Discussion - Member to Member Sales - Research Center
Discussion - Member to Member Sales - Research Center
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I know what you mean.
Scotts leaves us wanting when it comes to descriptions.
Some of what you mention are only vague in their listings.
I believe the Specialized is not specialized enough.
For years I wodered what a broken hat columbian was,or a prarie dog variety.
After 50 or 60 years,Scott finally showed images of these two.
The only image of a variety for W/F issues is the roset.(and this only in recent catalogs)
But if you are to do advanced study and get into the really odd,and sometimes pricey, varieties of stamp issues,,,,you will need better books on the subject.
There are several on W/F available. I dont have them,but several collectors and specialist have listed Barns and Noble as a reliable source for such books.
Scott does show what to look for in the types 1 thru 5 etc.But not the cracks,cuts,double impressions.I think they figure if you are buying their Specialized catalog,you are some sort of specialist,and dont need precise info.
You already know what a double impression looks like,you just need to know which stamp has one for you to search for.
Can anyone tell us what the title of those W/F specialty books are and where to locate them???
TOM
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Thanks Tom. Glad to learn that I'm not missing something obvious and others run into the same thing. But its not so much the W/F series that pose the problem. Those "Types" are well documented. Rather, the issue I have are with the many others that are scattered throughout the catalog. Occasionally a plate number is referenced but that doesn't help with a single stamp. Are double impressions, gripper cracks, plate cracks, etc. easy to spot?
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No, those varieties are not easy to spot.You need high magnification to make it easier,if you know what you are looking for in the first place.
Those plate number references you mention,for postive ID are the only way to ID that particular stamp.Without it,it could be the more common stamp.
When I worked with the W/F series,I used my old camcorder,(you know , the ones you held on your shoulder,about the size of a Mack truck),hooked up to my 32 inch TV,and also inserted a vhs tape to record the images.
Mounted a black background plate ,with indirect lighting,and focused in on the stamp.With auto- focus I could enlarge to a really big picture on my TV screen that was a sharp picture. I found ,or didnt find ,a lot of those varieties that I otherwise would have passed up as the common variety.
I imagine you could do the same today with the mini cams,hooked up to a TV.
Yes,if you have scanning for your computer you can scan and observe on your computer screen,but any enlargement will be a duplicate of the scan,resizeing always distorts the image,not an enlarged,focused picture.
With modern equiptment,you could transfer a focussed minicam picture to disc,and play that on your computer.
I'm sure others have similar experience with imaging. Maybe they can expand on this topic.
TOM
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Larry, Scott's imagery is pretty awful, and, with the US Specialized, where they should be the bible, there's no excuse. They provide some description, and usually an image, but nothing against which to compare it. Tom's use of the WF's is great, because I find Scott maddening here in trying to identify the different dies. Tom is also good in giving you specific tools with which to help. There ARE many specialized books, pamphlets, and even internet sites; Gary Griifiths has individual monographs published on each of the low denominations in the Washington series that gives far more explanation.
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You can get a pretty big image of a stamp, using a scanner, set to say 600 dpi (dots per inch). This has been helpful to me for looking at possible variety marks, etc.
Bruce
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Cant recall when,nor how to access archives to see when,but I posted an article on a new(then) type of picture concept where instead of the dot(round)pixels,the imaging was done with square pixels.
A beter way to enlarge,compress,and resize that does not distort the image.
Too see how this works,
take 9 coins,make a square image of them( 3X3).Now enlarge the picture.You will see large areas of white between the circles.Compress the image to get rid of the white areas.To do this you will be overlapping the circles(dots).The picture becomes distorted,because the parts overlapped are not visible.The picture changes.
Now,,take 9 square items(cut 9 out of paper or card stock).Scan that, enlarge,then compress to get rid of the white areas.You can condense ,butt the squares up close,to get rid of the white areas,without overlapping the squares.No distortion of the image.Each square is still the original imagery.When done,it is a clear,clean,accurate picture of the origianal,but enlarged.
TOM
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I scan the stamp at a much higher resolution and then invert the image in Photoshop, placing it next to the original scan. ( combining the images ) Now I can compare the same stamp and "usually" the flaw is noticeable.
I agree about Scott not putting enough data in their Specialized book ... what part of specialized don't they understand?
Perry
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To identify the early US issues here is a book and web url where you can get it :
Manual & Identifications Guide to the US Regular Issues 1847 through 1934 by C. N. Micarelli
2001 edition 163 pages, cloth, $37.50
visit - www.pbbooks.com
I have been meaning to get this one and the other one by the same author which is for W-Fs only.
As for checking flaws or die types in W-Fs, the higher the scanning resolution the better chances of sighting the imperfection or die type.
It is better to select the scan area in the preview window before the actual scan, this scan area should be of the relevant section of the stamp where the posibility of the imperfection or die type difference is most likely. Scan this picture in 1200 dpi - you can place two or three stamps side by side in one straight line for one such partial scan.
Personally I use to put 5 similar stamps in one row and scan the relevant area at 1200 dpi - and so far haven't found anything worthwhile in my searches :-)
Saleem
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Larryc3a
I learned how to identify plate varieties by using this book "Encyclopedia of Plate Varieties on U.S. Bureau-Printed Postage Stamps" by Loran C. French.
