ANZ travel bugs

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Is it necessary to have a COPY tag for Travel Bugs?

Poll ended at 01 January 04 11:07 am

Yes
7
23%
No
23
77%
 
Total votes: 30

leek
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ANZ travel bugs

Post by leek » 02 November 03 11:07 am

As discussed elsewhere, I'm planning to get some travel bug tags manufactured for local sale in Australia and New Zealand only... There are a few hoops to go thru before we can do it, but I wanted to ask a question of the group... Do you think the copy dog-tag is strictly necessary as it will almost double the cost of the tags...<br><br>

Personally, I have used them in the past to remember the number of my travel bug and I suppose that they could also be used for a replacement bug if one goes missing, but both of these cases could be solved in other ways... <br><br>

Anyway, please let me know your opinion via the attached poll... If you vote Yes, please let us know why and how you use the copy tag...

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Post by Team Stargazer » 02 November 03 2:41 pm

No, I don't think it's necessary for everyone to have a second TB tag, just the ability to easily order a copy of their TB if the need arises.

If you have the misfortune of your TB going AWOL or being destroyed then not only have you lost the TB, which should be easy to replaced by ordering a copy, but also the item the TB was attached too, which may be harder to replace.
Not every TB out there goes through this disturbing experience & go about their merry lives travelling the globe. To have a backup TB sitting at home that may never be used, in my eyes, is just a waist of money & resources that could have been used to produce a NEW TB :wink:

Just my 2.2c - GST included.

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riblit
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Post by riblit » 02 November 03 3:48 pm

Team Stargazer opined:
If you have the misfortune of your TB going AWOL or being destroyed then not only have you lost the TB
There is a cache for deceased TBs, rather than get a copy, place it in that cache in case it does a Lazarus and get a new TB.

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Post by SNIFTER » 02 November 03 6:08 pm

I have quite a good collection of copy TB's. I am going to use one of them to replicate one that was lost/stolen. In the long run I don't think they are necessary and not a good look with todays fashions :lol:

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Post by Team Piggy » 03 November 03 7:46 pm

Question??
Are these ANZ travel bugs going to be compatible with the Geo.com site ?
Or are placers/finders going to have to navigate another database/site somewhere ?

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Post by Team Stargazer » 03 November 03 8:57 pm

Team Piggy wrote:Question??
Are these ANZ travel bugs going to be compatible with the Geo.com site ?
Or are placers/finders going to have to navigate another database/site somewhere ?
Hey Piggy, have a look HERE

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Post by leek » 03 November 03 9:38 pm

Team Piggy wrote:Question??
Are these ANZ travel bugs going to be compatible with the Geo.com site ?
Assuming that Jeremy provides us with a number range - they will be compatible with the geocaching.com site... The aim is only to make them more accessible to local cachers as you can't buy them direct from the US...

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Post by Team Piggy » 04 November 03 8:17 am

I know about the offered number range, but I personally see geo.com making many changes that aren't "requested".
I would sort out all the groundwork before having anything produced personally.
He isnt going to make one cent out of another countries bugs, so who is going to pay for the bandwidth that users of those bugs take from his site with multiple page views etc?
I see that could become a problem in the future for them..?
We can buy bugs from the US quite easily, it's the freight that becomes a bit of a price riser !
I still have a heap of bugs here from the last purchase i did direct last year, i think they worked out at about $10.00 Aust each.
I did resell a few (and accepted credit cards) this added another $3.00 to the price to cover the bank fees and express post. reasonable I think.
But $13.00 is quite expensive for a TB if you look at it as well.
With bugs being created locally there will also be problems .. such as, will the person in control of the oz bugs for sale be accepting all forms of payment this time ? (credit cards included?).
Obtaining TB's is the easy part, it's if everyone is happy to pay the required price for them once they are landed here ?
Or do we all wish to go our own way and have our own unique ANZ bugs ?

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Post by leek » 04 November 03 8:44 am

$13 is too expensive... the one's I am looking at would be less than half that price... I'm trying to make sure that we make the appropriate agreements with Jeremy before proceeding... Even if we have to pay a small levy to geocaching.com to cover the bandwidth issues that's ok too... If we proceed, I'll set up a paypal account so that people can order them using credit cards etc...

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Post by mrg » 23 November 03 11:33 pm

I'll be the first to admit I am pretty new to Geocaching and have only been involved about a year or so. I recently purchased 5 travel bugs via the UK site and paid $53.39 including postage.

I do like the idea of a copy or some second identification of the bug you have sent off into the wild. Maybe the copy could be a smaller tag or a unique tag of some sort with the number planted on it...could be plastic for example like a credit card....

Just some thoughts

MRG

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Post by embi » 02 December 03 11:55 am

Here is the lateest from GC.com
Hi Embi,

Unfortunately, Groundspeak is not currently selling any of the travel bug tracking numbers. A lot of individuals and organizations have requested to purchase them but they are not yet being sold. I am not sure when the policy will change but I will definitely let you know if it does.

If you are interested in placing a bulk order for travel bugs, please let me know and I will set you up with a special login account so that you can order a larger quantity for distribution there perhaps there are others that would be interested in purchasing them). Also, do you know of anyone or company that would like to be a distributor for Groundspeak to sell geo merchandise?

-Bryan

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Post by riblit » 02 December 03 2:47 pm

Wonderful....

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Post by Team Piggy » 02 December 03 2:50 pm

Hmm, Why did I know it was heading this way ?
:roll:

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Offer to Buy TB Dog Tags While I'm in the U.S.

Post by dak's Emu Mob » 09 December 03 12:30 pm

I can't help thinking that it would be best all round to stick to the "official" TB dog tags. If every country started creating their own "flavour", it would be a potential nightmare for gc.com.
<p>
Having an ANZ TB would be a "nice to have", but the past-time of geocaching is none the poorer for not having them. IMHO
<p>
The <i><b>real</b></i> problem is the cost of getting them from Septic Land (the U.S.). A bulk purchase would seem to be the go, but who wants to invest the spondoolicks? Now that there is no GeoShop, there is no obvious contender (I can't see one anyway). Further problems arise in trying to cater for all the payment options.
<p>
Anyhow, I look like going to Septic Land in January, and I will be buying a personal stock of TB dog tags while I'm over there. I have made the offer in another thread (TB's for Australia), and I'll make it here too:
<p>
I'm 95% sure that I'll be travelling to the U.S. in January (12–23). It depends on the company that I'm contracting for; sometimes they pull the pin at the last minute.
<p>
I intended to purchase an eight-pack of TB tags while there. I'd be happy to take orders for anyone who wants them, and post them to you at cost price, plus postage and packing on my return. P&P should be about $1 for the PostPak, and postage of 95c for up to six sets, or $1.45 for up to 15 sets, or $2.45 for more than 15 sets. International carrier fee: $0.00!
<p>
Example Costs in AUS Dollars: 8 TBs = $46.00; shipping within U.S. = $6.50. Each TB costs $6.56. Add postage costs above, and eight TBs will set you back about $55, or around AUS$6.85 each&#151;much cheaper than the $13 being quoted. Even if you only bought one, it would cost you around $8.50.
<p>
I'll accept expressions of interest, and when the trip is 100% certain, I'll re-contact you to confirm that you are still interested. If you're interested, post a reply here so others can assess interest, and send me your name and email address only&#151;we'll worry about postal addresses later.
<p>
I've already had expressions of interest from riblit, SNIFTER, and winaje. (The response has been underwhelming so far.)
<p>
By the way, I don't have credit card facilities, Pay Pal, B-Pay, and so on. I'll accept cash and cheques.
<p>
Cheers,
<p>
dak

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