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General Category => General Discussion => Topic started by: JoeW on April 10, 2016, 11:08:36 PM

Title: Any serious stamp collectors here?
Post by: JoeW on April 10, 2016, 11:08:36 PM
My wife and I are cleaning a corner of the basement where all the stuff from her mother's house and my late sister have been sitting. I've come across a stamp collector book from 1897. There are US stamps in there dating back to 1851, not a lot but at least 5 to 10 per decade, some decades more, up to 1910. There are also revenue stamps and I just skimmed through the foreign pages. The book is inscribed as a gift from a Mr. Wallace to Oscar Earl, S.S. Mariposa May 3, 1898. What would be the best way to have these stamps valued? Who can be trusted? Oh, there's another book stating in 1910.
Title: Re: Any serious stamp collectors here?
Post by: Kiwi_Roy on April 11, 2016, 03:19:31 AM
How about some pictures, just the whole page.
I don't know anything about stamps but I'm sure some here do.
Title: Re: Any serious stamp collectors here?
Post by: Vince in Milwaukee on April 11, 2016, 03:31:15 AM
Today is your lucky day Joe.  I had a pretty large collection of U.S. stamps up until about 25 years ago.  While I am a bit rusty and not too sure what today's market is like, I'd be very interested in taking a look at them.

Vince
Title: Re: Any serious stamp collectors here?
Post by: ccoli on April 11, 2016, 09:13:57 AM
When you're done with Joe's, come have a look at mine. I have the combined collections of my father, my 2 brothers and myself.  Lots of foreign stamps as my family lived in D.C. and knew lots of folks overseas.  There is at least one set that is said to be worth something.
I am about to call a local collector who's card we got at a flea market.  I am anxious to get rid of them.
Sorry for hijacking the thread Joe. Need to talk with you about a small guzzi job.
Title: Re: Any serious stamp collectors here?
Post by: Orange Guzzi on April 11, 2016, 10:06:09 AM
Stamps are like baseball cards and old coins.  The value is always higher to the seller and worthless to the buyer.  I have old coins by the bags and have taken them to the bank and dumped them into the change counter because they have less value than my time is worth.  I have uncut sheets of baseball cards with the greats on them that I have been offered $5 for.  You will have to weight your time and effort against your return on your investment.  Good luck.

I had a stamp collection from the 1800's thru the early 1900's.  Carried to several buyers only to be told they worth worthless.  Of course the buyers will tell an ignorant soul such a thing.  The stamps suppose to be the most valuable were the first issue air mail stamps.  They are red and rectangle shaped.  I have some of them stashed, but cannot find them. 

I found that collecting $100 bills is the best thing to collect.  They don't appreciate, but they are very easy to get rid of and always in demand around the world.  A large collection is a solid investment. 
Title: Re: Any serious stamp collectors here?
Post by: JoeW on April 11, 2016, 10:44:07 AM
this morning I talked to an old friend, actually my, now retired" optometrist. He's 88 years young and has been collecting stamps since he was 12. He said he has thousands of dollars worth of stamps but, there are no buyers. I'll set a date to go see him, if only for the visit and have him look them over. Here are the first 70 pages of the book....
http://s1146.photobucket.com/user/jwalano/library/Stamp%20Book%201897
Title: Re: Any serious stamp collectors here?
Post by: Robert on April 11, 2016, 10:56:29 AM
My Grandma was a Serious stamp collector.  When I would visit, she often had her dishpan full of torn-off envelope corners to soak off the stamps.  She had envelopes full of each example, purple 3-centers, 6-cent airmail, etc.  Probably to 'deal' with.

She had her book, and then made books for each of her kids.

Then the USPS started printing whole sheets (individual flowers, flags, etc.) that really put a bite on her SS check when she needed to buy multiple sheets for each issue.


To complete the kids' books she said she was missing a few stamps each.  She would have to wait till someone sold a collection so those stamps would come up on the market.  (This was before internet.  Must have used catalogs and phone???)

She said if the kids wanted to sell their stamps, sell the whole collection.  Don't let the dealer buy the few desirables only.

I inherited one book.  Fun to look at.  Do not know value.  I also have multiple stashes of torn off corners from the last 45 years.  Not soaked off, just 'stored' here and there.  Now they have gone to sticky stamps, and many different issues, and I don't know what this has done to the collector.

I am kind of looking for a 'good home' for all these.

Title: Re: Any serious stamp collectors here?
Post by: Rotten Ralph on April 11, 2016, 11:02:52 AM
Stamps are pretty much like any collectible - often very hard to sell. You might want to try an auction house or two. They will appraise and also take a chunk of what the collection sells for but they do usually get buyers.
Title: Re: Any serious stamp collectors here?
Post by: K250 on April 11, 2016, 12:18:35 PM
Consign the whole collection to e and d stamp auction in Kansas city.  913-432-1806.  They have large stamp only auctions, serious collectors and dealers from all over go to them.  If there is any way to get a fair price, that is it. 
Title: Re: Any serious stamp collectors here?
Post by: sturgeon on April 11, 2016, 12:26:23 PM
Look for the most recent edition of the Scott Standard Postage Stamp Catalogue at your local library. That might get you started.
Title: Re: Any serious stamp collectors here?
Post by: JoeW on April 11, 2016, 06:25:34 PM
I was in the city today, escorting my wife to a doctor appointment. I found a shop called "The Stamp King" he was not impressed with the collection and offered me a whole $5.00 American for the lot. We politely thanked him for his time and left. It reminds me of when I took my 1960 Lionel Union Pacific engine to a train store for some repair. I asked what it was worth and the proprietor said, "well it's got a crack in the body so it's really not worth anything but, I'll give you 20.00 for it"
Title: Re: Any serious stamp collectors here?
Post by: GuzziChris on April 11, 2016, 07:28:51 PM
Buy an enthusiast's publication and educate yourself - I'm sure there are many recent price guides out there with which you can assess the collection yourself. Otherwise, find a serious, reputable dealer and let him know what you have and ask his advice. He'll roll his eyes because he encounters situations like this all the time - but he also knows there might be a gem in there. Like certain old bikes, certain old coins and certain old stamps are HIGHLY desirable and valuable, so do not believe they are all worthless. Issue is most people think that just because something is old means it must be valuable, and that is frequently not the case. Value is driven by rarity, popularity (meaning desirability amongst collectors) and condition, those three are everything. It's no different than having a tired, original 70s T3 that you can't get rid of vs having a tired, original 70's V7 Sport which smart people knock down your door to pay top dollar for... you just need to know what it is you have, or you need to find someone knowledgeable and trustworthy to help you find any potential gems amongst the debris. Best of luck!