The worst letterboxes ever put out!
rodent
2007-04-22 21:48:15
Thought it'd be quite fun for everyone to mention the worse stamps they have found on the moor. Anyone else had such "gems" as clumps cluster, or five potatoes (which consisted of the letterboxer stamping a pen lid onto their pad five times!!)
Nik - KOTM
2007-04-23 04:16:32
I can't quite remember what it was - but it was found not far from Four Winds carpark - the stamp was positively AWFUL! and since then I have rated all my stamps against that stamp - one day I will remember its name and update this post
The Lost Legionnaire
2007-04-23 17:56:29
Forgetting all the rubbish 'tourist' boxes and not really the worst stamp, here's a story for you.
About 20 years ago we parked at Bonehill and headed up over Chinkwell Tor, Bell Tor and Honey bag Tor. By the time we reached the furthest point from the car it started raining hard, but there was a stamp called Dartmoor Waterfall a bit further away. Two of our party stayed put, and I was one of three intrepid 'idiots' who braved the elements to gather this magical sounding stamp. When we reached the location, cold and wet, we gathered in anticipation of this wonderous creation. Wrong. The stamp merely read the two words 'Dartmoor Waterfall' and was about 5mm X 30mm. We all exclaimed "So far for so little" and that's a phrase we still use to this day about a stamp which when you find it, you are left feeling you a little deflated!
Fulchet
2007-04-23 21:49:32
I agree, I think the worst stamps (apart from shop bought touristy ones) are those that just have the words. Give me a well designed stamp that has had a lot of thought put into it any time.
Tina :)
strevaskus
2010-08-25 02:46:24
There was a stamp once put out on Billys Tor and it was a blank rectangular rubber with the words Billys Tor in the mist and another exactly the same that you stamp in black called Billys Tor in the dark !! .As for awful stamps there are more now than ever before .There are though on the whole some very good stamps still being made and the rubber cuts of the early 90s are exceptional .I once found a stamp on Barn Hill that was supposed to be a view of Vixen Tor that resembled a pile up on the motorway with three elephants in the background and what looked like a submarine .
There were two stamps though that were very comical but with an emphasise on hypocracy and made to embarass the National Park when they said letterboxers are the main cause of disturbance to ground nesting birds ,and can we refrain from going in to certain areas during the bird nesting season as they are causing great disturbance to ground nesting birds (May to July) which may seem a reasonable request until you see the stamps .
It was a picture of two people tip toeing along and being careful where they put their feet ,and in the background were scores of soldiers firing at each other and Artillery shells being fired and causing huge explosions , birds nests and eggs were flying everywhere .The caption read "Be careful dear we dont want to disturb the birds " !! Another featured the Ten Tors 6 abreast with helicopters in the air churning up vast swathes of Dartmoor trampling all in their wake and the same two characters saying again We have to be tread careful now its May not to cause to much disturbance to the birds !!
Moortrekkers
2010-08-25 21:58:49
I agree, I think the worst stamps (apart from shop bought touristy ones) are those that just have the words. Give me a well designed stamp that has had a lot of thought put into it any time.
Tina
Sort of agree, but as long as you dont include the ealy simple stamps of the 70s and 80s, as back then each and every box was special.
To my mind a stamp should have some reference to Dartmoor, and at least describe its location. \i dont search for boxes now but if I should come across one by accident..which is pretty regular, I will only stamp the map if if refers to Dartmoor and its location. I found one the other day which was celebrating a wedding annisversary with no reference at all.. so someone has decided to dump a stamp at some stage on a walk without any planning or thought to where it is going to go.. nevermind I guess its fun for someone??
]
Moortrekkers
2010-08-25 22:10:29
There was a stamp once put out on Billys Tor and it was a blank rectangular rubber with the words Billys Tor in the mist and another exactly the same that you stamp in black called Billys Tor in the dark !! .As for awful stamps there are more now than ever before .There are though on the whole some very good stamps still being made and the rubber cuts of the early 90s are exceptional .I once found a stamp on Barn Hill that was supposed to be a view of Vixen Tor that resembled a pile up on the motorway with three elephants in the background and what looked like a submarine .
There were two stamps though that were very comical but with an emphasise on hypocracy and made to embarass the National Park when they said letterboxers are the main cause of disturbance to ground nesting birds ,and can we refrain from going in to certain areas during the bird nesting season as they are causing great disturbance to ground nesting birds (May to July) which may seem a reasonable request until you see the stamps .
It was a picture of two people tip toeing along and being careful where they put their feet ,and in the background were scores of soldiers firing at each other and Artillery shells being fired and causing huge explosions , birds nests and eggs were flying everywhere .The caption read "Be careful dear we dont want to disturb the birds " !! Another featured the Ten Tors 6 abreast with helicopters in the air churning up vast swathes of Dartmoor trampling all in their wake and the same two characters saying again We have to be tread careful now its May not to cause to much disturbance to the birds !![
I think I remember the Billys Tor stamps,
There were some very poor stamps put out in the 80s once people discovered that you could make your own with some rubbers from WH Smiths and a craft scapel..and yes ,I hold my hands up, my first dartmoor railway box stamp was terrible, however I know there were worse, like the "Floating sentry", that was a cutting around the picture on the rubber from Smiths..a guardsman, this was then deposited in a container and chucked in the river Plym near Calveslake Tor. The idea was that you would come across it at various sticking points along the course of the river...it had no reference to Dartmoor.. (I still collected it!!)]
The Thinkers
2010-08-26 16:52:00
Can't say we have found enough to take part in this debate with any 'gravity'. I did recently smile :) having trudged up one Tor to find a written stamp that says;
'Well, that sorted you b*gg*rs out hasn't it!
As it happened it was a nice day, but had it been wet and misty I would have smiled even more!
There seems to be a general call that stamps should have a 'Dartmoor' theme, but does this limit stamps to geographical features? Yes, they are nice to find, and generally incredibly creative, but IMO there are other options. Our own stamp looks very much like the avatar with 'The Thinkers' on the base. We chose it because being on the moor is a thoughtful and reflective time for us (as well as a lot of fun and laughter :wink: ) inspired by our surroundings. It also cost more than a few quid to make!
I wonder what other stamps there are that are similar to ours, ie inspired by something to do with the Moor rather than citing a geographical feature? We have not found anything like enough to know ... but will enjoy the adventure.
Best wishes,
K&A
Ed The Walker
2010-08-27 13:46:38
There were some very poor stamps put out in the 80s once people discovered that you could make your own with some rubbers from WH Smiths and a craft scapel..and yes ,I hold my hands up, my first dartmoor railway box stamp was terrible, however I know there were worse, like the "Floating sentry", that was a cutting around the picture on the rubber from Smiths..a guardsman, this was then deposited in a container and chucked in the river Plym near Calveslake Tor. The idea was that you would come across it at various sticking points along the course of the river...it had no reference to Dartmoor.. (I still collected it!!)]
I wonder how many people actually go to the time and trouble plus have the skill to hand carve their own rubber stamps? Maybe it's a thing of the past?? Ok, so I haven't as yet found a hand cut one but I hope I will next time I walk into the centre of the moors, possibly Fur Tor this weekend!
Maybe letterbox stamps should stick to a Dartmoor theme, the odd ones that I have collected just by looking under rocks many refer to the area where I found it. This at least gives me a form of a reference point as to where I went that day.
I think this may have gone off topic so my full apologies to the Admin and Mods here. :cry: