More 20 codes and some thin paper

 Here we have a few more 20 year codes and a couple of variations for the 1st Class red shade and its thinning backing paper.

M20L MTIL Much thinner backing paper

M20L MCIL Deeper red Queen's head from Sherlock book, also thin backing paper with very bright fluorescence

2p Dark Green with M20L MAIL

20p Bright green with M20L MAIL

M20L MBIL very bright fluor with a yellow tint

Another space needed just to the left of the 20½p blue.

Not the most exciting of months but, mercifully, a rather cheaper one than most! The new arrivals are simply two Walsall items with 15 codes that are now on security backing paper, two Walsall 16 codes on security backing paper and two new 16 codes from DLR on normal backing.

1st red Walsall M15L MBIL with security backing

1st red Walsall M16L MBIL with security backing

1p maroon DLR M16L normal backing

20p green DLR M16L normal backing

2nd Large brt blue Walsall  M16L MBIL with security backing

1st  Large red Walsall M15L MBIL with security backing

1st large Walsall M16L MFIL with security backing

I imagine that the security backing will become a standard affair before long and there will be quite a few new entrants once the counter sheet stamps start to emerge and more booklets too. So this year may well see several examples of the same stamp with and without the backing text but, hopefully, next year will settle down and each will remain peacefully one or the other.

I had precisely one Post and Go Machin - a 2nd Class Small Parcel £2.85 denomination which looks attractive on the package but still doesn't make me regret not seeking to collect all these as mint. I do believe that a used collection of these items is worth following, though, as, unless I am extremely odd and others are getting piles of these every day, they will be comparatively scarce in years to come and an interesting observation of stamp life in the 20 teens or whatever this decade will be called.

On the subject of being odd, I must apologise to readers who wondered what I might have been drinking before writing recently about celebrating the Machin 50th. That will, of course, be in June 2017 and not next month as I had indicated!

I also write on the subject of Corgi Toys. Now they do have an important anniversary in July this year, marking 60 years since their first Corgi Toy models appeared. An Austin Cambridge, Morris Cowley, Vauxhall Velox, Rover 90, Riley Pathfinder, Hillman Husky, Austin Healey, Triumph TR2 and some commercial or utility vehicles came onto shop shelves in July 1956. Unfortunately, Corgi appear not to be doing a great deal to mark the occasion at all. I have seen a strange Milk Float to be released as a special item but that is it.

Actually, bearing in mind the huge publicity given to several companies recently in stamp issues, one marking the occasion might have been a nice idea, had I thought of it earlier.

Anyway, apart from you now needing to extend your 1st red pages even further and having to try and squeeze yet another 20p green on the page - just in front of the 20½p - it remains a fairly gentle time in the Machin world.

Rare stamps!!

I actually got some stamps on an envelope in the mail this morning. The fact that it was from another dealer in Machin stamps says it all really. Are we the only people who are now using these? Is this 'collecting' lark merely a sort of self-perpetuating affair where Royal Mail know that we're the only people buying them and just produce all sorts of variations for the fun of it and watch contentedly as people like me write articles encouraging you to acquire this or that?

Oh well, for the benefit of those who are still awake and wondering what is new out there, here are the latest developments and issues.

The first is a 2nd Large DLR with M14L date code. Then there's a book of 12 Walsall 2nd CB showing M14L MTIL which will doubtless be the most frequently found stamp on post this year so not exactly worth a fortune but needed nonetheless if you're going to keep that collection complete.

Next we have three more DLR items. A 10p, 20p  and 1st Large showing M14L.

Now there's is something surprising. A new Post And Go print showing both Euro 20g and World 10g which are now the same price but it must have been confusing for people wanting to send something 9g to somewhere that wasn't in Europe. To be honest, I get confused by the rates and weights anyway and really do wonder whether this idea of NVIing everything is that bright after all.

