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New Tb Design


Jeremy

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I've looked and looked and can't find it. (No GPS in cyberspace).

 

Where do we order just tracking numbers from? (No tags, no coins, just the numbers. I know I saw a post that had the prices listed the other day, but I can't find it now. I want to make my own bugs and have them trackable on geocaching.com.

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I've looked and looked and can't find it. (No GPS in cyberspace).

 

Where do we order just tracking numbers from? (No tags, no coins, just the numbers. I know I saw a post that had the prices listed the other day, but I can't find it now. I want to make my own bugs and have them trackable on geocaching.com.

I think the threads you might be looking for are Groundspeaks current coin tracking policy, and all about making a coin.

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I have a new one in front of me and my TB looks to be engraved and not printed. I can actually feel the numbers being different then the printed TB.

Whew. Good thing someone in the last page redirected to this post. I was starting to get all worried.

 

Y'see, I just, just ordered my very first TB tags, which JUST arrived today *eehehehehehehhee... as soon as I can laminate an instruction thing, this sucker's going on his journey*, and looked at the tags, seeing what appeared to be printed letters for the code.

 

So I sighed, and was already digging out some tools to try to manually imprint the letters on the TB as well. I thought this, since just a week or so ago, I came across a TB (a yellow jeep) where virtually all of the printing had been long since worn off. Hence... I already saw what can become of the print on a TB tag.

 

However, I decided to check the board first, since I figured I wouldn't be the only one to bring up the 'printed versus indented' thought. And lo and behold, my worries were unfounded. Glad to see it'll (hopefully) show up after the black print has worn off :}

 

BTW... IS there a picture anywhere of how clear it would be after the print has worn off? Just a sample of some sort (like... the first 2 or 3 characters of one)?

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Modified design. Thoughts?

Modified design. Thoughts?

 

Reply: My opinion of this new design is that it isn’t as influential as one might think. I base my reasoning on communication public specking criteria. Therefore, I believe persuasion is the key, not an order that will ultimately send mix decoded messages to various people of social backgrounds. Thus, a pleasant and polite message, judging from my experience, should keep the sale of these tags in high production and find their way to diverse cache sites more easily.

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We're also changing the manufacturing method to allow us to print alphanumeric codes, making it more difficult to figure out.

 

I just got my first TBs and had difficulty telling an O from an 0. I hope this will be easier in the new edition.

 

I guess when it comes to geocaching I just don't know my O from a hole in the ground!

Edited by ThatcherRoad
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We're redoing the travel bug design to add the new Groundspeak logo. We're also changing the manufacturing method to allow us to print alphanumeric codes, making it more difficult to figure out. The tags will be more rectangular but we'll still be using the same aluminum material and printing method.

 

How is the text? It needs to be straight and to the point.

 

new_tb.gif

 

The front of the tag will have the barcoded travel bug logo as it is now.

How can I get one?

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:P I like that is clearly says to move it along. Some people don't understand the traveling concept initally. Thanks for a bit of education, as well, about logging the bugs. I need to go back and make sure I didn't make too many newbie errors.

 

Small tags would be super cool as well, for the smaller caches that are in great locations, but overlooked.

 

We're redoing the travel bug design to add the new Groundspeak logo. We're also changing the manufacturing method to allow us to print alphanumeric codes, making it more difficult to figure out. The tags will be more rectangular but we'll still be using the same aluminum material and printing method.

 

How is the text? It needs to be straight and to the point.

 

new_tb.gif

 

The front of the tag will have the barcoded travel bug logo as it is now.

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I finished reading this whole thread a couple of days ago.

 

I was very excited to read that because of the production process replacement tags could be ordered for lost/missing tags. I sent an email to the Groundspeak contact us address and then to contact at geocaching.com I was just informed they can NOT make replacement tags, I would have to buy brand new numbers. I am not going to do this because my old paid for number still work, I just will have to get handmade tags as replacements

 

Anyhoo, in case anyone else wanted to know this I am just posting what I found out.

 

:anicute::anicute::lol:

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We're actually changing the tag to www.travelbugs.com - The plan was (and still is) a way to provide a travel bug link directly on that page and give it more space to explain what it is for visitors who are new to the idea.

 

OK I havent been at this very long but...

 

Ceocaching.com

Groundspeak.com

travelbugs.com

 

We seem to be .com-bombarded.

 

I do all of my stuff from geocaching.com but I do it from the geocacher perspective. Now if someone found a TB loose and not in a cache, didn't know what it was, I can understand having travelbugs.com, otherwise I'll just click on a link in geocach.com. Oh, isn't that the link that is the hardest to read on the tag?

