How About Putting on Some Gloves, Jack

Buyers have better eyesight than sellers
1934 Lincoln Cent, MS63

I will use a cotton towel to lightly wipe society's grimes off a coin. Once, ok. Twice is pushing it. At 3 times, you are polishing it.
This is the most cleaning I will offer a coin.
I wiped a small bit of debris from a proof cent...one swipe...RUINED IT.
For brown, circulated coins I have no problem handling them with my bare hands. That's why I choose to work with them most.  For BU rolls and proof coins, I've learned the hard way to put on gloves.  It only takes one light touch to leave a fingerprint on a coin.  Add some combindation of warmth, humidity and time, the skin oils and perspiration will darken, leaving the most unsightly mark on your otherwise spotless coin.
Cotton gloves are available online or at your nearest pharmacy for less than $5.
Latex gloves are cheaper, 50 pair for 5 bucks, available at walmart.
Use them once, save a $5 proof coin, it pays for itself.
Cotton can be washed, not a bad idea seeing how filthy they get even when used for BU coins. Just be sure to rinse the bejesus out of them or the detergents can cross-contaminate the surfaces you are trying to protect.

Even when wearing cotton or latex gloves, try real hard not to swipe your finger across the surface of the coin. Particles and grime can stick to the gloves just as easily as your fingers.

Make the investment.  It's 5 bucks.  You probably spend 10-100 times that on your phone.

If you choose not to wear gloves when handling BU, Proof, or extremely rare/valuable coins, the entire numismatic community would appreciate if you also chose to get involved in a different hobby.  Try cooking.

 I've added a video to go along with this article.

Lathe Lines

Here's one to keep an eye out for: Lathe Lines
These have only been found with a few dates. 1996 D is the most common.

There is not much information about this die error.  The most extensive information I've found so far comes from Jason Cuvelier's ErrorVariety.com where he lists 35 different dates and attributed dies including:

• 1959-D
• 1961-D
• 1964
• 1964-D, 2 attributed varieties
• 1985
• 1988
• 1989
• 1990
• 1991
• 1993-D
• 1996-D, by far the most common with 21 attributed varieties
• 2009-S Type 4 Proof
• 2010

In addition to Lincoln Cents, lathe lines have been identified on 

• Jefferson Nickels: 1988-D, 2000, 2008 (2), 2008-D (2)
• Kennedy Halves: 1990, 2001
• Most recently in a 1982-P Washington Commemorative Half Dollar

One of the most informative websites regarding error coins is Error-Ref.com.  The entry offered for lathe lines is concise, but explains the simple process of how they come into being:

These concentric rings are produced by a lathe which shapes the cone-shaped face of the unfinished working die.  The cone is supposed to be polished smooth before hubbing.  If polishing is omitted or inadequate, the surface will remain covered by concentric lathe marks which will not be erased by subsequent hubbing.

Is this an error or a die variety?

Lathe Lines appear as concentric rings usually at the
outer radius of the coin

That's as much as I've uncovered after an extensive search for information. I find no auction records, population estimates, market history, completed sales listings or market value estimates.  I don't know how well the markings hold up to circulation, or if it affects the copper plating on the post 1982 Lincolns.  Judging by my find shown above, I'm not hopeful.

Finding them is tough, identifying them is easy, these lines stand out like a sore thumb.  You can see them with the naked eye.  I talked about these coins over social media.  The responses were more like a story about a Bigfoot sighting than anything else.

• "I saw something that looked like a fingerprint and threw it back" 
• "I've heard about those but never seen one."
• "There's no such thing"

I'm here to tell you, there is such a thing.  The example shown above is in my possession.  I found it  in a roll out of a box from a bank in a medium sized town in northern Florida about two months ago.

They are out there.

UPDATE
10/18/18 1990-D Kennedy reported with lathe lines.  Images are promising, included here with the approval of the discoverer, Mark Mills.

Easy To Find Doubled Die Specimens

I have added a video to help explain what to look for and how to better attribute what you find:

You can go through thousands of coins and not find a doubled die.  Rather than get discouraged, hunt for some low hanging fruit.  Those Doubled Die specimens are easier to find once you can identify a specific type.

