Archive for the 'Customer Printed Labels' Category

Post & Go…As you like it..

Various Post and Go museums are starting to re-open. Both Steam GWR A010 and Shakespeare A009 machines resumed service on 17th September 2020. This is the first time that the new tariff values have become available from these sites.

The recent tariff changes include the intrduction of three new ‘combi’ values of “Euro 100g/World 20g”, World 100g Zone 1 -3 and World 100g Zone 2.

The Zone indicator ‘1 -3’ has caused some comment amongst collectors and dealers alike as it is could be taken as including the Zone 2 tariff. A clearer indicator would of course be a simple ‘&’ ..

https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/174440526940

UPDATE 18/9: It has been confirmed in response to feedback received from dealers and collectors that the “Worldwide 1 -3” stamp has been changed to “Worldwide 1 & 3” at all Museum locations.

Party Political Conferences showcase Post and Go capability

 

Post and Go at Party Political Conference

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Autumn is the start of the political party Conference season in the UK and as in previous years Royal Mail are keen to showcase their brand heritage as well as their collectible range to influential politicians and decision makers. They also provide an operational mail self service Post and Go facility at selected events. This year this is being provided by the  ‘undercover’ Post and Go Kiosk M007 which has moved from its usual home at Royal Mail HQ and is touring the conference circuit.
It is worth noting that M007 has scales attached and as it is in a restricted access  environment (as the BFPO machines ) dispenses OV style stamps for the acceptance of ‘Ordinary’ Inland and International Mail as well as standard NVI 1st and 2nd Class Machin Post and Go stamps.
 
The Liberal Democratic Party met at Bournemouth from 16 to 19 September but as in previous years (perhaps because of the clash with Stampex and the resources needed to move the machine are elsewhere) no Post and Go facility is provided on the Royal Mail stand.
Next up is the Labour Party who met at Brighton from 24 to 27 September with M007 generating 1st and 2nd Class Machins with a ‘Brighton’ overprint.
 
 
 
This will be followed by the Conservative Party conference in Manchester from 1 to 4 October with M007  and a ‘Manchester’ overprint before finally a move to Glasgow at the Scottish Nationalist Party conference at Glasgow from 8 to 10 October with a ‘Glasgow’ overprint.

The Labour NVI stamps are available from our ebay site Labour Party Conference NVI Post and Go

Conservative NVIs are available here  Conservative Party Conference NVI Post and Go

SNP NVIs are available here http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/172925006737

Royal Mail Tariff Change 29th March 2016

Royal Mail’s prices change annually – usually on the Monday nearest to the 1st April (The beginning of Royal Mail’s new financial year). This year Easter Monday puts a (chocolate flavoured? ) spanner in the works and so prices change on Tuesday 29th March.

Essentially this tariff has very little in the way of the surprises of recent years – but one that could be missed is the difference – for the first time- for postage purchased online verses the price for good old stamps or postage labels applied at a Post Office. For the first time Royal Mail are disincentivising the use of stamps over postage bought online. Granted there has been a difference in pricing for some years for postage applied via a franking machine, but the prices were not really comparable since the necessary equipment had to be purchased/leased and maintained, so only for high volume users did the savings really make any sense.

Royal Mails prices can be found here: Royal Mail Tariff 2016

In summary: Online postage prices have been frozen and the stamped postage generally increased by a few pence. Many prices have not changed including those for International letters between 20g-100g.

Where does this leave Post and Go collectors? The NVI values to change are that of the ‘1st Class’ (from 63p to 64p) , ‘1st Class Large’ (from 95p to 96p) and ‘World 10g/Euro 20g’ value (from £1 to £1.05), resulting in a 7p increase in the cost of a collectors strip from £7.68 to £7.75.

 

Another tariff day, another dollar

New NVI and OV stamps plus a Horizon label 

Monday 30th March 2015 – ‘Tariff Day’ ,  the day that Royal Mail change their prices.  Some up and some down -including some significant drops in the Medium Parcel rates and penny or increases so most other rates.

One of the main changes to interest to collectors is related to the introduction of a new international ‘Large Letter’ size and related increases to the international weight bands for Letters.

But what does this mean to collectors of Postagelabels and Post and Go Stamps  ?

With the demise of the Wincor-Nixdorf Post and Go we are left with the NCR units in the Post Office network plus the IAR units in Royal Mail operational and fixed ‘Philatelic’ locations.

NCR and IAR NVI Stamps

These have been updated to include the two new “100g Letter’ stamps for the new weight bands (replacing the previous 60g step). The collectors set has been updated accordingly.

 

NCR OV Stamps 

To reflect the introduction of the new International Large Letter size, new Large Letter text has been added to create new OV stamps as applicable.

These appear with a ‘LgLetter’ description and are available in the A, IS, IT and ITS versions.

Our catalogue has been updated accordingly. Please ask for a copy.

Horizon Labels 

One Horizon label has been updated. For details of this change watch this space.

Royal Mail Post and Go Home for Xmas

Royal Mail have announced ( at www.royalmail.com/postandgo )that their Post and Go machines, previously only used in exibition settings are to be used in real operational, customer-facing settings over the xmas period (Not just for collectors!) The idea is likely to be to  relieve the pressure on queues and provide additional capacity for the sale of stamps.

