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Sunday 28 March 2010

Machin News April 2010

We start with more news on the Centenary to Accession of King George V. Part of the London 2010 Festival of Stamps extravaganza. Today I received more information on some of the printing details. Starting with the 1st class double head (George V / Elizabeth II) special issue stamps these will be available from three different sources.

1/ Miniature sheet,
2/ Counter sheet
3/ Prestige booklet pane (pane one)

All the above are printed by Cartor with all over phosphor / PVAl gum.

A second version of the miniature sheet will also be available overprinted with the wording "BUSINESS DESIGN CENTRE, LONDON 8 - 15 MAY 2010". The presentation pack for this product will include both London 2010 miniature sheets.

A uncut Press sheet of 20 x miniature sheets will also be made available, no doubt WELL over face value.

If you collect cylinder blocks (cylinder C1), presumably these will be obtainable in 6 formations depending on the box and sheet position. These come from (via) the counter sheets (50 single 1st class stamps). Each sheet will also contain 5 x gutter pairs.

Pane one of the Prestige Stamp book "The Kings Stamps" produces another 3 combined se-tenant with 3 of the £1 George V stamps.

I am not slagging these stamps off as I like the design, but my god, they are milking this opportunity to grab as much cash as they they can from the poor old collectors hand bag. I say hand bag as a wallet would need to several feet thick if you purchased everything on offer. The old saying "does Dick Turpin own Royal Mail" comes to mind? They do seem to get away with highway robbery!


Anyway, moving on to the other panes in this Prestige Booklet. It seems that the self adhesive (security) Machins (pane 4) will be printed by Walsall Security Printers.

The other panes, 2 x £1 Sea horses (pane 2) and (pane 3) which produce 4 x British Empire Exhibition 1st class (both panes intaglio), are printed by Joh Enschedé of Holland. As is the miniature sheet showing 2 of each of these same stamps.

I have not mentioned any of the other products, there are far to many. But not forget to save some cash for the Machin miniature sheet and the Britain Alone Prestige Booklet.

I did say handbag didn't I? Perhaps I should alter this to read shopping bag!

5 comments:

Robert said...

Or perhaps safe deposit box?

Glenn Morgan said...

Question - how is the self-adhesive PSB pane going to be peeled off and affixed by Royal Mail machinery to the covers that it is selling? Will there be ties to hold each stamp to its matrix? And will there be a different version in the PSB to those used on the covers. Just a thought!

Anonymous said...

Will these Machins have a code letter? Maybe 'N' for pane of nine?

--Larry

Robert said...

They'll have a 'P' for 'Prestige'.

Anonymous said...

Could be code RO = RIP OFF