Now this book will give you all the information and line drawing and can be applied (basic information) to any stamp from any country.
I was lucky enough to shop at the same stamp shop where Mr. French lived, so I learned a lot in my time there.
DAVID THOMPSON
MSGT/USAF/RETIRED
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Hi Everyone;
@ Harley;
There are no such thing as round pixels. By definition "pixels" is computer terminology and
is an abbreviation for "Picture Elements". Take a bit-mapped image and zoom in to 1600%,
I use "Corel Photo-Paint" v8.0. There are only square bits of color, and no circles.
Color television only used round picture elements in the old Cathode Ray Tube screens that
had metal shadow masks inside the picture tube with thousands of little round holes. They
now use LCD (early flat screens used Liquid Crystal Display) or LED (Light Emitting Diodes)
flat screens without round pixels.
Take a small clear LED, and magnify the actual chip inside until you can see the connecting
wires. The ones in flashlights is a good example. The chip is square not round. It is square
because that is the easiest to manufacture. Round LEDs would be impossibly expensive to
manufacture!
Scanners for computers (and digital still/video cameras) use a device called a CCD or
Charge-Coupled Device. This device has one or more rows of square CCDs, a type of light
sensitive semi-conductor, like an LED but in reverse, and turns light into an electrical signal.
Printed matter using CMYK (Cyan-Magenta-Yellow-Black) inks also show evidence of round
picture elements. So stamps printed this way will also show these elements. But no
computer has any such thing as round pixels. Perhaps you are incorrectly using the term
"pixel". Or maybe your computer is from a different Universe, or made in China? 
@ Everyone;
You are all right on about Scotts feeble attempt to show stamp plate varieties. One of our
newest members on here "USAFE7" has some of the best images of plate varieties and of
stamps in general that I've ever seen. We should give Scott the recommendation that they
hire him for all their imaging jobs and descriptions.
Happy New Years everyone from all us sand people....
TuskenRaider
1 Member
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In the Scott Specialized Cat of US Stamps, I often see varieties listed as "double transfer"; or perhaps "cracked plate", or maybe "recut". How does one identify these things? All I'm doing now is looking very closely for some sort of blurry lines or imperfections in the engraving but if these things are as subtle as the different W-F types, I know I won't recognize them unless I know specifically what I am looking for.
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02:34:16am
re: How to identify double transfers, cracked plates,or recuts?
I know what you mean.
Scotts leaves us wanting when it comes to descriptions.
Some of what you mention are only vague in their listings.
I believe the Specialized is not specialized enough.
For years I wodered what a broken hat columbian was,or a prarie dog variety.
After 50 or 60 years,Scott finally showed images of these two.
The only image of a variety for W/F issues is the roset.(and this only in recent catalogs)
But if you are to do advanced study and get into the really odd,and sometimes pricey, varieties of stamp issues,,,,you will need better books on the subject.
There are several on W/F available. I dont have them,but several collectors and specialist have listed Barns and Noble as a reliable source for such books.
Scott does show what to look for in the types 1 thru 5 etc.But not the cracks,cuts,double impressions.I think they figure if you are buying their Specialized catalog,you are some sort of specialist,and dont need precise info.
You already know what a double impression looks like,you just need to know which stamp has one for you to search for.
Can anyone tell us what the title of those W/F specialty books are and where to locate them???
TOM
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re: How to identify double transfers, cracked plates,or recuts?
Thanks Tom. Glad to learn that I'm not missing something obvious and others run into the same thing. But its not so much the W/F series that pose the problem. Those "Types" are well documented. Rather, the issue I have are with the many others that are scattered throughout the catalog. Occasionally a plate number is referenced but that doesn't help with a single stamp. Are double impressions, gripper cracks, plate cracks, etc. easy to spot?
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03:48:24am
re: How to identify double transfers, cracked plates,or recuts?
No, those varieties are not easy to spot.You need high magnification to make it easier,if you know what you are looking for in the first place.
Those plate number references you mention,for postive ID are the only way to ID that particular stamp.Without it,it could be the more common stamp.
When I worked with the W/F series,I used my old camcorder,(you know , the ones you held on your shoulder,about the size of a Mack truck),hooked up to my 32 inch TV,and also inserted a vhs tape to record the images.
Mounted a black background plate ,with indirect lighting,and focused in on the stamp.With auto- focus I could enlarge to a really big picture on my TV screen that was a sharp picture. I found ,or didnt find ,a lot of those varieties that I otherwise would have passed up as the common variety.
I imagine you could do the same today with the mini cams,hooked up to a TV.
Yes,if you have scanning for your computer you can scan and observe on your computer screen,but any enlargement will be a duplicate of the scan,resizeing always distorts the image,not an enlarged,focused picture.
With modern equiptment,you could transfer a focussed minicam picture to disc,and play that on your computer.
I'm sure others have similar experience with imaging. Maybe they can expand on this topic.
TOM
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Auctions
re: How to identify double transfers, cracked plates,or recuts?
