C13-C15 OG NH - PSA - Exists?

Prethen

At one time, I was looking to see if anyone was selling the Zepplins certified by PSA. I'm curious as to how much this set would cost in essentially "perfect" (OG, NH, well-centered) condition. I walked into a coin/stamp store once and asked the owner if he has any of these stamps with or without PSA certification. He said he would NEVER get PSA certified stamps because he thought it was stupid and senseless. I'm not a stamp collector myself. The set of this stamps just sort of intrigues me (as does #1 and #2 U.S.). My father, who is a stamp dealer and never really sees the high-end stuff, said that it's a good idea to be very careful when buying such items because many times they've been screwed with. Are there any places selling C13-C15 certified? How about #1 and #2? Approximate (reasonable) prices? Thanks from just an ignorant coin guy.

dougwtx

A perfect, PSE graded/encapsulated C13-5 set would go for well over catalog, mainly due to the condition/centering. IMO, I really don't see a need for this set with a cert unless you are after the finest set or would like to be in the registry. PSE, APS, and PFC certs are usually used on rare stamps or on issues where one looks like another. C13-15 are not that rare, nor the #1. A person usually wants a cert on the rare specimens since a difference in shade, perf, or other mark makes the difference and many stamps look very similar. Also there are regummed, reperfed, repaired, and forgeries out there and expertizing helps with this. Your father is correct that many stamps have been messed with. Even experienced collectors can be fooled. I try to deal with a trusted dealer on non-cert issues. A search on eBay should land you several #1s and 2s. Almost any decent size stamp store should have several #1s to look at as I've owned 2 #1s and another franked on cover and I don't even consider myself a "serious" stamp collector; coins are my thing too. If you wish to obtain a certified set of the zepps, PM me and I'll start asking around. I would expect to pay $400-700 for a used #1 with 4 margins and no faults. A used #2 would probably run around $800 on up. A lot depends on the cancel too. I did a quick search on eBay and there is an uncertified set of MNH C13-15 with a BIN for $2700. You can look at Collectors Universe link to PSE and view the pop reports for graded zepp sets along with all the other classic US issues as well as the registry sets. Picking up a copy of Linn's Stamp News or Scott's Monthy would give you an idea of current market prices too. Certified stamps are not as popular as certified coins, but don't quite rank with the negativity of certified currency; somewhere in between. Hope this helped and didn't put you to sleep.

Doug

Prethen

Doug,

That was a fantastic reply. Thanks! I've been intrigued with certain U.S. stamps for most of my (coin) collecting life. I collected U.S. stamps as a kid and stopped when I realized that generally everything I had wasn't worth much more than the paper it was printed on. For the moment, I have more serious asperations (coin-related) requiring my funds to be freed up so I won't run after these stamps right now. I will save your post for future reference. Personally, if I were to spend about $3K on a set of stamps, I would prefer that they were certified (which also buys them some amount of protection physically as well as authentication-wise). Is there a 2-tier market in these types of stamps, the same way as there is for coins: one tier for dealer-to-dealer pricing (wholesale) and another for dealer-to-collector (retail) or is it a relatively level playing field? Sorry, if that question seems a bit ignorant. I guess I would assume there's a wholesale market. My father really only dealt with the rarer U.S. stamps a couple of times and I think his margins were pretty narrow but they were easy to move.

Thanks, again!
Bruce

dougwtx

Bruce,

Ask away if you have any questions; this place needs some activity, besides rare books. A stamp with a cert does not mean it will be encapsulated. There are different services offered so not all will encapsulate a stamp. A cert is to guarantee authenticity/list damage/repairs, no grade given. PSE's top service will grade and encapsulate a stamp. As far as I know, there is no "grey sheet" for stamps. There is wholesale and retail pricing though for dealer-dealer and dealer-customer but the dealer decides the price. As in coins, you search archives, past auctions, and eBay for current prices, stamps are no different. The Scott catalogs can give you a ballpark figure to start with though. Superb condition stamps are like rainbow toned coins; the pricelists are useless. If you do find a set you really love and its not encapsulated, you can submit them yourself. Just ask the dealer that he will guarantee the authentication or have him submit them first and ask that they be encapsulated.

Doug

rocketmangb

Had my father spent his money on coins instead of stamps.i would not have to be giving this crap away @ .70 on the dollar !

sinin1

you can buy some nice copies for $10 on eBay

There are big stamp shows like coin shows - major dealers should be able to help you



be careful spending big bucks on stamps -> right now the bid/ask spread is rather large



certification for stamps is similar to early ANACS -> picture and description//grade

I guess stamp collectors have not embraced encapsulation, and may never

Prethen

My father is a wholesale stamp dealer and the fact that you could get 70 cents on the dollar is actually pretty good based on what he tells me he buys some of the stuff at. He only deals with dealers but he pays sometimes as little as 10 cents on the dollar or less (10% or less of "book"). I remember times when he bought boxes of stamps, actually huge cartons filled with albums and thousands upon thousands of stamps for anywhere between $50-$150. Sometimes it might be a bit more, but that meant that there was some "good stuff" mixed in there. He would generally turn over a collection like this within days for a small profit. He knows his market well, otherwise I can imagine you could lose your a$$ even if you bought stamps at a fraction of the book.



<< <i>Had my father spent his money on coins instead of stamps.i would not have to be giving this crap away @ .70 on the dollar ! >>