It all started with 1st and 2nd and then E came along when we had a perfectly adequate 34p stamp (or whatever the rate was at the time). I suppose it did mean that we could buy stamps and carry on using them after a rate change and got a little bit of satisfaction from the fact that spending all that money in advance had saved us a few pence later. So those made some sense and it always seemed pretty reasonable to buy an Airmail envelope (actually, maybe that was where it started now I think about it) and just pay whatever the latest price was for the flimsy sheet of blue paper.

The latest flurry of activity around these rates and weights, though, seems to be heading for confusion. They are trying to hang on to six for the 'collector's strips' as all sorts of problems will develop if there are numbers like 11 or 5. The NCR machine putting values on the labels seems to be going back to the original idea of a stamp but just adding the value at the end instead of us having to buy a range and make up the rate ourselves.

For now, though, the Post And Gos continue apace with these two overprint issues, 'The B.P.M.A. on Flags and Machin olives. Both these have the new dual value although here in Type 4 font at the same point size for both lines, unlike the NCR Type 2a font with its different sizes.

The Machin Post And Gos here all have an MA13 date code. I imagine there must be a lot of that year's backing around so it could be some time before we see MA14. The NCRs below are the 'normal' basic set which I think I have featured before but that may have been with no date code or a strip I had earlier. the Worldwide 10g and 40g values will exist as these were still in being when the first NCRs appeared and will be worth hanging on to.

Of course, there is still no mention from some dealers of the other NCRs - the ones with the actual values printed that I have written about recently. I am still none the wiser as to whether they are indeed likely to be a myriad different denominations for those. I am pretty sure there will be - a similar range to those we see on Horizon labels seems logical although perhaps the 'Signed For' denominations and one or two others can't be included because there would need to be some paperwork kept behind the counter and if someone had to queue up afterwards to hand that over it defeats the purpose of the automatic machines.

So far, I have to say that by far the most common labels I am seeing on post are the Horizon gold ones. They're awkward to collect but do seem to be the range that is surviving. I will write about them in an article soon.

Palace News

While I wait for what I fear will be a massive bill and several envelopes full of Post And Gos of all sorts I thought I should update you with the latest expense - the Buckingham Palace prestige book with its tradional Machin pane. You do have to wonder what will happen to the World should a prestige booklet not be issued with a pane of eight Machin definitives (or some with a few Regional pictorials thrown in) and a strange label in the middle serving no useful purpose at all.

There are several pages of fine-looking pictorials with different stages of the Palace's development over the centuries and some internal views too. It's all quite interesting and well produced. Here's the pane that matters, though; the sole reason I buy these things.

Three new stamps here, obviously. Each of the 10p, 20p and £1 definitives has M14L MPIL code and they are gummed and printed by Enschedé.

There is also a booklet of two pictorials with four 1st Class definitives. these are the first appearance of M14L MCIL and come from Walsall.

78, 88, 1.88P DLR CHANGE. Well, not exactly.

You have every right to be confused by the 78p, 88p and £1.88 issues, with another set arriving from Tallents House this morning! Not to mention the strange use of P in RM's despatch note. (Unless, that is, I have missed something and there is a new 1.88p denomination!!)

The story so far: These new denominations were due on counters on 27 March 2013 but De La Rue happened to be moving away from Dunstable at the time and no-one can blame them for that. Walsall did the honours and ensured counters had the pink, yellow and blue supplies.

Philatelic Bureau customers will have received these at that time too and DLR also produced some coil strips with all the values which Tallents House staff guillotined for things like FDCs and some may even have slipped into singles orders! They will have clear cut borders.

Eventually DLR got going again and their counter sheets became available and these are now being distributed to Bureau customers (although some have been available since May!) They can be distinguished by the rouletted edges on the backing paper. Now, that may look the same as Walsall's could be in your mind but if you read my previous posts you would have realised that the Walsall stamps have the code M13L and the DLR have MA13.

The 78p referred to in my previous post will be one of the new DLRs - that supplier has yet to come up with the 88p and £1.88 or maybe has lost the will to look any further. I like all this - it is what makes collecting fun, interesting and one or other of these items may prove to be just scarce enough to make it all worthwhile for our children's children's children when they look through the collections in some distant future.

