Discussion - Member to Member Sales - Research Center
Discussion - Member to Member Sales - Research Center
Linus
8 Members
like this post.
Login to Like.
Hi Linus,
You have entered the realm of EFO's(errors,freaks,oddities). Beware my friend, it could take over as a collection by itself. I, too, am most captured by this area.
Best,
Dan C.
Login to Like
this post
Hi Everyone;
Linus said:
"Although not valuable stamps, I still enjoy them, does anyone else?"
Here is where I'll have to disagree with you, in a non-harsh and friendly way of course.
I think it is because collectors are so hung up on the Scott catalog as being the bible of
stamp values, that these types of errors are considered to be not very valuable, by some
collectors. Also just because they are not listed in Scott, doesn't mean they are not collectible.
I have several dozen auction catalogs. The fancy ones with lovely color pictures, from
auction houses like Nutmeg, Regency and several others. If they thought these types of
errors to be of not much value they would not display full color photos of them. These
auction houses typically only illustrate the better material that will fetch a nice price
and a nice commission. They only illustrate a fraction of their lots, saving space for
the better material.
The prices that these stamps are bringing are by no means small, and just because they do
not seem very valuable to you, does not mean they are not of great value to others. So
you should get your hands on some of these catalogs, so you can get a better idea of the
realistic value that they are.
Still just sortin'....
TuskenRaider
4 Members
like this post.
Login to Like.
This activity is something I've never thought of, but it sounds intriguing. I've only had one freak and I put it beside the right stamp in my album. But if I had a bunch I think I'd create a place Back of the Book for them.
Once in a while, I see stamps on paper sold by the pound on EBay. If I have time, I might buy a few pounds and also look for freaks.
Finally, talking of value..When I get something I didn't have, then it has value. Prices are only the means to get stuff.
2 Members
like this post.
Login to Like.
The EFOs shown above all have a market value of $5 to $10 each*. I think they make great 'extra' items in any collection or album, adding interest and making an album stand out from others.
Don
*No need to use catalogs, simply look for current prices paid for similar stamps.
2 Members
like this post.
Login to Like.
On the basis that they are "as issued" by the postal authorities, should they take a rightful place in an album alongside the watermark, perforation etc varieties and plate errors which we all dutifully search for and collect.
Just a thought.
Login to Like
this post
great, if they're worth $5 to $10 each, I'll offer all my similar stamps at $2.50 each, and you got an immediate 100 to 400% profit. contact me privately to arrange details
David
Login to Like
this post
Thanks for all the comments and discussion on my oddities. I spent some time looking on Ebay at "sold" items under a search of "EFO" in the Stamps section. The conclusion I find is that MNH freak stamps like this sell between about $3 to $12, depending on how drastic the freak is shifted. (More freaky = more money.) One the other hand, used examples like mine above, tended to sell for about 50 cents to $3.00, again depending on the amount of freakiness. There were way more MNH stamps sold than used stamps, so judging what some EFO collector will pay on a given day for these used stamps is unknown, but I think they are probably worth a dollar or two each. Major errors do bring big money, but I would not call my stamps major errors, and it appears that true EFO collectors prefer MNH stamps over used.
Linus
1 Member
likes this post.
Login to Like.
and if you find used ones on full cover, don't soak them off!
Login to Like
this post
Tom - these recent oddities were all on close-cut clippings when I received them, not on covers, but good point, if I find one on cover, I will keep it that way.
Scanned below is today's "oddity" discovery while putting away stamps I just soaked. The 32 cent Alexander Calder issue from 1998 is Scott #3202. Look at the gray swirling shadow under the three-legged artwork. I have 9 used copies of this stamp, yet I was able to put together a progression of almost no shadow on the left stamp to full gray shadow on the right stamp. I soak in lukewarm water, not hot water, to prevent fading on some USA issues of this time period, but this find is new to me. Kind of freaky!
Linus
4 Members
like this post.
Login to Like.
