Featured Stamp collection- anything of value?

Hi Kimbert,
I have about 30 stamps that have a great deal of value but for the most part only a fair value. I always thought they would get more valuable but until something happens I wonder.
greg

 

One of the weirdest stories ever. A special kind of stamp collectors.

Couple who bought hundreds of used stamps in charity shops then WASHED them and sold them as NEW on eBay are each jailed for two years - after costing Royal Mail £400,000

https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/ar...-stamps-charity-shops-WASHED-sold-jailed.html

 

How bizarre is that???

From the article RTT referenced:

The couple used a chemical process to remove the cancellation marks on the stamps.
They used white spirit to remove the glue from the back of the stamps, before drying them with talcum powder, putting them on drying racks and spraying them with hairspray 'to make them look better.'

How the heck did they re-apply glue to the backs (or did they?) and how did they package them? I just can't picture people buying individual, loose stamps(???)

 

Hi,
The ones here in the US get a special flurolumence cancellation so even if they are not inked and can not be cleaned and reused. In the "olden" days they could have been cleaned and reused. The Govn thought of that and redid the stamp formula.
For the cheaper stamps of the 1960s and earlier it is not worth doing. The higher stamps of over 5 or 10 dollars it might be worth it.
greg

 

wow wild story! It must take so much work to do all that to each and every stamp!! (Though for that kind of money, maybe not that much work)
I wonder how they thought they wouldn't get caught with a business they were advertising out in the open like that!

 

Hi Davey,
Sorry i answered before the coffee kicked in. I have no idea where that word came from. I meant to say luminescent ink.
greg

 

These days so few stamps are used to actually mail things I'd wonder why anyone would bother counterfeiting them.