I am now waiting for the minor variations in these issues to appear! Apart from the NVIs, there seem precious few really good varieties nowadays.

You should also be aware that the 20p has appeared with the Code 13 in sheets too. Before long, I think we shall need a catalogue listing the Year and which definitives were issued in it rather than my ridiculously long and confusing lists which show the value and, if you search long enough, the Codes available. I may have to work on that. If anyone does have a ready-made list, however, and can save me the work, do send me the link. Credit will, of course be given!

More 13 codes appearing and some scarce printings

New M13L + S code for 1st red 2B from Walsall booklets of 6

New M13L + B code for Walsall 2nd blue CB from business sheets

New M13L + T code for Walsall 2nd blue CB from books of 12

This Jubilee 1st grey-blue 2B Walsall with short bands at bottom and inset left band is very scarce and cost £15.

Even more scarce are the 5p ash pink 2B Cartor and 20p bright green 2B Cartor with inset left bands. £25 each! They come from the Dr Who pane and are quite distinct from the normal pane stamps

Dr Who and a few more Machin discoveries

So here are the four Walsall litho printed (despite what Royal Mail say about gravure, according to B Alan) Machins from the Dr Who prestige book. As I said in my last post, the 87p value does seem unfortunate but then the chances of anyone ever getting a genuinely used one of these was pretty remote anyway! 

 

The 1st Tardis has made a number of appearances: as part of the prestige book pane of Machins, where it appears gummed, in the prestige book version of the miniature sheet with four aliens, in the miniature sheet issued separately , in a booklet of 4 with two featuring Doctors and in a Smiler sheet attached to labels of various aliens over the years. All these others are self-adhesive. The Smiler sheet version is illustrated above, although I am sure all will be slightly different.

The MA13 codes are appearing now and have been seen on 2nd Class Walsall from Books of 12 so bearing a T code too. There have also been the new 1st red with a 13 code - more about them when I get them.

It will be interesting to see how scarce some codes will be. I suppose a value printed or reprinted just before a rate change would be a candidate as there will just be the single run of that one. Stocks running low near the end of a year in which a not particularly popular stamp hasn't been reprinted (e.g a MA11 code still in use at the end of 2012 and  having to be reprinted in December 2012) and a small run is made.

A 1st Large Diamond Jubilee 2B, inset left band. This cost £17.50 so I'm hoping it proves scarce!

Another expensive addition - A 1st Diamond Jubilee "B with bright fluor and iridescence short at the bottom. £9.00.

Another 1st Diamond Jubilee from the Classic Locomotives / Machin book of 6 with iridescence short at the top. £5.00

Still MA12 but code T from a book of 12 showing short phosphor bands at the bottom. £11.00.

Wide blue band on London Underground 1st commemoratives. £8.50.

No peace for the poor Machin collector

Just as I thought was safe to go in.. the Freshwater Post an Gos, amongst other pieces arrive in another fat packet this morning!

Here are the latest additions:

1st grey-blue 2B Code T Short bands at bottom and iridescence short at bottom

1st grey-blue 2B Code S dull fluor in phosphor

20p bright green 2B No overprint,  short phosphor bands at top. Scarce from 24/1/12 printing

Walsall 1st Large red 2B Code 12+B - phosphor as it should be - others have had short bands (normal being actually rare so far!)

Walsall 1st red 2B 12+C inset left phosphor band, short iridescence at top

Walsall 1st red 2B 12+C short phosphor bands at top

15p deep bright blue from 1989 New shade

1st grey blue 2B Code S + pane dull fluor in phosphor

Delighted that the postman got me to sign for a neighbour's envelope with a nicely used 1st Large Signed For stamp!

 Post and Gos

Post and Go Machin 6 values with font type 3a  and inset right bands

Post and Go Wordwide 40g font type 2 short bands at bottom

Post and Go 2nd CB and 2nd Large CB font type 3a

Post and Go Pond Life I font type 3

Post and Go 2nd  and 2nd Large CB font type 3