Sometimes an EFO gets elevated by catalog publishers (I have yet to figure out the criteria they use) and they get a catalog number. here are a few that I have come across.
Don
1 Member
likes this post.
Login to Like.
2 Members
like this post.
Login to Like.
Above are two ‘inverted’ precancels (two bottom stamps), they are listed in Scotts. You can also find them for sale on eBay as ‘rare’ like here
https://www.ebay.com/itm/1384-Variety-XF-NH-WITH-INVERTED-PRECANCEL-RARE/170988733679
But all is not what it appears with these. Most experts now believe that these were printers waste and are not true errors or EFOs. There is evidence that these were stolen/slipped out the back door of the at the printer and there may be a considerable number of them that have not yet surfaced. This is one EFO/error which you have to be very careful with, caution should be used and certainly do not pay anyone hundreds of dollars for them.
Don
1 Member
likes this post.
Login to Like.
Lovely EFOs.
David
1 Member
likes this post.
Login to Like.
David:
Might I be the first to compliment you on your spiffy - nay,dapper - new profile pick.
Darryl
1 Member
likes this post.
Login to Like.
Found this one before I soaked it and changed my mind, will keep it as is. Looks like SG 949, no phosphor bands.
1 Member
likes this post.
Login to Like.
From my collection, here is another cover saved out of the trash can in 1999 that is kind of freaky. The second scan shows the stamp close up, freak on top, and a normal stamp on the bottom. I will not be soaking this one off cover, that's for sure.
Linus
Login to Like
this post
great find, Gary
"clipped wings Bird of Paradise" in case we're looking for poetic name for this EFO
2 Members
like this post.
Login to Like.
Thanks, David. Great name for my EFO cover.
I happened to find these 3 stamps today to add to my EFO collection.
Linus
Login to Like
this post
I'm a fan of EFO's, here's a few of my favourite Australian finds
1 Member
likes this post.
Login to Like.
Absolutely delightful. Thanks to all for the posts.
Dan C.
1 Member
likes this post.
Login to Like.
This reminds we of the first stamps I sold ever, as a kid. Back then I was only interested in exchanges and expanding my collection (same as today). There comes that fellow from Germany who is building a highly specialized collection of Bulgaria and is looking for perforation errors, misprints and what not. He had nothing to offer in the way of trade, but was willing to pay in cash. If memory serves me right I could fetch around $7-$10 for EFO's from the 1930's. There were supposedly many errors in that period but I remember I quickly ran out of material to send.
So it sometimes takes only 1 person to form a price and you can be surprised.
1 Member
likes this post.
Login to Like.
Cougar, that is an interesting perspective, and makes a valid point. I am putting all of my oddities into a collection, and maybe someday it will go to auction, and I will be pleasantly "surprised."
New for today, I found a jumbo stamp lurking in my accumulation. See the scan below. The stamp on top is extra wide compared to the narrow one on the bottom. Most examples are somewhere in between these two extremes. At first I thought the jumbo had an extra emerging star on the far right edge, but no luck, it is just a scuff mark made by the USPS mail sorter. Into my oddity collection it goes...
Linus
Login to Like
this post
Today I will share some recent odd stamps I found, as well as a few I found years ago, while soaking stamp mixtures. Does anyone else soak stamps regularly? I am a digger, a certain kind of stamp collector that likes digging through the mess of a mixture, and soaking stamps off paper. If so, please share those odd "nuggets" you have mined from the boxes and bags of stamps on paper that you acquire. I just found the lighthouse with the date on the left today, and the one cent root of democracy with the 1 on the left last week. The 32 cent flag over field with two 1995 dates I found earlier this year. The rest I found years ago. Although not valuable stamps, I still enjoy them, does anyone else?
Linus
8 Members
like this post.
Login to Like.
re: Oddities Found Soaking Mixtures
Hi Linus,
You have entered the realm of EFO's(errors,freaks,oddities). Beware my friend, it could take over as a collection by itself. I, too, am most captured by this area.
