Wax Seals And Usps In Usa

[Chuck400b]

i just wanted to check in with people who mail using wax seals on the exterior of the letter and ask:

 

Do you have to pay the non machinable surcharge?

If so can you point me to any reference in the DMM they used to justify it?

 

 

How much do your seals not get damaged through the mail stream?

 

I use Herbin supple wax.

 

My main use Post Office pulled my letters this week and said I needed to pay it (normal card under 1 ounce), so of course I went to the other Post Office near me and they accepted them no problem with extra postage.

[Fabienne]

I never have.

[dvalliere]

I have never paid extra or been asked to pay extra though I do make sure to keep my wax seals very thin. I used J. Herbin supple wax briefly but found that USPS was brutal and destroying them, usually leaving only a wax smear on the envelope. I've switched to Atelier Gargoyle sealing was with very good results. Goulet Pens started carrying it recently but previously I purchased it straight from the makers. I think there are a couple other vendors as well.

[Sasha Royale]

Wax seals are not specifically identified. Some might consider it as "or similar device".

Good advice for effective mailing, but too subjective to enforce. As far as I am concerned, wax seal is not a feature that renders a letter "non-machineable". Three decades of experience says, " The wax seal is likely to be damaged in mechanical processing."

[Piper 987]

Three decades of experience says, " The wax seal is likely to be damaged in mechanical processing."

 

That's why I fold the letter, use a wax seal over the fold and then put it in the envelope.

 

 

 

[Rhincodon]

I've never had to pay extra; I drop my letters in the mailbox and haven't had them returned to me. I use letterseals.com's mailable wax and I think they go through okay? I'll ask my next recipient to let me know, though.

 

edited for typos

Edited May 7, 2016 by Rhincodon

[Fabienne]

I use regular non-supple bees-waxy sealing wax and have never had a problem with the US Mail.

[ParkerQuink]

I have, for a very long time, gone through the extra trouble of paying extra, and having the letter sent as "non-machinable", only to find out that it ends up going through the machines anyways when I see the letters on the other side, as the seal is usually squished and disfigured, and the machined barcode added, and the stamp machine canncelled. So, I quite doing it that way, and just drop them in like any other letter, with standard postage. I think that when the mail in my area gets to the sorting center, they just dump it all in the machine. I have always used J. Herbin supple wax, and the seals do not exactly crack or anything when being machined, they just don't look as good as when I made the seal.

[Sasha Royale]

I have, for a very long time, gone through the extra trouble of paying extra, and having the letter sent as "non-machinable", only to find out that it ends up going through the machines anyways when I see the letters on the other side, as the seal is usually squished and disfigured, and the machined barcode added, and the stamp machine canncelled. So, I quite doing it that way, and just drop them in like any other letter, with standard postage. I think that when the mail in my area gets to the sorting center, they just dump it all in the machine. I have always used J. Herbin supple wax, and the seals do not exactly crack or anything when being machined, they just don't look as good as when I made the seal.

If a first-class letter is classified as "non-machineable" by the USPS, a surcharge may me assessed. However, there is no provision for the mailing public to designate a letter for "non-machineable" handling. Sorry.