999999 Puzzle

Some research has thrown up some questions regarding two Machin faststamps with this office code that appeared on e-bay during June 2013. One item had the session number 121 and the other 157. However the former had a rather curious service mark. It claimed to be 1st Class up to 20g which does not exist while the second is 1st Class up to 100g. Receipts for neither do not appear to exist.

The e-bay lisiting gave the later item's location before sale as Rhondda in Wales but the ident for the seller is listed by e-bay as being from Devon.

The suggestion was that the source of these items was the Birmingham Office but given that the session numbers are so low (121 and 157) and a report from 7 July 2013 puts the lowest session number for any of the kiosks as 12473, it is highly unlikely that these items originated from this office.

Why was it assumed that Birmingham was the source? The seller assumed that since the kiosk ident was 9 then it could only be from Birmingham. In 2012, the 000000 ident was genuinely reported at William IV Street/Trafalgar Square and at Archway post offices in London.

I would welcome more data on these items and if there are others like them.

Time

Time

They say that time is relative, that time flies, that time drags and so on. Some people think that they will have plenty of time to do things when they retire. 

DON'T YOU BELIEVE IT!!!!!!!!!!

 

I had to give up working to become a carer. With looking after the "Boss", editing two newsletters as well as general day living, time just seems to vanish. Add to all this, my interests in other areas, I  seem to be busier than ever. 

I will try to keep adding material to the blogs when I can. Please be patient.

Issue 7 of the ATM Informer is now available from the website. 

Wincor Nixdorf and Hytech Scrapbook

I have just started working on another project based on these two kiosks varieties within Britain. To this end, I need lots more information. I need listings of what people have in their collections but in an unidentifiable form for security. What I require is office/date//kiosk/session number/issue data along with any other data on the receipt and office.

Could I have the data in the form:

Office location       ID code      Date      Kiosk   Session      Issue                      Notes

Trafalgar Square    015010     29/2/14      5       09876       Freshwater3           Address in lower case on

                                                                                                                         receipt. Font 1 on stamp

The more data I receive, the better the picture that can be put together on the usage of these kiosks and what they have produced. 

I can handle doc and xls files.

E-mail: pmechuk@gmail.com

I DO NOT ENDORSE ITEMS FOR SALE ON EBAY OR THROUGH ANY DEALER.

I have just noticed a reference to my blog on e-bay. I feel that I must clarify that I do not endorse any sale(s) of Wincor-Nixdorf and Hytech material on any site and, therefore the decision to purchase the item depends on whether you are happy with the description. Any data I place on my websites or blogs is based on the information that I have at the time of writing. It is NOT to endorse sales for dealers - professional or amateur. 

Therefore, I take serious exception to any mis-use of data or  information that I publish to make a sale.

My intention in publishing the information that I collect is to ensure that collectors have the best data available to build a representative collection of Wincor-Nixdorf and Hytech material NOT to make money for people. 

The reason that I started to produce the ATM Informer and published the first issue of Wincor-Nixdorf and Hytech ATM Listing is to try to get the best information out to individuals. Both publications are starting to pay dividends and is fostering discussion within this area of collecting.

I do not give advice on what to buy. I do not deal in stamps or any other collectible. I do not endorse others sales. I do not like the mis-use of terms such as "scarce" and similar.

The only real advice that I do give is as follows:

Consider carefully what is on offer and check with other sites/dealers before committing. 

Purchase what interests you.

Always purchase within your budget.

I also recommend the website postagelabelsuk.com. It is very reputable and worth consulting. It does NOT endorse products but gives quality information in this area.

Typical, Blooming Typical!!!

I know that I have been threatening to publish a catalogue/listing of Wincor-Nixdorf and Hytech material for the last year but it is so typical that as soon as I finish the word file to a pdf and send out the converted file that I get the news of a new Wincor installation in Derby. 

I haven't read all the details of this office yet but I will have more information in the ATM Informer issue 6 around the end of the month.

Anyway, the Wincor-Nixdorf and Hytech listing is now available free of charge from pmechuk@gmail.com. If you like the contents and wish to contribute something back, there are a listing of four charities just inside the cover page. A donation to any of them would be most welcome.

ATM Informer Issue 5 is Now Available.

The fifth issue is now available for down loading from my pmechuk website or the ATM Informer website. Either way, the newsletter is FREE. You can even e-mail me for a copy.

I still require data on session numbers, dates and what was available at Wincor-Nixdorf equipped offices within the UK. I know that the information is available given the number of views on the Stamp Magazine Forum thread and the large number of items for sale on e-bay. As may be seen in the Informer, a picture can be painted of the usage of the kiosks and when events have occurred such as resetting the session counter. 

I would appreciate the data in the format:

Office                  ID               Date             Kiosk     Session Number  Variety

Trafalgar Sq  015010     29 Feb 2014            1             012345            Pondlife 4

I can accept the data in .xls  or .doc format.

e-mail address is   pmechuk@gmail.com

ATM Informer

The  fourth issue of my Newsletter on the UK Wincor-Nixdorf and Hytech machines has just been uploaded to my ATM Informer Newsletter site and pmechuk site. Copies may be downloaded from either site or e-mailing me at pmechuk@gmail.com.

Included in this issue:

Salisbury Overprint

Forthcoming stamp shows, fairs, expos

Manchester Wincor Offices

Wincor-Nixdorf receipts part 1

Over 20 pages of information for free.

All contributions of data welcome!

Spring Stampex 2013 - Aftermath

Well, Stampex is over  for another six months. I've had a bit of time to sort out my purchases - two "collections" of Poland covering up to about 1970 and my usual material from the Hytech machines.