Machines A003 and A004 are to be put into frontline service (with some slight modifications) and loaded with the ‘Winter Greenery’ stamps.

The two locations involved are

Royal Mail Crewe,

Weston Road,

CW1 6AA

and

 

Royal Mail Bradford North DO

Inkersley Road

Bradford

BD1 4RS

 

 

 

Both sites are expected to be operational from 3rd December until Late January 2015 (when the machines are scheduled to be moved to their show locations).

 

BPMA 1st Class on 2nd Class Error-Not a real swap (sic)

The BPMA – 80th Anniversary of Inland Airmail -1st Class on 2nd Class Reel ERROR

The BPMA are currently marking the ’80th Anniversary of Inland Airmail’ (between 20th August and 20th October 2014) with a special overprint on their A001 Post & Go machine. The 1st and 2nd Class stamps carry an updated ‘overprint’ which includes a ‘Inland Airmail 1934’ plus an ‘Inland Airmail’ logo. So far , A001 has been vending second class Machin Stamps (bright blue – year code MAI2) from one roll and first class Machin Stamps (olive brown – both no year code ‘MAIL’ and year code MAI3 have been available) from the other. Initially the initial configuration was to vend a second class collectors strip of six consisting of 3x2nd Letter and 3x2nd Large but this was available for a few days only. Subsequently, the machine software was modified to vend just a strip two – 2nd and 2nd Large.

New Error

As part of this and subsequent software modifications a further ‘incorrect’ setting arose – known as a ‘Carousel error’- where incorrect stamps are added to the ‘Carousel’ that customers select to purchase their stamps. In this case those stamps that are added to the 2nd Class carousel in error (the 1st Class Letter and 1st Class Large Letter Stamps) meant that they were incorrectly dispensed from the 2nd Class reel – but all other purchases were unaffected. This meant that many collectors had visited the BMPA machine, purchased their Collectors Strips (which would have been printed normally) not noticing this error for the many days it had existed. It is known that a dealer from Germany and one from the Netherlands who purchased single stamps had not noticed the error until later as all of their collectors strips had been printed in the correct way on the correct reels . As this is not a ‘reel’ swap then only 1st class and 1st Class Large values exist printed in this way and ‘collectors Pairs’ of differing values cannot exist (as they would have been printed normally). So far only single stamps have appeared on Ebay although multiples of the same value could exist as well . http://www.ebay.co.uk/usr/postagelabelsuk/

York Fair – MA13 Machin and Flags make their appearance

19-20th July 2013 and the latest stop on the ‘Post and Go’ world tour brings two Royal Mail Post and Go machines (A3 and A4) to the York Racecourse

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Seeing double! Post and Go at Midpex 6th July 2013

6th July 2013 and the latest stop on the ‘Post and Go’ world tour brings two Royal Mail Post and Go machines (A3 and A4) to the Warwickshire Exhibition Centre. A surprise though that two machines (rather than the advertised single machine) have been provided to satisfy Dealers (and even a few collectors) needs.

Both machines are loaded with the latest issue of Post & Go Freshwater Life “Lakes” Stamps creating the first opportunity to obtain this issue printed on a Hytech Machine (other than those issued in Pack or FDC format).
In addition to the Post and Go stamps – ‘Midpex’ themed Post and Go Smilers have been issued. 

Available in our Ebay shop Here:-http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/MIDPEX-July-2013-Post-and-Go-Freshwater-Life-Rivers-Hytech-Collectors-Strip-/171070406237?pt=UK_Stamps_BritishStamps&var=&hash=item27d4973e5d

 

Left- Screen shot showing the selections available – ‘Lakes’ and ‘Machin’.

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Post and Go Tour Dates 2013

 

At least one Post and Go machine will be in attendance along with “Instant Smilers” facilities with a custom sheet with a ‘first’ image related to the venue.

‘Overprints’ are only offered at shows with a National or International significance.

 

The confirmed tour dates for the Post and Go tour 2013 are:-

[event-list initial_date=2013  show_nav=false]

 

 

Post and Go Tour ’13 – Salisbury Stamp Fair March 15th and 16th

Today, 15th March and tomorrow  Saturday 16th March, the Salisbury Stamp show will be taking place at the Five Rivers Leisure Centre, Hulse Rd, Salisbury, Wiltshire SP1 3NR.

As part of  Royal Mail’s Post and Go Tour 2013 two Post and Go machines  vending Post and Go ‘Machin’ and ‘Union Flag’ stamps along with   ‘Post and Go Instant Smilers’ .

The Post and Go stamp offer- the same from machines A3 and A4  – is Machin and Union Flag and aligning with Royal Mails recently published policy, no special overprint is being provided for these smaller provincial stamp fairs.

As with this years Spring Stampex the smiler sheet available includes a ‘venue specific’ image in ‘position 1’  and a choice of either an image taken on an ipad in the venue (A gold postbox is supplied for this purpose)  or some pre-prepared generic images.