Here's an easy one: Look at the reverse of 2004, 2005, 2006 Lincoln cents. These modern Shield Cents are still found with brilliant luster, making these easier to pick out.  Look real close at the statue. There are dozens of Doubled Die Reverse coins in these years that show as extra partial columns. Can be on the left, on the right, high, low, short, long.  This is probably the single easiest DD to find as long as you have at least a 10x loupe.  There are all Class 8, Tilted Hub Doubling.  If you can spot the first one, you'll be able to spot them from across the room.

 

2004 WDDR-025

Above is a 2004 WDDR-025.  The nomenclature is important, it lets you know eexactly what I'm talking about.  2004 is the date.  WDDR is nomenclature used by John Wexler, W=Wexler, DDR=Doubled Die Reverse.  The 025 is the number of the die in his listing.  Look down his listings for 2004 and you'll find it.  Compare for yourself. 

If the above image is difficult to make out, try this one.  I have marked it with arrows.  Your homework assignment is to determine which one this is.  Use Wexler, Coppercoins, and Variety Vista (the Big 3).

2006 DDR

Once you learn how to recognize these, its a piece of cake to pick them out from every box you go through.  I've sold these minor doubled die coins in the range of $1-$5  quite a number of times.  Probably made enough in sales to pay for the camera used to take the photos above.  These don't carry a large premium. I think the greatest value is found as a training tool or stepping stone in identifying other die varieties.

It may be you come across a DDR that is not recorded by any of the Big 3.  This offers you the chance to make a contribution to the hobby.  Send it in to be attributed.  If is determined to be a new variety, the attributor will list your name alongside it before the whole world.  There are scores of these.  I've got several I can't identify.  I've been meaning to send them in but something always comes up. 

As long as you have the coins out, be sure to check for other varieties while you are at it.  I found this 2004 WDDR-005 just last week.  The PUP (PickUp Point) is extra thickeness in the letters of EPU and notches in "States Of".

2004 WDDR-005

The Shield Cents have all produced Doubled Dies in the date or RTY in Liberty. They can be hard to see, a 10x loupe comes in handy, but they are out there. For some of these you need to look at the lower right or left corner of the Y in liberty and tell if it is square or 'funny'. You are looking for extra thickness, slopes and notches.

2011 WDDO-005

 

You've gone to all the trouble of getting the rolls, sorting them, looking close at the obverse, later you'll return all those coins which means rolling or paying coinstar fees.  Get the most out of that box and all the effort: take the extra moment to look at the reverse.  It only takes a moment to flip that coin over.

Attention to detail is the key element to finding these.  They are out there.

Good Luck

Happy Hunting

---

The term is Doubled Die.  It's not Double Die, and certainly not Double Dye.  Every coin is produced with 2 dies.  It matters when the die itself is doubled.  If you want to be specific, start there.

A good way to remember is look at Wexler's site, Doubleddie.com.  One lady referred to it as Double Eddie.  At least she had the right number of Ds.

Mail Call 18 April - 1931-S

I stalked this 1931-S on eBay for several days.   The images were a little out of focus but it looked right. I waited until the last few seconds, then placed what I thought was a reasonable bid....and won.


I took a look at what else the seller had, picked up a 1928 described as XF and a well worn 1922-D.  There were no other bids, I picked up both for a buck each.  The photo of the 22-D was so bad I thought it was a dryer coin.  With combined shipping the other 2 coins cost nothing extra to ship.  All I paid was the bid price.
They were incidental pickups to improve some of the sets I'm working on.  It was the 1931-S that I wanted.





The package arrived earlier today.  I've been showing packaging methods in videos, so I made one opening this package. 

I was delighted when I took a good look at the coins.  The 1928 is much closer to AU than XF.   I'll give that further attention.  The 1922-D is what I expected and nothing to remarkable to write about, but the 1931-S is a sweetheart.

I had to HUNT for signs of wear.  Just above the ear is a spot where the reflection of the coin's surface is a little different.  The bow tie is not as sharp as it could be, but the texture of the surface is consistent with the rest of the coin.  Both sides present an example of Progressive Indirect Design Transfer.  This gives me reason to believe the bowtie detail is a result of a weak die rather than wear.  The reverse is practically flawless.

