Discussion - Member to Member Sales - Research Center
Discussion - Member to Member Sales - Research Center
I'm Jonathon from Manchester UK.
I have recently aquired a stamp collection myself and my father started when I was a nipper.
Now over 20 years later I have inherited the collection after my father passed and it has grown a lot!
Now comes the task of sorting through it all and trying to put it in some remnants of order. I there are lots from all over the world and not one particular place.
Anyway, I hope to gain experience here and some advise along the way.
Thanks,
Jonathon.
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good luck Jonathan; if you have specific questions, there are many here who can help. of course it's great that, one, you already have some familiarity with stamps from your earlier days and, two, the collection has meaning beyond the stamps.
David
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My only real question is where to start?
By that I mean what would be the best way of organising the collection? (if there is a 'best' place)
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yes, exactly in what interests you most.
So, for instance, as a brit, if you like British stamps, start there. You already know who the pictures are, and the currency, and are likely to have greater access to information, etc.
now, ask more if you need.
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Jonathan,
Is the collection in boxes, bags, albums, or just in a pile? If it isn't sorted at all, it usually helps to do a rough sort by country of issue. Then you can decide what interests you the most and work on that first.
Unless you have an interest in a specific topic (say dogs or scientists or something), sorting by country will at least separate things into smaller piles.
Do you have any reference materials? Catalogs in whatever area you are interested in are very helpful.
Welcome to Stamporama .....
Sally
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There are some in albums but most are in large nvelopes that I believe are unsorted.
As for reference mterials, I have none at the minute.
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if you're going to sort and ID your material, you'll want to start with a catalogue of some sort. I'm more familiar with US catalogues, but Stanley Gibbons is likely your best bet for UK stamps. Get a used one, and pay a fraction of price.
you could also go to a stamp show and buy a used UK album; try to get one that has spaces for all the stamps. YOu can also supplement it with stock cards when you have lots of duplicates.
This presumes you start with one country, and i'm presuming GB, but you can do any country. It also presumes you and your dad collected stamps rather than covers.
if any of my presumptions don't match your reality, correct me. And feel free to keep asking.
David
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08:07:27am
Hello and welcome Jonathon. You have come to the right place to get help.
Alyn
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Hi and welcome aboard the SOR cruise ship. You are about to find out just how addictive and rewarding stamp collecting is for most of us here at SOR.
Mike
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I think just starting one country at a time may be the way forward, I still have to go through absolutely everything to order them into countries and take it from there.
Looking at catalogues, do I need to get one from a specific year or should I look at as close a date to present as possible?
Thanks all for all the help and advise.
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all catalogues list everything up to that point (although a 2010 cat usually goes up to 2008, so it's a little misleading). You do NOT need a current 2014 catalogue, especially as your collection ended several years ago before you inherited it. I'd look for the most recent catalogue that's inexpensive. Mine are typically 3-5 years out of date. at some point, if you love what you're doing, you can get more current.
If it is GB with which you're going to start, ask for some guidance in the best catalogues and where to get them; it's well outside my expertise.
I do have an old 1996 GB and Commonwealth catalogue; i don't think it's worth the cost of postage to you, but if it is, contact me off line and we can discuss. it's likely WAY too old, but at least all the GB stuff is in on place.
David
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First, welcome to SOR! Very good folks here and lots of knowledge.
I would like to suggest another way to classify and value your collection. Consider buying the Stanley Gibbons Commonwealth and British Empire Catalogue; this lists all GB and Empire/Commonwealth stamps up to 1970, by country. The 2013 volume costs about 80 pounds at the SG site, and looks like this:
but you can get copies for less elsewhere. This will give you a good starting point for the majority of the more high valued stamps from these countries. It also has a good introduction to watermarks, cancels, etc. used in this area. I recommend a later edition because it will give you an idea of value as well as classification.
Similarly, Scott publishes a Specialized Classic catalogue that is worldwide in scope but for British stamps, I find the SG catalogue more comprehensive.
Just a thought.
Cheers,
Peter
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Brit commonwealth Unitrade 2014 edition $33.95 cdn at FVH stamps
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Thanks a lot guys for the suggestions, As soon as I have gone through all of them and separated them into seperate countries etc I will invest in a catalogue and really start going through them.