 

Are Newbe's the problem with MIA TB's or Muggles? If Newbe's are the problem than I would say that the serialized side of the tag needs a don't keep me statement as well. Something like... "Help me along.. read reverse"

 

Just a thougt.[:smile:]

 

If Travelbug.com is meant to help people who

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Nice design. Hopefully the text change will help with new cacher confusion. I'm most thrilled with the idea of only minting a single tag without the copy tag. If this decreases the production cost and ultimately the cost to geocachers I think we may get more bugs out there. I never bothered with the copy tags in the first place. Great idea!

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I am quite proficient in the art of aluminum anodizing.

This is the process by which a layer of crystaline aluminum oxide is "grown" on the surface of the metal by electrolysis. This would give your TB tag a corrosion resistant finish which can be dyed to almost any color imaginable!

 

Anodizing is the way to go. It would be a nice option.

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Production cost to set up and print / stamp the two tags at the same time shouldn't be much more. What are we talking......a few cents?

No. We're talking twice as much as one tag. An acid etch and fill for each tag is pretty expensive.

 

Good ideas about bolding. I also considered the cache to cache text replacing place to place. I'd prefer place to place but I wanted folks to understand it is supposed to move and not kept. It seemed obvious in "do not keep me" but I wanted to stress it more.

Why acid etch? Use laser engraving instead, it's must be cheaper

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ACID ETCHING IS A BAD IDEA!!! I had some lockets engraved less than a year ago using the acid etch and fill method. The design is now un-readable. It wears off very fast. I hope that you have tried this design out in the field. We don't want all the dog-tags to end up blank after being handled a few times.

 

 

Production cost to set up and print / stamp the two tags at the same time shouldn't be much more. What are we talking......a few cents?

No. We're talking twice as much as one tag. An acid etch and fill for each tag is pretty expensive.

 

Good ideas about bolding. I also considered the cache to cache text replacing place to place. I'd prefer place to place but I wanted folks to understand it is supposed to move and not kept. It seemed obvious in "do not keep me" but I wanted to stress it more.

Why acid etch? Use laser engraving instead, it's must be cheaper

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ACID ETCHING IS A BAD IDEA!!! I had some lockets engraved less than a year ago using the acid etch and fill method. The design is now un-readable. It wears off very fast. I hope that you have tried this design out in the field. We don't want all the dog-tags to end up blank after being handled a few times.

 

You do know these tags have been out since 2004 right?

 

Haven't seen a bad one yet.

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ACID ETCHING IS A BAD IDEA!!! I had some lockets engraved less than a year ago using the acid etch and fill method. The design is now un-readable. It wears off very fast. I hope that you have tried this design out in the field. We don't want all the dog-tags to end up blank after being handled a few times.

 

You do know these tags have been out since 2004 right?

 

Haven't seen a bad one yet.

 

i have come across a few. the acid etching does wear off a litle faster then laser etching. in laser etching you can control and increase the depth. i came across one from about when the new one started (for the life of me, i cant remember the name off the top of my head) but it was worn and scratched pretty bad where the TN's were. so bad that i had to take some stamps and knock some new numbers back in. others i have come across where they needed new contrast. i took a grease pen and went over the TN's again and put new contrast to them. from a mechanical engineer stand point, the whole needs to come down about 1/16 of an inch. the ones i have been getting lately have been too close to the upper edge creating an LMC problem. being that these are a "soft" metal, that could pose a probelm. just my two cents. otherwise, i am addicted to these things.

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somewhere[/url], it would be nice if the Tag had both the TBXXXX and the 6 digit, or now 6 character access code on it. This might just prevent the unknowing from posting the access code in the logs.

I considered this, but it may actually cause more confusion since some folks won't know which code to put in there.

 

As a side note, we're considering only selling 1 tag instead of a tag and a copy tag. Since we will be able to print on demand we can always print a new tag number if the first one goes missing. This will also reduce the cost since we only need to manufacture one of them.

 

Of course, you can still have a second tag if you wish, but it will be by request (and cost more). I know folks use the copy tags as keychains and such.

 

I like the second tag as a keychain, but if the price is reduced, then, well, I can do without the extra tag! :laughing:

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I purchased a dog tag from the Geo Woodstock and can not get it to activate there was no activation given to me by Coins and pins at the time of purchase it there any way to get it to activate. Please let me know

j2nora ;)

 

If it's a standard gc.com bug you'll need to send an email to contact@Groundspeak.com. Include the tracking number and use the subject line Travel Bug Activation.

Edited by BlueDeuce
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Out of curiosity...I'm a jeweler/metalsmith, and I'm wondering is it possible to get codes assigned to something I make? or would I have to buy a tb or gc, and then just take those numbers and apply them?

 

thnks for anything on that

 

Michael

 

You could purchase geocoin numbers in a block, 250 I think. Otherwise you would have to purchase single coins/tb tags and reuse the number on your item.

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