Best,
Dan C.
Login to Like
this post
re: Oddities Found Soaking Mixtures
Hi Everyone;
Linus said:
"Although not valuable stamps, I still enjoy them, does anyone else?"
Here is where I'll have to disagree with you, in a non-harsh and friendly way of course.
I think it is because collectors are so hung up on the Scott catalog as being the bible of
stamp values, that these types of errors are considered to be not very valuable, by some
collectors. Also just because they are not listed in Scott, doesn't mean they are not collectible.
I have several dozen auction catalogs. The fancy ones with lovely color pictures, from
auction houses like Nutmeg, Regency and several others. If they thought these types of
errors to be of not much value they would not display full color photos of them. These
auction houses typically only illustrate the better material that will fetch a nice price
and a nice commission. They only illustrate a fraction of their lots, saving space for
the better material.
The prices that these stamps are bringing are by no means small, and just because they do
not seem very valuable to you, does not mean they are not of great value to others. So
you should get your hands on some of these catalogs, so you can get a better idea of the
realistic value that they are.
Still just sortin'....
TuskenRaider
4 Members
like this post.
Login to Like.
01:48:41pm
re: Oddities Found Soaking Mixtures
This activity is something I've never thought of, but it sounds intriguing. I've only had one freak and I put it beside the right stamp in my album. But if I had a bunch I think I'd create a place Back of the Book for them.
Once in a while, I see stamps on paper sold by the pound on EBay. If I have time, I might buy a few pounds and also look for freaks.
Finally, talking of value..When I get something I didn't have, then it has value. Prices are only the means to get stuff.
2 Members
like this post.
Login to Like.
re: Oddities Found Soaking Mixtures
The EFOs shown above all have a market value of $5 to $10 each*. I think they make great 'extra' items in any collection or album, adding interest and making an album stand out from others.
Don
*No need to use catalogs, simply look for current prices paid for similar stamps.
2 Members
like this post.
Login to Like.
re: Oddities Found Soaking Mixtures
On the basis that they are "as issued" by the postal authorities, should they take a rightful place in an album alongside the watermark, perforation etc varieties and plate errors which we all dutifully search for and collect.
Just a thought.
Login to Like
this post
Auctions
re: Oddities Found Soaking Mixtures
great, if they're worth $5 to $10 each, I'll offer all my similar stamps at $2.50 each, and you got an immediate 100 to 400% profit. contact me privately to arrange details
David
Login to Like
this post
re: Oddities Found Soaking Mixtures
Thanks for all the comments and discussion on my oddities. I spent some time looking on Ebay at "sold" items under a search of "EFO" in the Stamps section. The conclusion I find is that MNH freak stamps like this sell between about $3 to $12, depending on how drastic the freak is shifted. (More freaky = more money.) One the other hand, used examples like mine above, tended to sell for about 50 cents to $3.00, again depending on the amount of freakiness. There were way more MNH stamps sold than used stamps, so judging what some EFO collector will pay on a given day for these used stamps is unknown, but I think they are probably worth a dollar or two each. Major errors do bring big money, but I would not call my stamps major errors, and it appears that true EFO collectors prefer MNH stamps over used.
Linus
1 Member
likes this post.
Login to Like.
Approvals
re: Oddities Found Soaking Mixtures
and if you find used ones on full cover, don't soak them off!
Login to Like
this post
re: Oddities Found Soaking Mixtures
Tom - these recent oddities were all on close-cut clippings when I received them, not on covers, but good point, if I find one on cover, I will keep it that way.
Scanned below is today's "oddity" discovery while putting away stamps I just soaked. The 32 cent Alexander Calder issue from 1998 is Scott #3202. Look at the gray swirling shadow under the three-legged artwork. I have 9 used copies of this stamp, yet I was able to put together a progression of almost no shadow on the left stamp to full gray shadow on the right stamp. I soak in lukewarm water, not hot water, to prevent fading on some USA issues of this time period, but this find is new to me. Kind of freaky!
