Cancelled Blocks? Keep Or Separate?

Probably a noob question but are cancelled blocks worth collecting or should I go ahead and separate the stamps into singles?

This is related to random US commemoratives by the way. My instinct is to just separate them as I doubt there is much interest in blocks.

Thanks

If you want to keep all examples and the block is in good condition, a block is nicer than multiple singles. You, always, can split up the block when necessary. You cannot reconstruct it.

Any block, pair, or strip of stamps (whether mint or cancelled) I always keep them together even if the stamp or stamps is considered very common or have 'no value' - I also like the way multiples look when they are together.

There are people who collect used blocks and other multiples (like myself). Even the modern ones are hard to find. I would keep them intact as blocks, especially when they have a nice cancellation centered within the block.

That said, if they are common stamps, with ordinary cancellations, weak floppy perforations, and if you need a single copy for your collection, go ahead and split it up. Otherwise, just keep a glassine envelope of Used Blocks in addition to your US Singles duplicates and maybe someone else down the road will appreciate your effort in preserving them.

Any multiple before 1940 should be kept for sure. Multiples with nice cancels from any era should be kept for sure. Modern multiples are more common, and less of an issue if separated.

I agree with what both ZebraMan and revcollector said in their responses to the OP as well.

One of the benefits of keeping blocks intact is that it demonstrates their usage, e.g. as Parcel Post or parcel tags. There is a level of acceptance in postal history of large pieces of wrapper, rather than the whole wrapper, provided there is some retention of information regarding sender and receiver. Also consider that the cancel is also collectable, and sometimes the only way to get a complete strike is to leave a multiple intact.

I once started a collection of used blocks of U.S. and Canadian stamps, but they're actually not easy to find. I've even broken up a few blocks myself to get the single I needed for my album. I think that's pretty common, so there may be a reduction in the number of blocks going on all the time This is a good reason to not break them up but to save them as is.

Loose, they will often separate at the perfs, so putting them in glassines to protect them or even better, in mounts, is best. But if you do break them up, maybe you're just making my boxes of used blocks of four gradually get more valuable!

I have a few canceled blocks, but I got some blocks of 1 cent ant 3 cent recently for cheap. I did want to ask about the nearly separated sets. Are those considered blocks or singles? If it is hanging by a few perforations, for example.

Some of the blocks were damaged by mice. I threw away the damaged ones. I have sensitivity to mouse droppings/pee, so even traces on a mount make me start to cough. Guess it is built-in quality control... But does a set of 2-3 or an irregular block count for anything?

Well not everyone is collecting US but those are the 1 and 3 cent I was speaking of. From the 1930s to 1950s for the 3 cent, and the one cent from the 1960s, the majority at least. I do have a bunch of regular rectangles of 4. The person who sold them said they don't sell for anything but face value, regardless of what my Harris catalog from 2022 says.

Largely separated pairs and blocks in most cases are only going to finish separating sooner or later, so they have little to no value. We're not talking about rare stamps here, in any case, but common stamps with low values, so you might as well finish tearing them apart if that seems worth doing. But the farther back they go -- into the 1930s and 20s -- the more I'd want to baby them into not separating. And, yes, badly-saved examples of anything chewed by mice are pretty much going to be worthless -- not to mention pretty gross. A good reason for protecting stamps and albums better than most people bother to do. Mildew and mold are common culprits and even tobacco smoke puts off many buyers (like me).

Yeah, unfortunately it isn't the first time I have seen this. The best I can CSI and add the seller's commentary, they were kept in a garage that was mouse habitat. The box was stacked in such a way that the mice could run over one side but not the other. So, 1/2 are undamaged. On the one side, the damage was greatest at the top and least on the bottom. So for that half, the ones on top are trash, the ones in the middle needed to throw away the mounts and keep one or two throwing away the ones facing the outside, and then the bottom third needed to trim away some of the mount and paper on the outside of the sheet, but could keep 3 of the 4 tossing the stamp with traces of damage.

I could become an expert at working through semidamaged collections I think but the exposure would likely kill me first, lol.