Larry, Scott's imagery is pretty awful, and, with the US Specialized, where they should be the bible, there's no excuse. They provide some description, and usually an image, but nothing against which to compare it. Tom's use of the WF's is great, because I find Scott maddening here in trying to identify the different dies. Tom is also good in giving you specific tools with which to help. There ARE many specialized books, pamphlets, and even internet sites; Gary Griifiths has individual monographs published on each of the low denominations in the Washington series that gives far more explanation.
Login to Like
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01:48:11pm
re: How to identify double transfers, cracked plates,or recuts?
You can get a pretty big image of a stamp, using a scanner, set to say 600 dpi (dots per inch). This has been helpful to me for looking at possible variety marks, etc.
Bruce
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01:56:00pm
re: How to identify double transfers, cracked plates,or recuts?
Cant recall when,nor how to access archives to see when,but I posted an article on a new(then) type of picture concept where instead of the dot(round)pixels,the imaging was done with square pixels.
A beter way to enlarge,compress,and resize that does not distort the image.
Too see how this works,
take 9 coins,make a square image of them( 3X3).Now enlarge the picture.You will see large areas of white between the circles.Compress the image to get rid of the white areas.To do this you will be overlapping the circles(dots).The picture becomes distorted,because the parts overlapped are not visible.The picture changes.
Now,,take 9 square items(cut 9 out of paper or card stock).Scan that, enlarge,then compress to get rid of the white areas.You can condense ,butt the squares up close,to get rid of the white areas,without overlapping the squares.No distortion of the image.Each square is still the original imagery.When done,it is a clear,clean,accurate picture of the origianal,but enlarged.
TOM
Login to Like
this post
re: How to identify double transfers, cracked plates,or recuts?
I scan the stamp at a much higher resolution and then invert the image in Photoshop, placing it next to the original scan. ( combining the images ) Now I can compare the same stamp and "usually" the flaw is noticeable.
I agree about Scott not putting enough data in their Specialized book ... what part of specialized don't they understand?
Perry
Login to Like
this post
re: How to identify double transfers, cracked plates,or recuts?
To identify the early US issues here is a book and web url where you can get it :
Manual & Identifications Guide to the US Regular Issues 1847 through 1934 by C. N. Micarelli
2001 edition 163 pages, cloth, $37.50
visit - www.pbbooks.com
I have been meaning to get this one and the other one by the same author which is for W-Fs only.
As for checking flaws or die types in W-Fs, the higher the scanning resolution the better chances of sighting the imperfection or die type.
It is better to select the scan area in the preview window before the actual scan, this scan area should be of the relevant section of the stamp where the posibility of the imperfection or die type difference is most likely. Scan this picture in 1200 dpi - you can place two or three stamps side by side in one straight line for one such partial scan.
Personally I use to put 5 similar stamps in one row and scan the relevant area at 1200 dpi - and so far haven't found anything worthwhile in my searches :-)
Saleem
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01:08:12am
re: How to identify double transfers, cracked plates,or recuts?
Larryc3a
I learned how to identify plate varieties by using this book "Encyclopedia of Plate Varieties on U.S. Bureau-Printed Postage Stamps" by Loran C. French.
Now this book will give you all the information and line drawing and can be applied (basic information) to any stamp from any country.
I was lucky enough to shop at the same stamp shop where Mr. French lived, so I learned a lot in my time there.
DAVID THOMPSON
MSGT/USAF/RETIRED
Login to Like
this post
re: How to identify double transfers, cracked plates,or recuts?
Hi Everyone;
@ Harley;
There are no such thing as round pixels. By definition "pixels" is computer terminology and
is an abbreviation for "Picture Elements". Take a bit-mapped image and zoom in to 1600%,
I use "Corel Photo-Paint" v8.0. There are only square bits of color, and no circles.
Color television only used round picture elements in the old Cathode Ray Tube screens that
had metal shadow masks inside the picture tube with thousands of little round holes. They
now use LCD (early flat screens used Liquid Crystal Display) or LED (Light Emitting Diodes)
flat screens without round pixels.
Take a small clear LED, and magnify the actual chip inside until you can see the connecting
wires. The ones in flashlights is a good example. The chip is square not round. It is square
because that is the easiest to manufacture. Round LEDs would be impossibly expensive to
manufacture!
Scanners for computers (and digital still/video cameras) use a device called a CCD or
Charge-Coupled Device. This device has one or more rows of square CCDs, a type of light
sensitive semi-conductor, like an LED but in reverse, and turns light into an electrical signal.
Printed matter using CMYK (Cyan-Magenta-Yellow-Black) inks also show evidence of round
picture elements. So stamps printed this way will also show these elements. But no
computer has any such thing as round pixels. Perhaps you are incorrectly using the term
"pixel". Or maybe your computer is from a different Universe, or made in China?
@ Everyone;
You are all right on about Scotts feeble attempt to show stamp plate varieties. One of our
newest members on here "USAFE7" has some of the best images of plate varieties and of
stamps in general that I've ever seen. We should give Scott the recommendation that they
hire him for all their imaging jobs and descriptions.
Happy New Years everyone from all us sand people....
TuskenRaider
1 Member
likes this post.
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