Linus
4 Members
like this post.
Login to Like.
re: Oddities Found Soaking Mixtures
Sometimes an EFO gets elevated by catalog publishers (I have yet to figure out the criteria they use) and they get a catalog number. here are a few that I have come across.
Don
1 Member
likes this post.
Login to Like.
re: Oddities Found Soaking Mixtures
2 Members
like this post.
Login to Like.
re: Oddities Found Soaking Mixtures
Above are two ‘inverted’ precancels (two bottom stamps), they are listed in Scotts. You can also find them for sale on eBay as ‘rare’ like here
https://www.ebay.com/itm/1384-Variety-XF-NH-WITH-INVERTED-PRECANCEL-RARE/170988733679
But all is not what it appears with these. Most experts now believe that these were printers waste and are not true errors or EFOs. There is evidence that these were stolen/slipped out the back door of the at the printer and there may be a considerable number of them that have not yet surfaced. This is one EFO/error which you have to be very careful with, caution should be used and certainly do not pay anyone hundreds of dollars for them.
Don
1 Member
likes this post.
Login to Like.
re: Oddities Found Soaking Mixtures
Lovely EFOs.
David
1 Member
likes this post.
Login to Like.
re: Oddities Found Soaking Mixtures
David:
Might I be the first to compliment you on your spiffy - nay,dapper - new profile pick.
Darryl
1 Member
likes this post.
Login to Like.
re: Oddities Found Soaking Mixtures
Found this one before I soaked it and changed my mind, will keep it as is. Looks like SG 949, no phosphor bands.
1 Member
likes this post.
Login to Like.
re: Oddities Found Soaking Mixtures
From my collection, here is another cover saved out of the trash can in 1999 that is kind of freaky. The second scan shows the stamp close up, freak on top, and a normal stamp on the bottom. I will not be soaking this one off cover, that's for sure.
Linus
Login to Like
this post
Auctions
re: Oddities Found Soaking Mixtures
great find, Gary
"clipped wings Bird of Paradise" in case we're looking for poetic name for this EFO
2 Members
like this post.
Login to Like.
re: Oddities Found Soaking Mixtures
Thanks, David. Great name for my EFO cover.
I happened to find these 3 stamps today to add to my EFO collection.
Linus
Login to Like
this post
re: Oddities Found Soaking Mixtures
I'm a fan of EFO's, here's a few of my favourite Australian finds
1 Member
likes this post.
Login to Like.
re: Oddities Found Soaking Mixtures
Absolutely delightful. Thanks to all for the posts.
Dan C.
1 Member
likes this post.
Login to Like.
Approvals
re: Oddities Found Soaking Mixtures
This reminds we of the first stamps I sold ever, as a kid. Back then I was only interested in exchanges and expanding my collection (same as today). There comes that fellow from Germany who is building a highly specialized collection of Bulgaria and is looking for perforation errors, misprints and what not. He had nothing to offer in the way of trade, but was willing to pay in cash. If memory serves me right I could fetch around $7-$10 for EFO's from the 1930's. There were supposedly many errors in that period but I remember I quickly ran out of material to send.
So it sometimes takes only 1 person to form a price and you can be surprised.
1 Member
likes this post.
Login to Like.
re: Oddities Found Soaking Mixtures
Cougar, that is an interesting perspective, and makes a valid point. I am putting all of my oddities into a collection, and maybe someday it will go to auction, and I will be pleasantly "surprised."
New for today, I found a jumbo stamp lurking in my accumulation. See the scan below. The stamp on top is extra wide compared to the narrow one on the bottom. Most examples are somewhere in between these two extremes. At first I thought the jumbo had an extra emerging star on the far right edge, but no luck, it is just a scuff mark made by the USPS mail sorter. Into my oddity collection it goes...
Linus
Login to Like
this post