Pity the poor stamps forum ...
291fifth
Posts: 24,710 ✭✭✭✭✭
... it has now gone for nearly eleven days without a post of any kind. (The autographs forum isn't much better.)
All glory is fleeting.
4
Comments
That's pretty bad.
My YouTube Channel
Let's hope, after 2021, when coins are eliminated in the US, replaced by either credit / debit, Bobbo Pay (my system that will knock out Apple pay and make me a kazillionaire), and inflation, that the coin forum will not look like the stamp forum in 2031. BTW, gold went to $18K an ounce and Silver at $782 an ounce, and everything but the Smithsonian collection and Ricko's stuff got melted anyway.
Stamps are somewhat moribund as a hobby. The bigger issue vis-a-vis this board is that "slabbing" of stamps has never really caught on. Old fashioned certification from APS is still the preferred method.
All comments reflect the opinion of the author, evn when irrefutably accurate.
APS is very reliable and consistent. Nothing like that in the coin-world.
APS is OK but aficionados of rare stamps will generally lean towards PF in NYC for USA issues, the RPSL for anything related to United Kingdom etc, and so on.
I have found that some forums are frequented by top folks in the category. Here in the US coins forum, we are blessed beyond belief. Other forums here or run by different companies are not as blessed.
As far as the stamp forum here, I've been extremely disappointed as questions about Blue Paper and AEF Washington-Franklins batted ZERO!
My wife likes the Disney stamps. Only stamps I've got are the Total Eclipse stamps from 2017. I see that they are still available too ... thought for sure THOSE would sell out ...
Just not a popular thing anymore. If it ever really was. Need something new and exciting, like another upside down bi-plane.
Insert witicism here. [ xxx ]
Honestly you might get a proper response on stampcommunity.org -- you could also ping boardmember coinpictures -- he's well-versed in USA issues and is active at stampcommunity as "revenue-collector" -- his site is:
https://revenue-collector.com/
I am aware of the type of stamps you had questions about, but have zero expertise in them.
I count on the decline of stamp collecting to keep me stocked with discount postage. I am about to tear into some 8 cent Christmas stamps that I got for 50% of face. Six of those and a 2 cent stamp and my letters are good to go.
It does seem that stamp collecting - and collectors - is fast disappearing. I have some stamps I picked up and various points along the way...simply because I liked them...and a sheet of bi-centennials... Not a collector by any means. Cheers, RickO
I don't see it. You cannot find a parking spot all day long when the National Stamp show comes to Sarasota, FL. Plenty of parking at the coin show. BTW, the gem show at the same hall is as crowded as the stamp show.
@Insider2 ....There are a lot of senior citizens in Florida....and they continue with their hobby(s)...As their age group diminishes, so too does stamp collecting. Cheers, RickO
Very interesting and even intriguing. Maybe stamps have been reduced to a hobby largely of serious collectors. I wonder if coin collecting has more casual collectors in the hobby.
The casual coin "collector" can pull an occasional keeper from pocket change, but that scenario does not apply to stamps.
Stamp collecting is still popular in Great Britain and other countries, just not here.
Not sure why.
They call me "Pack the Ripper"
Timely post
Fell asleep listening to a radio show from 1975 last night.
The WOR host said (pretty sure I got this word for word) "....and you know stamp collecting is dead. Each country is putting out dozens and dozens of different stamps every year."
"Inspiration exists, but it has to find you working" Pablo Picasso
I agree with you.....they are not readily liquid-able.
I may wait to study them in my retirement someday and in the mean time making sure the silverfish don't get to it 
My late grandpa left me three 5inches thick collection books full of old stamps; some from the dissapearing countries you never heard of......but I don't know where to start.
@JBK said:
......The casual coin "collector" can pull an occasional keeper from pocket change, but that scenario does not apply to stamps.
It might be that the Britishers are prone to collect lots of things -- just "collecting" there is popular -- I saw that in reference to toy Corgi cars and the like, but it certainly applies to stamps, particularly because good old England was the first to make use of them, and the rest of the world followed suit!
I didn't understand one word of this.
bob
I think you're exactly right, that while there are certainly many thousands of casual stamp collectors, a good number of them have come to realize that most of the sheets and sheets of them made in the 1930's to the present are discount postage now, and not going to pay for college, or even a decent meal in most cases. But they might persist in it because if you can get that stuff as cheaply as possible, it's inexpensive fun.
At the other side of the divergent spectrum, there are rarities and desirable US and worldwide stamps from the '20s on back that are pursued by hardcore collectors spending significant sums. Part of this mix is postal history, with the given stamp(s) tied to letters mailed over harsh or unusual/historical conditions; these can sell for large sums, while the exact stamp used, if removed from the historical letter, is actually quite common and worth just a few bucks.
And now it's time for a PSA....
...the USA's first scratch and sniff stamps now available at your local post office.
"Inspiration exists, but it has to find you working" Pablo Picasso
I agree. That the casual coin collector can pull an occasional keeper. Coins compared to stamps are more often handled thereby that acts as a reminder. I'm sure if a clipped coin showed up in change it would spark interest. Am not a stamp collector per se, but I still admire the artwork on many examples. Especially the space related issues,planes, etc.
I apologize, was a lazy typer. APS is short for American Philatelic Society -- kinda like the ANA -- an educational group and also offers authentication certs and grading (like the old-old ANA certs -- no slabbing of the stamps.)
PSE is Professional Stamp Experts, they offered stamp slabbing, but it really hasn't caught on. They also offer paper certs, two types of them; ones that say simply "this is authentic, unaltered, etc." and the others offer this same info, but include their opinion on grade.
PF is the Philatelic Foundation in New York, they'd be a competitor to PSE, they are very well-respected and also offer "authentic" certificates as well as "authentic, and this is the grade" certificates.
