John Collects Stamps - Episode 9 - Affordable GB Victorian Stamps

In this episode I discuss affordable Victorian stamps. I also open some incoming mail.
A history of Britain in thirty-six postage stamps:
• A History of Britain i...
Check out OuDadStamps for some great content:
www.youtube.com/@ourdadsstamp...

[@mikelee9137]

Hi John,and greetings from Downunder! I realise this is a bit late, and someone may have beaten me with this info, but the postmark on the folded letter is an early diamond shaped obliterator cancel of Dublin (and the number is 186 - used in Dublin). These are usually referred to as the 1844 obliterators, being the year they first were introduced, and replaced the Maltese Cross cancels. Generally speaking English & Welsh are oval shaped, Scotland had rectangular, and Irish are diamond shaped. Hope this info is helpful!

[@Stuart36]

It's such a shame we've lost this knowledgeable stamp collector from our community

[@chrislovesstamps]

I wholeheartedly agree. Was just watching this video again, just as a pure learning tool. Or a reference.

[@Icarusika]

You do great. New fan ;)

[@mattys1467]

Another excellent video 👏 I also use BB Stamps. I've known Brian since I was a teenager. I personally use his price guide as the true values philatelic guide for GB stamps, as opposed to SG catalogues. I agree the perforate penny reds are largely affordable, except plate 225!

[@johncollectsstamps]

I find them very useful. Their stocks of Machins have helped me fill many gaps in my collection.

[@timothymarshall5]

Very informative as usual really good content. Happy new year to you too.

[@johncollectsstamps]

Happy new year!

[@JohnPlumpton]

Thanks John, like you I collect Victorian Penny Reds but you dont state that most of them have plate numbers, not only the SG43 group. I know others (ie SG8, SG40 etc) plate numbers are very difficult to establish and have to rely on an expert to sort. I like the way you have set out your stamps in the stockbooks with the SG numbers beside. If you dont mind I will copy this from you, much neater than my present system. Keep the videos going they are great. May I wish you a happy New Year and continued success in collecting.

[@johncollectsstamps]

Yes, I should have clarified the other Penny Red plates, I've read up on plating those, and decided it's something I'm not going to collect. By all means copy away! I'm glad you've enjoyed and commented, thank you.

[@danielste-marie779]

I did not realize that these stamps could be had for a reasonable price. Great video. All the best for the new year.

[@johncollectsstamps]

Thanks for watching. Yes, it's surprising what you can get for your money with a bit of research. Happy New Year to you too.

[@kevincabbage5906]

Thanks and John for another great video on GB stamps...

[@johncollectsstamps]

Glad you enjoyed it

[@SnailmailwithSmokey]

Another amazing video! So much information for collectors of Great Britian like myself, thank you so much John for sharing your knowledge. Now I am off to shop for some Victorian stamps. :)

[@johncollectsstamps]

Glad you enjoyed it, thanks for your support

[@DDepukat]

Nice job. Won a penny black a decade ago and have collected the blues and reds including several reds on covers. Saw your channel when looking up Machins. Happy New Year to you.

[@johncollectsstamps]

Thanks for watching. I love the old line engraved Victorian stamps.

[@ericbond5276]

I'd probably want used Penny Black because it might be less likely a forgery.

[@psarj]

Very nice purchases and video! If you want to do more investigating of Penny Blacks, and be in a position to "plate" your AE copy, an excellent starting point is the book "Guide Lines to the Penny Black" by PC Litchfield. There are usually copies available on EBay, even pdf copies which are a bargain. The book is quite old now, but then so are the stamps. Not a lot has changed since the book came out in 1949. Be warned though: plating the early GB Victorian stamps is a rabbit hole! Once you get started there's no turning back! 😀

[@johncollectsstamps]

Thanks for that, I'll have a look and pick up a copy.

[@Republic4ever714]

Love collecting the Victorian era two pence blues are my favorite I prefer them over the penny blacks.