The coin has a few contact marks.  Click on the images for a larger view.  The worst is nestled in close to the bowtie.  The coin has great luster, more Red than Brown, and is enhanced with a low contrast wood grain to give it exceptional eye appeal.

This coin sold the day it arrived.

How did you get started with coin collecting?

Today I'm offering a poll question: How did you get started with coin collecting?

There is a comment section below each article, feel free to use it with your response.  It's just a little blog, but it sure is getting a whole lot of views.  Seems to me we can put it use for posterity and share our stories.


Back in the summer of  '77 we had a birthday party for 2 of my great grandmothers.  One was born in 1898, the other in 1896.  The younger grandmother was pleasant, but she was confined to a wheel chair from polio back in the 40s and at her advanced age resided in a nursing home.  We could visit

I used to be cute, even in plaid pants. 
What went wrong?

and talk, but that was about it.  The other lived alone in a little house so far out in the country that it was like going to another world.  She took care of several acres of blueberries, took care of the house, and took care of pretty much everybody and everything.  Her age was starting to show and she could use some help with a few things, asked if I would like to come stay with her for a little while.  Who was I to say no to unlimited molasses cookies?

Besides helping paint the barn and clean up the basement and break up a pile of boards under an apple tree, and hauling said boards into the said basement for later use as firewood, she asked one evening if I could help roll up her can of change because what fingers she still had were not as nimble as they were in her younger days (which was a century ago).  I'm 10 years old, at a house lived in by an old lady.  There are no games, no toys, only 2 channels on the black and white TV, the phone was a party line and calling home was long distance.  That cost money back then and she was frugal...that's why she has a can of change.  It would be 20 years until Al Gore invented the internet.  She did have a set of checkers and a checker board.  We played that a lot.  Besides watching the paint dry on the barn, there was not much else to do.

This night, instead of checkers, we would roll her change.  She had some flat wrappers she got from the bank.  They would just give them to you back then.  "Do you need more?" ...with a smile. 
I got to work sorting out the quarters, then the nickels, then the dimes, leaving all the pennies behind.  Mind you, I was doing this all by myself.  Nannie was writing a letter.  I was helping with the pennies.  Back then, helping means you get to do it all. 

When I got to counting the pennies there was one that I didn't understand.  It was worn out, almost smooth.  I thought it was a button.  She's got a tin full of buttons, musta dropped one in this tin by accident.  I showed it to her, asked what the indian head was all about. 

"When I was your age, that's what pennies looked like"

She explained that when she was my age, that's what the pennies looked like.

It was an Indian Head Penny.  I looked through the rest, found ANOTHER ONE!

This one had more detail.  You could see the feathers, face, earhair, the shield on the back...everything.  I never knew these existed.  From my point of view, coins were perpetual.  For the most part, they still are-40 years later.

I'm sitting there with nothing better to do and a pile of change in front of me.  On a lark I started to arrange them by year to see what the oldest one was.  The pennies went back to the 20s.  Nickels went back too, but not quite as far.  The dimes and quarters were all pretty new and pooped out in the 60s.  Looking at the pennies, there were the kind with the building and those funny ones with just the words. 

I turned into a madman.

From that point on, if there was any change around, I had to look at it.  I found plenty of those wheat pennies.  Found more nickels that kept getting older, back as far as the 30s.  Still, just the new dimes and quarters.  I had another grandmother that handled accounting for a magazine distribution company.  She would find all sorts of interesting coins.  When I visited her she would give me those brand new bicentennial quarters, but said she had to save the half dollars and silver dollars to pay the milkman.  Yeah, there was such a thing as a milkman back then. 

As I mentioned, she worked for a magazine distributor.  The guys in the trucks would pick up bundles, take them to the stores, collect money, and bring the old magazines back.  The old magazines would have part of the cover torn off to send back to whoever so they didn't get charged.  The rest of the magazine was thrown away.  We had piles of comic books without covers.  Archie, Richie Rich, Sergeant Rock...it was good to be a kid.  My grandmother picked up a couple of coin magazines, gave them to me one week.  It turned out people knew about these things.  They wrote articles about them, had pictures of stuff I'd ever seen before...coins with eagles and buffaloes and chicks with wings on their head.  I recall one article in particular about an 1804 Silver Dollar that sold for $100,000!  That's more money than I ever heard of.