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Wow, starting to go through the box full that I got from my old man and I'm coming across packet after packet of unsorted stamps that he bought from fairs and shops.
Looks like I'm going to have fun here!
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For sure ! I think sorting might be be favorite part of our hobby. Seeing what beautiful mysteries await in each glassine and packet. Where it comes from, age, what images each country wanted to honor...Ithen throw in the fact that just maybe it is worth a buck or two.. Which ones might be wthe odd variety or color...I get in a little geek frenzy just thinking about it :-) !
Have a blast ! Any questions u have I sure will be able to be answered here. The people are very knowledgable.
Jere
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Hello Asur84
I know your predicament well.
In the Summer of 2011, I was fortunate enough to buy two medium sized plastic tubs full of loose stamps WW all off paper. It consisted of both mint and used, with definitives and commemorative stamps. The previous owner stated that there were at least 400,000 stamps! He wasn't kidding either.
What I did first was, sort by country, then once that was done, I broke them down into sets etc. After about a year and a half of sorting, I am still sorting by sets, but slowly getting there.
Have fun, I know I did.
Chimo
Bujutsu
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Thats exactly what I am doing, I can break down into sets as soon as I pick up some catalogues to reference.
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I have a set of scott catalogs that the pictures of the stamps are in black and white. What year did they start using color pictures? I think would make a big difference in looking for these catalogs.
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03:16:32pm
Hi all,
I'm Jonathon from Manchester UK.
I have recently aquired a stamp collection myself and my father started when I was a nipper.
Now over 20 years later I have inherited the collection after my father passed and it has grown a lot!
Now comes the task of sorting through it all and trying to put it in some remnants of order. I there are lots from all over the world and not one particular place.
Anyway, I hope to gain experience here and some advise along the way.
Thanks,
Jonathon.
Login to Like
this post
Auctions
re: Hi all from Manchester UK
good luck Jonathan; if you have specific questions, there are many here who can help. of course it's great that, one, you already have some familiarity with stamps from your earlier days and, two, the collection has meaning beyond the stamps.
David
Login to Like
this post
03:27:52pm
re: Hi all from Manchester UK
My only real question is where to start?
By that I mean what would be the best way of organising the collection? (if there is a 'best' place)
Login to Like
this post
Auctions
re: Hi all from Manchester UK
yes, exactly in what interests you most.
So, for instance, as a brit, if you like British stamps, start there. You already know who the pictures are, and the currency, and are likely to have greater access to information, etc.
now, ask more if you need.
Login to Like
this post
re: Hi all from Manchester UK
Jonathan,
Is the collection in boxes, bags, albums, or just in a pile? If it isn't sorted at all, it usually helps to do a rough sort by country of issue. Then you can decide what interests you the most and work on that first.
Unless you have an interest in a specific topic (say dogs or scientists or something), sorting by country will at least separate things into smaller piles.
Do you have any reference materials? Catalogs in whatever area you are interested in are very helpful.
Welcome to Stamporama .....
Sally
Login to Like
this post
06:15:52pm
re: Hi all from Manchester UK
There are some in albums but most are in large nvelopes that I believe are unsorted.
As for reference mterials, I have none at the minute.
Login to Like
this post
Auctions
re: Hi all from Manchester UK
if you're going to sort and ID your material, you'll want to start with a catalogue of some sort. I'm more familiar with US catalogues, but Stanley Gibbons is likely your best bet for UK stamps. Get a used one, and pay a fraction of price.
you could also go to a stamp show and buy a used UK album; try to get one that has spaces for all the stamps. YOu can also supplement it with stock cards when you have lots of duplicates.
This presumes you start with one country, and i'm presuming GB, but you can do any country. It also presumes you and your dad collected stamps rather than covers.
if any of my presumptions don't match your reality, correct me. And feel free to keep asking.
David
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webmaster for the ISWSC http://iswsc.org and ATA http://www.americantopicalassn.org
12 Nov 2013
08:07:27am
re: Hi all from Manchester UK
Hello and welcome Jonathon. You have come to the right place to get help.