Both PSE and PF are USA-based entities, and usually are sent USA stamps for grading.
The RPSL is the Royal Philatelic Society London, which specializes in all UK and UK colonies/territories issues -- their opinions are usually the most sought-after/respected for these types of stamps.
Generally for very rare stamps (from wherever in the world) there are a group/individuals from that region that specialize in them and whose opinions are most respected. It's very likely impossible to be an expert in all examples of worldwide vintage stamps, as far as counterfeits, varieties, etc.
Just as with coins, knowledge is power. I don't think I've ever left a stamp show w/o cherrypicking something cataloguing $100+ for less than $5. Often several picks as that. Postal History is also so immense/interesting and goes way past the stamp itself.
That's the way it was in numismatics before "that book I love to hate" came out with images of better varieties.
Maybe I'll post something over there
Steve
I'll come with you
Stamp collecting is so bad that I got bored reading this small thread and stopped!
Looks like the coin forum is alive and well.
In about 2 hours we got over 20 posts about how nobody has posted on the stamp forum in 11 days.
Why don't you post a picture of a damaged stamp and ask them if it is an error.
The postal service not too long ago did just that, reissuing the "Flying Jenny" stamp with a modern postage amount -- all but a very few were issued with the plane flying upside down; if you were to discover some with the plane arranged right side up, you'd have a quick profit on your hands:
https://centralmaine.com/2015/11/09/waterville-bookstore-owner-finds-rare-upright-jenny-stamps/
Ah ha! So Paradise is not entirely perfect!
I have seen a silverfish in the bathroom on occasion - they are creepy little things. I also saw something similar slithering into the binding of my 1776 dictionary.
Ah ha @JBK you noticed I am real and mortal
Just checked the pages....no fish of any kind
too afraid to transfer for a new books...
Steve
I might go there with Steve; post a few "please help" and make some stamping friends
Those books look pretty good - I am not an expert but you might be good for many more years.
Value or not, I love the sight of old stamps - so much color, design, history, and variety.
That's called an accumulation and there just might be a "gem" hiding on a page. Chances are not, but great fun, sort of like coin roll hunting.
The ones with the city and black bars are "pre-canceled" a complete collecting category by themselves.
As with coins, condition is important. That includes "centering" the image on the piece.
I noticed that, too. I used to like picking those up when I came across them.
Almost nobody communicates via "snail mail" any more, so how would young people be exposed to stamps? As others have mentioned, you have to wonder what the effect of eventual deep decline in the use of physical "cash" will have on coin collecting. I haven't spent a coin in a very long time.
Coinlearner, Ahrensdad, Nolawyer, RG, coinlieutenant, Yorkshireman, lordmarcovan, Soldi, masscrew, JimTyler, Relaxn, jclovescoins, justindan, doubleeagle07
Now listen boy, I'm tryin' to teach you sumthin' . . . . that ain't no optical illusion, it only looks like an optical illusion.
My mind reader refuses to charge me. . . . . . .
I don't believe you @Insider2 know so much about stamps too.
and I just realized there are so many many things I may not have time in my life to be good at 
simply because I don't have long enough time at this end 
No upside down planes so far....just these old commies
I actually buy the collector stamps and use them for postage. I like to think that the Star Trek stamps make the mail go faster.
What's a letter?
See http://www.doubledimes.com for a free online reference for US twenty-cent pieces
Who you callin' a "nobody"?
I mail LOTS of letters but admittedly the return mail has gotten sparser over the past decade or so. Even elected representatives rarely acknowledge constituent (snail) mail these days, whereas in the old days you would always get at least a form letter back.
My mail is admittedly not average, but most people probably go weeks or months without seeing a letter with an actual stamp on it (not counting those nonprofit solicitations that try to catch people's attention with a largely unnecessary paper stamp in place of a printed mailing permit #).
You won't lose anything of great value leaving those particular stamps as they are, but if you were looking to protect high value stamps in a humid (paradise) climate, all you need to do is house them in stockbooks that come with slipcases. Slipcases are key to locking out a lot of humidity's effects, and it can also help fight silverfish, etc.
Insider2 is also correct, somewhere lurking in those stockbook pages, you might have a hidden "gem" worth a bit of money! Odds are against it but you never know.
Folks & Friends......R we highjacking @291fifth post?
It has happened again that stamp discussions get more action on the Coin forum than the Stamp forum!
The stock books may actually have more value than the stamps in them. This is not a joke. When I sold my stamp collection at auction about 20 years+ ago the empty stamp albums were the best performing items in the sale!
@Paradisefound said: "I just realized there are so many many things I may not have time in my life to be good at
We all have that problem. I collect so many things to keep from getting board. It's too bad I got sidetracked away from coins as a full-time hobby...LOL. Foreign stamps are more picturesque than US issues. Most older ones printed by banknote companies. Your page has several interesting stamps. I have catalogues to look foreign stamps up.
As you said, no time (you have much more than me) ...LOL. I have 10K plus foreign stamps from a closed stamp dealer. Every so often I'll pack up a few dozen that have a decent catalogue value and use them in trade (discounted a bunch) for stuff I want. Junk is donated to the kids section. The important thing is to have fun as you cannot take it with you.
I was going to comment along these lines; 291fifth is exactly right, the stockbooks shown are of archival quality, very nice. I am not crazy about the foxing on their edges (hence my comment about slipcases) but they are desirable even as is; linen hinges, sturdy thick pages.
It's akin to taking common circ wheaties and housing them in the finest custom capital plastics holder. That's no slam on the stamps as shown, but those I see are very typical, average centered, average cancels. A lot like my dad's old childhood stamp album.
That all said, again, a gem of a stamp may be lurking within!