There were the usual amount of dealers there with the expected stock. However, there seemed to be so little for the junior collector - at least on the two days that I visited. I suppose that this is to be expected since most of the people visiting were over 40. 

How do we encourage the younger collector to come to these events? Stampex does have a "junior" stall at the weekends but is that enough. There were many stands which had significant material for the more "mature" collector. Penny blacks galore were available from £95. Covers of all descriptions from around the world were there by the box load. But what about packets and equipment for the junior collector?

I have been to philatelic societies around the country and found that I was frequently the youngest person present.So what can we do? We cannot send collectors into schools because they would require a CRB check which costs at least £36 a time but can remain valid for up to 3 years. But who would organise the CRB? Schools won't because you are not permanent staff and supply agencies wouldn't be interested. I think that the Philatelic Trust organises visits and school clubs.

What sort of school should be targeted - primary or secondary? Primary would give the best feedback and give a positive boost to collecting but as soon as the pupils hit secondary school the stamp collection would find its way to the back of the cupboard at best. 

Using stamps and postal history material in association with class work would be beneficial. The BPMA has some material which is downloadable for key stage 2 on the Victorians, WW1 and even on aspects of design covering the Festival of Britain.

Year 5 and 6 do work on ancient Egypt, why can't something be put together using the wide variety of stamps illustrating pharaohs, gods and artifacts.

 

All those Shakespeare stamps could be used to illustrate stage and costume design associated with the plays that secondary pupils have to study. Art is so richly covered but why do so few teachers illustrate the works of the great masters through stamps. Look at the quality of artwork associated in producing some of the stamps - there have been some great engravers.

It would just take a bit of time and research to associate the appropriate stamps and material with the course of study.

Back to Stampex... I did spot a talk on Jane Austen and the new stamps on the Friday close to the Royal Mail Stand but surely it could be an advantage to all to have such talks throughout each day with the Saturday talks targeted at junior and new collectors.

And the "Aftermath" for me... Well I filled in some large gaps in my Polish collection (around 700 covering 1919 to 1965). I also found a single 1919 bogus stamp and a charity "stamp" for a Warsaw based charity for the blind. All this gives me some areas to research and learn about.

I was tempted to buy a bundle of 100 covers for £15 because of the top cover showing the 1970 Declaration of Arbroath stamp. There were a number of other covers of interest for cancels.

I have also scanned the Hytech material and have produced the third issue of the ATM Informer. so  just look at the earlier entries for the links.

Stampex 20 February 2013

Spring Stampex 2013 was held between the 20-23 February at the Design Centre in Islington, London, NW10.

Royal Mail, once more, had a presence. They had two stands – a main stand allowing collectors to catch up on issues at the back of the hall and another at the front for the Hytech kiosks.

There were three Hytech kiosks - A3, A4 an A2 from left to right. In addition there was a stand alone colour printer for Smiler’s sheets.  As in the last three shows, kiosks B1 and B2 were reportedly round the back to fill dealers’ orders.

The initial menu has three columns. The first column refers to the services available for stamps on reel A, the middle column for reel B and the third column for Collector Strips. The fifth button down in the third column allows the purchase of Smiler Sheets. These are NOT printed by the Hytech but by a separate process. One pays for the service on these kiosks then a staff member takes your photograph on a special App on an i-pad which is then transmitted to the printer. The process takes about a minute to complete.

 

Receipts produced were in the same format as the previous Stampex shows. Each Collector’s strip received its own receipt. In addition, a card receipt was also produced for the purchase.

Two values – second class up to 100g and second class large up to 100g. Background print is in blue with one phosphor bar. First day was 20 February 2013 at the Spring Stampex Exhibition at The Business Design Centre, London on 20 February 2013.

It is expected that the second class stamps will appear at offices with more than one Wincor-Nixdorf machine but not immediately. The suggestion is that this will occur over the summer of 2013. Both stamps are 56mm x 25mm in size and printed by Walsall Security Printer. The background print is a turquoise colour. This means that the only examples of these stamps, initially, will be from Tallent’s House or the kiosks at Stampex (and other stamp fairs). Presentation packs were available from the first day. They contained both of the new values.

The datastring used on these was A2GB13 C2-051840-10 or 11. This coding suggests that C2 is now located in Britain. The cattle packs from 2012 used the code A2NL12 and kiosk ident C2 suggesting that the printer was located in the Netherlands. Transaction number for the second class stamp is 10 and for the second large this number is 11. Stock from C1 was used to produce stock for the stamps used on first day covers from Tallents House. C1 prints stock from a roll while C2 prints sheets for presentation packs.

If one takes the time to compare the presentation pack stamps with the kiosk Hytechs at Stampex one can see that there are slight differences in the font size. In addition the second line of text is indented by 1-2mm.

Therefore all of the earliest second class stamps will be Hytech versions. I would welcome reports of Wincor versions appearing throughout the country.

ATM Informer

The third issue of my Newsletter should be available shortly after Spring Stampex. Featured offices will be Aldwych and Cambridge along with Stampex News, more on the 000000 ident and a lot more. 

Copies may be obtained by e-mailing me, going on to the Newsletter page of the PMECHUK website, or by going on to the ATM Informer Newsletter site.

 

Newsletter

At the beginning of January 2013, I produced the first edition of a newsletter covering the postal ATMs in the UK. The second issue will be ready soon for distribution. Copies may be obtained by e-mailing me at pmechuk@gmail.com. The February issue will give the story of the first home made faststamps along with defining the terms in use covering this filed of study in the UK. Pulled stamps, office idents, fonts and news of issues. Hopefully, the March issue will include information on Spring Stampex 2013 and the first of three freshwater life issues.

I would welcome contributions of material fro this publication whether it is just session number data from one office to a multi-page article.