Alyn
Login to Like
this post
re: Hi all from Manchester UK
Hi and welcome aboard the SOR cruise ship. You are about to find out just how addictive and rewarding stamp collecting is for most of us here at SOR.
Mike
Login to Like
this post
01:39:06pm
re: Hi all from Manchester UK
I think just starting one country at a time may be the way forward, I still have to go through absolutely everything to order them into countries and take it from there.
Looking at catalogues, do I need to get one from a specific year or should I look at as close a date to present as possible?
Thanks all for all the help and advise.
Login to Like
this post
Auctions
re: Hi all from Manchester UK
all catalogues list everything up to that point (although a 2010 cat usually goes up to 2008, so it's a little misleading). You do NOT need a current 2014 catalogue, especially as your collection ended several years ago before you inherited it. I'd look for the most recent catalogue that's inexpensive. Mine are typically 3-5 years out of date. at some point, if you love what you're doing, you can get more current.
If it is GB with which you're going to start, ask for some guidance in the best catalogues and where to get them; it's well outside my expertise.
I do have an old 1996 GB and Commonwealth catalogue; i don't think it's worth the cost of postage to you, but if it is, contact me off line and we can discuss. it's likely WAY too old, but at least all the GB stuff is in on place.
David
Login to Like
this post
07:31:21am
re: Hi all from Manchester UK
First, welcome to SOR! Very good folks here and lots of knowledge.
I would like to suggest another way to classify and value your collection. Consider buying the Stanley Gibbons Commonwealth and British Empire Catalogue; this lists all GB and Empire/Commonwealth stamps up to 1970, by country. The 2013 volume costs about 80 pounds at the SG site, and looks like this:
but you can get copies for less elsewhere. This will give you a good starting point for the majority of the more high valued stamps from these countries. It also has a good introduction to watermarks, cancels, etc. used in this area. I recommend a later edition because it will give you an idea of value as well as classification.
Similarly, Scott publishes a Specialized Classic catalogue that is worldwide in scope but for British stamps, I find the SG catalogue more comprehensive.
Just a thought.
Cheers,
Peter
Login to Like
this post
01:46:48am
re: Hi all from Manchester UK
Brit commonwealth Unitrade 2014 edition $33.95 cdn at FVH stamps
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this post
01:52:32pm
re: Hi all from Manchester UK
Thanks a lot guys for the suggestions, As soon as I have gone through all of them and separated them into seperate countries etc I will invest in a catalogue and really start going through them.
Login to Like
this post
10:35:51am
re: Hi all from Manchester UK
Wow, starting to go through the box full that I got from my old man and I'm coming across packet after packet of unsorted stamps that he bought from fairs and shops.
Looks like I'm going to have fun here!
Login to Like
this post
07:32:11am
re: Hi all from Manchester UK
For sure ! I think sorting might be be favorite part of our hobby. Seeing what beautiful mysteries await in each glassine and packet. Where it comes from, age, what images each country wanted to honor...Ithen throw in the fact that just maybe it is worth a buck or two.. Which ones might be wthe odd variety or color...I get in a little geek frenzy just thinking about it :-) !
Have a blast ! Any questions u have I sure will be able to be answered here. The people are very knowledgable.
Jere
Login to Like
this post
re: Hi all from Manchester UK
Hello Asur84
I know your predicament well.
In the Summer of 2011, I was fortunate enough to buy two medium sized plastic tubs full of loose stamps WW all off paper. It consisted of both mint and used, with definitives and commemorative stamps. The previous owner stated that there were at least 400,000 stamps! He wasn't kidding either.
What I did first was, sort by country, then once that was done, I broke them down into sets etc. After about a year and a half of sorting, I am still sorting by sets, but slowly getting there.
Have fun, I know I did.
Chimo
Bujutsu
Login to Like
this post
10:02:03am
re: Hi all from Manchester UK
Thats exactly what I am doing, I can break down into sets as soon as I pick up some catalogues to reference.
Login to Like
this post
re: Hi all from Manchester UK
I have a set of scott catalogs that the pictures of the stamps are in black and white. What year did they start using color pictures? I think would make a big difference in looking for these catalogs.
Login to Like
this post