[@michaelwest1]

Another really good video John, nearly at 400 subscribers. You managed to bag a real bargain with the Jubilee set. Just one question about buying from dealers, what do you think their mark up is? I mean, say you got a better stamp for your collection, like the penny black and you wanted to sell the penny black with 3 good margins, so that you can add something else to your collection with the money from the resale, would you lose much in the difference between what you paid and what a dealer would offer? I hope the question makes sense. Anyway great videos, very, very informative and it's lovely that you share your knowledge.

[@johncollectsstamps]

I expect that a dealer would first grade the stamp according to condition and adjust the purchase price based on leaving some profit for reselling. I'll be keeping hold of both Penny Blacks though, I couldn't part with them now!

[@paulwright-kd7hy]

Pennyred plates are best collected with a cds rather than the usual numeral obliteration and one of yours appears to show just a cds, also check the 177 very carefully, you never know!

[@geraldeade391]

One of my favourite eras, very nice stamps there

[@johncollectsstamps]

Thanks for watching.

[@chrislovesstamps]

John, you made another useful video. I started collecting a year ago. Wasn’t planning on collecting British stamps, but now I want to. As a beginner it is hard to focus on a certain area or areas. I like catalogues, which do you advice to buy that gives me the info I need about the plate numbers and such? Thanks for your videos, and I love how you organised your stamps! Good tip about buying a mixed lot of stamps on ebay. I will also look into BBStamps if they ship to EU. Greetings from The Netherlands. ….and a Happy New Year!

[@johncollectsstamps]

Hi Chris. As a beginner, I'd say you should get the "Collect British Stamps" Catalogue from Stanley Gibbons. It covers all eras upto present day. The new edition has just come out (the 2023 edition). It is £20 cover price. It is the simplest of the SG Catalogues, but a good starting point. Check out OurDadsStamps on KZbin for more detailed info about the Plate numbers.

[@elia.giraffish]

Queen

[@adamhuffman3354]

Penny reds are beautiful. Red however has a tendency to fade overtime. Curious to know what they looked like right after printing.

[@johncollectsstamps]

I'll bet they looked amazing fresh off the presses!

[@watson946]

I recently bought a couple of FU sg43 penny reds, as I'm a beginner in the hobby could you tell me, is it usual to have remnants of hinges on the back? I guess I mean, does the hinge affect the grade, FU in this case?

[@johncollectsstamps]

It's kind of considered "normal" for Victorian used stamps to have been hinged, so that won't affect the FU grade at all. If it were Mint, never used, then the hinge would detract from it's value compared to a Mint Never Hinged (MNH) stamp.

[@watson946]

@@johncollectsstamps thanks, that's good to know.

[@Robertbrown08049]

I have just recently started collecting Great Britain. For the Penny Reds I hear about collecting by plate numbers a lot but I think that it would be interesting to collect all the different letter combinations instead. Is that possible on a budget and do people collect that way? I have not heard anyone mention that.

[@johncollectsstamps]

They were produced on sheets of 240 stamps, running from letters AA to TL. If you chose cheaper plate varieties, then certainly something that could be done over time. Probably a good way to start would be to buy a mixed bundle off eBay. As for cost, you'd have to look at prices and see if it's in your budget.

[@Robertbrown08049]

@@johncollectsstamps I have not heard of people collecting that way. Can I therefore assume that most people don't?

[@Robertbrown08049]

If some plate numbers are expensive and therefore you cannot make a complete collectionI thin that maybe you could get a complete collection of ,letters

[@johncollectsstamps]

@@Robertbrown08049 I believe that people do collect that way, have a look at some Videos on the OurDadsStamps youtube, he mentions it in a video about Penny Reds, I'm sure.

[@johncollectsstamps]

What I meant earlier was to say ignotre the plate numbers, and just focus on the letters, therefore having a mix of plate numbers, but all the letters, that would be the easiest and cheapest way

[@sherrys9088]

Queen