the high magnification images show the differences in the two papers quite well. The ink on the chalk paper also looks denser to me.

I'm always happy to be corrected by those who know better - it's often the only way to learn.

Thank you guys, the advice has answered some of my questions, and perhaps all once I follow the links.

Unless it is the 1963 3d Isle of Man issue on "Chalky" paper, this is a very easy one to identify.
The chalk-surfaced paper issues have paper similar to that used for the pre-decimal Machins. I.e., they do not have a watermark. Also, they have one or two phosphor bars reacting violet (as did the contemporaneous Machins). Side bars are from 9.5mm bars.