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Author
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Topic: What is/how to identify Riser fake covers?
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CAL10PILOT
unregistered
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posted 10-19-2009 01:06 PM
 
I purchased a Michael Collins-signed Gemini 10 cached cover from Regency-Superior two years ago, and have just recently been told that it was "a plugged 9 Riser fake". I have no idea what that means, but I've only been collecting for 30 years.Does anyone else have any info? |
Joe Frasketi
Member Posts: 191
From: Florida USA
Registered: Aug 2003
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posted 10-19-2009 01:46 PM
 
The "plugged 9 cancels" were not made by "Riser", they were made my another dealer. Here is my explaination of "plugged 9 cancels" which appears on my website page of List Notes and abbreviations - A back dated hand cancel from Cape Canaveral, Florida that appears only on a certain dealer's covers. The 9 in the zip code in all the cancellations has the appearance of being filled up, so that the top part of the 9 is "plugged". These are not fake cancels. The dealer was allowed to use the U.S. Postal Service cancellation device to cancel his own covers and he changed the date of the device for the older dates that he wanted. However, since the 9 was plugged up, it appears on the covers he cancelled. A collector can tell which are the back dated covers by looking for the plugged 9 in the hand cancellation.
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micropooz
Member Posts: 1512
From: Washington, DC, USA
Registered: Apr 2003
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posted 10-19-2009 06:39 PM
Joe hit the description right on the head! Also, the Space Unit has a really good CD Study of Suspect Space Covers for sale that shows the Plugged 9's, the Riser fakes, and a lot of other suspect space covers. It's well worth the money! |
Joe Frasketi
Member Posts: 191
From: Florida USA
Registered: Aug 2003
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posted 10-19-2009 08:24 PM
I didn't know if the Space Unit still had the CD available, that's why I didn't mention it. I don't have the CD, only the hard copy that was originally published on these cancels.Believe it or not, I have never had a Gemini 10 plugged 9 cover in my possession and many covers has passed thru my hands. I keep a log book on all of the Orbit cacheted covers that I've received over the years and not one is listed. |
DChudwin
Member Posts: 1096
From: Lincolnshire IL USA
Registered: Aug 2000
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posted 10-19-2009 09:46 PM
Besides the "plugged 9," another characteristic of this postmark is a break in the "C." This hand cancel is characteristic of covers produced by William Ronson in the 1960's under the name of "Orbit Covers." Many "Orbit Covers" bear legitimate postmarks, e.g. machine cancels. It is only the ones with this particular hand cancel that are suspected to be allegedly backdated. Here is a picture of a "plugged 9" postmark taken from Joe Frasketi's pricelist which is an example of a plugged 9 cover:  |
CAL10PILOT
unregistered
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posted 10-20-2009 05:12 PM
Many thanks to all who were so helpful. This hobby gets more and more complicated the longer I'm in it. I never had a clue that someone was putting out something less than original for covers. I can't imagine what financial gain could have been made without flooding the market. Thanks to the keen eyes out there. |
SpaceSteve
Member Posts: 428
From: San Antonio TX, USA
Registered: Apr 2004
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posted 10-23-2009 12:34 AM
Does anyone know what the most recent date is for these "plugged-9" covers?The reason I ask, is that I just looked in my albums, and discovered "plugged-9" Orbit Covers for Apollo II, III, 8, 9, 10 and 12. The Apollo 12 cover is signed by Alan Bean. When did this dealer actually apply the postmarks to the covers? |
DChudwin
Member Posts: 1096
From: Lincolnshire IL USA
Registered: Aug 2000
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posted 10-23-2009 09:04 AM
William Ronson, who was suspected of allegedly backdating some of the covers he sold under brand name "Orbit Covers," was arrested and imprisoned in 1972 in connection with the death of his wife (see William Ronson, Petitioner-Appellee, v. Commissioner Of Correction Of The State Of New York, Respondent-Appellant. United States Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit, June 19, 1979,604 F.2d 176).This put "Orbit Covers" out of business, so most of the "plugged 9" covers are from the 1960's. |
Ken Havekotte
Member Posts: 2913
From: Merritt Island, Florida, Brevard
Registered: Mar 2001
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posted 10-23-2009 07:23 PM
Actually, once released from prison, Ronson went back into the space cover business for a few years. In regards to the "Plugged 9" cancels that were coming from Ronson's Orbit Covers company, they were done for all the manned Gemini flights and most of the early Apollos from 1966-69. Despite reports from the U.S. Postal Service investigative affairs concerning the Ronson "Plugged 9" episode, it has always been my strong opinion and belief that there were no so-called "postal back-dated" cancels involved. I believe that Ronson actually had produced a rubber stamp device himself to closely duplicate an original "in use" at the time Cape Canaveral postal hand stamp impression. After so many years of studying, researching, and knowing/working with Ronson throughout the 1970/80s as his Space Coast philatelic servicer, I have noted there are so many "Plugged 9" differences in comparison to an actual "real" Cape hand cancel device from that era. |
Ken Havekotte
Member Posts: 2913
From: Merritt Island, Florida, Brevard
Registered: Mar 2001
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posted 10-23-2009 07:23 PM
Actually, once released from prison, Ronson went back into the space cover business for a few years. In regards to the "Plugged 9" cancels that were coming from Ronson's Orbit Covers company, they were done for all the manned Gemini flights and most of the early Apollos from 1965-69. Despite reports from the U.S. Postal Service investigative affairs concerning the Ronson "Plugged 9" episode, it has always been my strong opinion and belief that there were no so-called "postal back-dated" cancels involved. I believe that Ronson actually had produced a rubber stamp device himself to closely duplicate an original "in use" at the time Cape Canaveral postal hand stamp impression. After so many years of studying, researching, and knowing/working with Ronson throughout the 1970/80s as his Space Coast philatelic servicer, I have noted there are so many "Plugged 9" differences in comparison to an actual "real" Cape hand cancel device from that era. |
DChudwin
Member Posts: 1096
From: Lincolnshire IL USA
Registered: Aug 2000
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posted 10-23-2009 08:43 PM
Ken is correct that Ronson was again involved with space covers after his release from prison, but the "plugged 9" covers seem to have been produced prior to his 1972 imprisonment.By "back-dated" I mean that the covers were postmarked after the date of the event. Back-dating can happen with legitimate U.S. Postal Service devices, or with counterfeit postmark devices. I agree with Ken that Ronson likely made up his own hand cancel because of the consistent differences between the "plugged 9" postmark and the legitimate postmark used by the Cape Canaveral post office at the time. In any case, collectors should be aware that "plugged 9" covers have much less valuable, if any, than genuine ones. |
SpaceSteve
Member Posts: 428
From: San Antonio TX, USA
Registered: Apr 2004
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posted 10-23-2009 11:32 PM
Thank you Ken, for posting that information. It got me to look at my Apollo 8 Orbit Covers and comparing my "plugged-9" to a "real" one. I've attached a scan of both so people can compare them side-by-side. |
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