Stars and Stripes
 
(10¢) Stars and Stripes
(Sennett Security Products)
Self Adhesive Coils of 3,000 & 10,000
Scott # 4963a Plate # S111, B111
Series USPS - Non Denominated Presort Standard ~ PNC3 - Patriotic
Issue Date & City February 27, 2015, Grapevine, TX 76051
Nationwide Sale February 27, 2015
Artist Nancy Stahl, New York, NY
Designer Greg Breeding, Charlottesville, VA
Typographer Greg Breeding, Charlottesville, VA
Art Director Greg Breeding, Charlottesville, VA
Modeler Donald Woo
To Press / Initial Quantity Winter 2014 / 3,000 - 60 Million / 10,000 - 1 Billion stamps
Coil Size 3,000 and 10,000
Printer Banknote Corporation of America / SSP
Press Type Alprinta 74
Process Offset with "USPS" Microprinting
Where Printed Browns Summit, SC
Where Processed Banknote Corporation of America, Browns Summit, NC
Plate Size & Interval 540 stamps per revolution / plate # every 27 stamps.
Paper Type Nonphosphored, Type III
Adhesive Type Self Adhesive
Tagging Type None
Die Cut Gauge 10.9 Vertically
Colors PMS 186, PMS 570, PMS 662
Image Size (w x h) 0.73 x 0.84 in. / 18.54 x 21.34 mm
Overall Size (w x h) 0.87 x 0.98 in. / 22.10 x 24.89 mm
Back Numbers Every 10 stamps. 4 digit large black numbers top and bottom.  Every 270 stamps, the back number will fall on the same stamp with a plate number. Both top and bottom back numbers are possible although two rolls are needed to get both.
Earliest Known Use February 27, 2015
USPS Order Numbers 783100 Full Coil of 3,000 - $300.00
783103 Folded strip of 25 - $2.50
783200 Full Coil of 10,000 - $1000.00
783203 Folded strip of 25 - $2.50
783216 First Day Cover - Set of 3 - $3.00
Availability  
Official Announcement On February 27, 2015, in Grapevine, TX, the U.S. Postal Service® will issue a non-denominated, presorted standard rate (10-cent value) Stars and Stripes stamp in three designs, in pressure-sensitive adhesive coils of 3,000 (Item 783100) and 10,000 (Item 783200) stamps.

The stamps will go on sale nationwide February 27, 2015.

This year, the U.S. Postal Service celebrates a symbol of national pride with the Stars and Stripes issuance. The design of the three presorted standard stamps, which together form elements of a waving flag, puts a contemporary spin on an American classic. The stamps feature wavy red and white stripes, a blue field, and five-pointed stars. Along the bottom of each stamp are the words “USA Presorted Standard.”

Art director Greg Breeding designed the stamps illustrated by Nancy Stahl.

To learn more about the stories behind the stamps, visit http://uspsstamps.com.
Note The date, 2015, is in the upper right hand corner of the stamp.
Microprinting "USPS" is microprinted in blue in different positions on all three stamps. The stamp with all stars has the microprinting in the point of the star in the bottom left corner. The stamp with the red strips on the left has the microprinting in the point of the star in the lower right hand corner. The stamp with the red strips on the right has the microprinting in the point of the star in the top left hand corner.
Other  

Initial Supply to Post Offices — $300.00 Stars and Stripes Presorted Standard PSA Coil of 3,000 Stamps

Stamp Fulfillment Services will not make a subsequent automatic push distribution to Post Offices™. Post Offices may begin ordering stamps through SFS Web by mid-February, which is prior to the FDOI.

Initial Supply to Post Offices — $1000.00 Stars and Stripes Presorted Standard PSA Coil of 10,000 Stamps

Stamp Fulfillment Services will not make a subsequent automatic push distribution to Post Offices. Post Offices may begin ordering stamps through SFS Web by mid-February, which is prior to the FDOI.

How to Order the First-Day-of-Issue Postmark

Customers have 60 days to obtain the first-day-of-issue postmark by mail. They may purchase new stamps at their local Post Office, at The Postal Store®website at https://store.usps.com/store/, or by calling 800-STAMP-24. They should affix the stamps to envelopes of their choice, address the envelopes (to themselves or others), and place them in a larger envelope addressed to:

Stars and Stripes Stamps
Postmaster
Grapevine Main Post Office
1251 William D. Tate Avenue
Grapevine, TX 76051-9998

After applying the first-day-of-issue postmark, the Postal Service™ will return the envelopes through the mail. There is no charge for the postmark up to a quantity of 50. For more than 50, customers have to pay five cents each. All orders must be postmarked by April 28, 2015.

How to Order First-Day Covers

The Postal Service also offers first-day covers for new stamp issues and Postal Service stationery items postmarked with the official first-day-of-issue cancellation. Each item has an individual catalog number and is offered in the quarterly USA Philatelic catalog, online at https://store.usps.com/store, or by calling 800-782-6724. Customers may request a free catalog by calling 800-782-6724 or writing to:

U.S. Postal Service
Catalog Request
PO Box 219014
Kansas City, MO 64121-9014

Philatelic Products

There is one philatelic product for this stamp issue:

783216*, First-Day Cover set of 3, $3.00.

Items with an asterisk (*) will use the 128 barcode from Stamp Fulfillment Services. All other philatelic products will continue to use barcode series A, with the exception of the Yearbook and the Guide Book.