Here's another question for the Machin specialists. I have been sorting through a kiloware lot that I bought almost 19 years ago and which was supplemented by whatever came in through the mail in the time in between, and finally got around to sort according to Harris. Well, almost. I don't bother with different widths of the phosphor bars, working with UV lights is too hard on the eyes. But I am interested in which stamp was printed where. There are up to four different printers. Unfortunately, Robin Harris (adminware.ca/machin.htm) only lists the differences for the 1st class flame stamp and not for the other self-adhesives, the 2nd class light blue, and the 1st class gold.
Hence Question No.1: How can I discern between the different printers in the case of the 2nd class light blue and the 1st class gold? Can I use the same criteria as for the 1st class flame? Similar differences do exist, e.g. the distance between the crown and the right hand edge of the design. Would therefore the stamp in the attached picture of the right be from a Walsall printing?
Question No. 2: While looking through the 2nd class stamps, I noticed that the die cut comes in two varieties, with rounded and with straight edges of the simulated perforations. See picture below, left and middle. I also noticed that the stamps with straight "perforation" edges were postmarked later, in the early to middle 2000s, while the other were mainly used in 1998 - 2000. Can anybody confirm or disprove that the former (straight edges) are Questa printings? According to Harris, Questa took up printing the 2nd class stamps in 2001.
re: Self-adhesive Machins - printers and die cuts?
To me, there seemed to be more of a difference between the various "rounded edge" die-cuts you have been showing, than between some of these and the "straight-edged" ones. Anyway, so my leftmost stamp is from Enschede, the rightmost one is from Walsall, and the middle one is from Walsall, too? I'd have lumped the left and the right one together as stamps with "rounded edges", and have used the design differences to tell them apart. How differently we look at the same things ...
So the "sharp edged, quadrant corner" stamps are from the earlier Walsall issue, the "rounded tip, quadrant corner" stamps are the later Walsall issue, the "rounded tip, almost straight corner" ones are from Enschede, and Questa printings have off-center shortened phosphor bars? Haven't seen any of the latter yet. Neither have I found any "dagger corners" yet. Well, I'll keep looking ...
re: Self-adhesive Machins - printers and die cuts?
This will explain the Case bound style.
"The crucial difference is that case bound covers are made of cardboard wrapped in laminated paper that has the cover image printed directly on it, while cloth bound covers are made of cardboard covered"
re: Self-adhesive Machins - printers and die cuts?
Along with others no doubt I have seen the new U numbers. Annoying really, From U2911 to U 2928 (as I understand it ... happy to be corrected) there are no changes but after that sequence there are changes.
Annoying....... because, do I change all my stock.. ok going forward perhaps, but what about the past thousands I have already catalogued? What are peoples views I am wondering, and how will collectors know what stamp catalogue reference they are looking at old or new U reference. I have some ideas.... just wondering if others have thought about this.