posted 01-09-2025 08:18 AM               

Most of us have covers for different aspects of a mission; launch, tracking, landing, recovery, anniversaries etc.

These two are both cancelled at Cape Canaveral, the top one on launch date for 8th September 1967, and the bottom one for moon touchdown on 11th September 1967. Nothing unusual there then (although proper astrophilatelists will be beside themselves in anguish that the moonlander cover wasn't cancelled at JPL!).

But. If you look closely you will notice that the two postmarks, although both are machine cancellations and both are from the same Post Office, they are different. The top one has wavy line killers, and the bottom has straight line killers.

I have gone through my entire collection with a fine toothed comb, and the launch cover for Surveyor-5 on the 8th September 1967 is the very last wavy-lined machine cancellation I can find for Cape Caneveral. So I just assumed the machine had been replaced with a straight-lined machine after that date.

However, on close inspection, before the Surveyor-5 mission my Cape Canaveral cancellations are a mix of wavy and straight lines. The earliest straight-lined cancellation I have is for the 5th February 1967 for the launch of Lunar Orbiter-3.

I assume then that the Cape Canaveral Post Office had at least two machines, with one being installed in early 1967 (either as a new second machine, or as a replacement for an existing second machine), and the old wavy line machine was either retired or swapped out for a second straight line machine on or shortly after 8th September 1967.

Do any of you have other covers with varying machine cancellations for the same mission? Does anybody have an earlier straight-line Cape Canaveral cancellation prior to 5 February, or a later wavy-line cancellation after 8th September?

posted 01-09-2025 02:13 PM               

There had to be two different machine cancel devices in use at CCPO throughout 1967 with the introduction of a straight line variety on Feb. 1, 1967, which had been first used on space covers dated Feb. 5, 1967 at Canaveral.

Since there are covers with a straight line application appearing on Sept. 8th covers that same year with Surveyor 5, the older wavy line cancelling device was re-used or put back into service for this particular launch.

Normally with a new cancel device put into service, postal clerks would always use the newer cancel machine, but apparently for some reason, the older device with the postal wavy lines was used once more.

Maybe the newer straight line machine was under repair or down for maintenance even on the same day(s) as Surveyor 5 covers were being processed first by the newer straight line machine. So at that point the older or "retired" second cancelling wavy machine was put into service for the same launch event. I don't seem to have any other wavy line covers after Surveyor 5.

posted 01-10-2025 07:22 AM               

And thanks for your input Ken, you have put me right.

I initially thought that there was a period of dual use of both types of machine covering many months, my only excuse for thinking that is that the machine cancellations for Wallops Island and Patrick Air Force Base continued to be wavy-lined throughout this period, thus confusing my quick eyes-only search.

On closer inspection your explanation stands up much much better, and of course you were there at the time!

Below is a timeline from the Cape Canaveral covers in my collection over this period perfectly illustrating your point:

• Gemini-10 Agena target July 18th 1966 - wavy
  
• Lunar Orbiter August 10th - wavy
  
• Pioneer-7 August 17th - wavy
  
• Apollo Saturn 1 (AS-202) August 25th - wavy
  
• Titan 3C [x2] August 26th - wavy
  
• Gemini-11 launch September 12th - wavy
  
• Surveyor-2 September 20th - wavy
  
• Atlas-Centaur-9 October 26th - wavy
  
• Lani Intelsat-2 October 27th - wavy
  
• MOL Gemini capsule November 3rd - wavy
  
• ATS-1 December 7th - wavy
  
• Biosatellite-1 December 14th 1966 - wavy
  
• Lani-2 comsat January 11th 1967 - wavy
  
• Titan 3C January 18th 1967 - wavy

• Apollo tragedy January 28th A.M. - straight
  
• Lunar Orbiter-3 February 5th - straight
  
• British Polaris firing March 4th - straight
  
• Canary Bird comsat [x2] March 23rd - straight
  
• Polaris firing SSBN657 April 3rd - straight
  
• ATS-2 April 6th - straight
  
• Surveyor-C April 18th - straight
  
• Surveyor-3 April 19th - straight
  
• Vela-4 April 28th - straight
  
• Lunar Orbiter-4 May 4th - straight
  
• Mariner-5 launch June 14th - straight
  
• Titan 3C July 1st - straight
  
• Surveyor-4 [x2] July 14th - straight
  
• Explorer-35 July 19th - straight
  
• Polaris sub firing August 1st - straight
  
• Bios-2 September 7th - straight

• Surveyor-5 launch September 8th - wavy

• Surveyor-5 landing September 11th - straight
  
• Pacific-2 comsat September 28th - straight
  
• OSO-4 Sunlab October 18th - straight

posted 01-11-2025 03:44 AM               

I had the same issue than you with Cape Canaveral (CC) different cancels but with another space mission with closer dates: Biosatellite-2. See below covers with Sep 8, 1967 CC cancel with wavy lines and Sep 9, 1967 CC with straight lines.

Sorry it both covers are not linked with Surveyor 5 (as title of your post) but are involved to CC cancel types.

Some years ago, I thought that Sep 9, 1967 was first day of use for this cancel. As per Ken info, CC cancel with straight lines was used from Feb 1, 1967 with first appear in space cover Feb 5, 1967.

Another example below.

However, you quote CC straight line with earlier date Jan 28, 1967. See below

Really, I would love to see a list of different CC cancels used along the years but especially with dates of first day and last day of use.

Regarding this CC cancel with straight lines there is also for me another doubt. This CC cancels appears with time slug in the center of the die, but next year can be found with time slug in the right of the die. Rest of cancel is exactly equal. Is this a variety of the same CC cancel or this can be considered another CC cancel? Answers welcomed.

posted 01-11-2025 06:31 AM               

Firstly Antoni, your Bios-2 covers narrow the time frame down even better than the Ranger-5 cancels.

As for the start date for usage of the staight-line machine do you Ken (or anybody else) have a cover with wavy lines after the 18th January, or does anybody have a Cape Canaveral cover with straight lines prior to January 28th.

On the third point raised by Antoni, I believe the date and time portions of the cancel were swapped out manually, but the same machine used throughout - thus the displacement of the time slug from centre to right-hand side was just a new plug replacing an old worn plug.