I kept at it for ages.  I'd ride my bike downtown, go to the bank, get some pennies, look through them sitting on the curb.  I'd keep a few, then take the rest across the street to another bank, trade them in for nickels.  I'd keep this up for hours.  I could find lots of wheaties, a war nickel now and then, but I could never find dimes or quarters much older than me.  It's like they were never made.  I stuck with the pennies.  The nickels kinda faded away.  There were plenty of pennies to work with and nobody would mind if I looked through their change and kept a couple of pennies.

Protect Your Coins

You don't have to wear gloves when you handle coins. I use a cotton towel. You don't have to use a towel either. If you choose to use your bare hands, this is what you can expect in a few years.
These coins will outlast most of us. We can steward them or ruin them. Choose wisely.

What could have been an MS65RD coin with a value in the $20 range is now going into the next batch of pennies I roll up to be deposited. 

A decent pair of cotton gloves can be found in most pharmacies.  Look in the hand lotion section.  People use lotions for dry hands, then put on cotton gloves to keep it from getting on everything.  When cotton is not available, alternatives include latex gloves, cotton towels, cheesecloth, or even bathroom tissue can offer substantial protection.  It does no good to store coins when they are not handled properly.

See Also:
Video: A Look at Coin Storage

Flipping Coins

A natural progression in coin collecting is to move into buying and selling coins.  I buy a coin, flip it for a profit.  Making a net profit of $5 on the sale of a coin is not too shabby.  This would be a coin in the 20-40 range found for a good deal and sold at a reasonable price.  I can find good deals all day.  Working the numbers, that's 10-25% profit on a coin, which is about right for dealer prices, and I usually do much better than 25%.  I wouldn't mind making 5 bucks on a coin.  If I have as much as a half hour into handling and efforting the sale, that works out to 10 bucks an hour.  10 such trades in a day is 50 bucks.  I don't know about you but 50 bucks is good money.

I don't get every good deal that comes along.  I shop around on eBay quite a bit and bid low.  Plenty of other people bid a little higher.  If I win, great, otherwise, there are plenty of other opportunities to take a look at.  Too often I see people bidding on coins, not so much to get a good price, but to win the auction.  Just because it's a nice coin does not mean it's worth paying too much.  If buying through auctions one must exert strict control over bidding prices.

One of today's pickups
1914-S in F-VF for $15.25

I'd like to make $50 in profit in a day.  I've done it before quite a number of times and would like to do it more often.  In all honesty, doing that 4 times per week would pay all my bills.  I live out in the woods, the place is paid for, I don't need to do a whole lot of traveling.  A couple hundred a week would see me retired.  For a lot of folks, a couple hundred a month would be enough to improve their situation.  Perhaps I should focus on that.  10 coins, 5 bucks, $50 bucks.  Do it each weekend, $200/month=Good Money.  Its a real simple formula.  Let's further quantify it.

To sell 10 coins I've gotta have 10 coins.  For coins in the 20-30 range, an average price of $30/coin says I need $300 available for inventory for a day of selling.  Add more for supplies: shipping labels, envelopes, padding, tape, inkjet cartridges, 2x2s, staples, all those little things one needs to have around to make the plan come together.  I keep a separate account for all my coin dealings.  When I need supplies, I order them online, pay with that account through paypal or visa.  For those items it makes sense to purchase locally, I have a debit card tied to that account.  The supplies needed to sell a coin are maybe a buck.  That $5 profit margin accounts for that.  A good day of sales, I can pick up most supplies in a quantity that will see me through for a while.  I'm at the point right now that I'm getting supplies in larger amounts to get a better price.  I don't have to come out of pocket for supplies.  If you work it, the hobby takes care of itself.

The lamination error on the back probably drove away
some bidders, keeping the price down.  It will go over
well with the variety and error crowd.

To get started in selling I had to lay out some cash.  I needed a printer and ink.  The old stapler gave out so I picked one up at Office Max.  Sure wish they had a Flat Clinch.  Setting up that checking account took 100 bucks out of the loop.  I still have it, it's in the checking account doing its job of keeping the account open.  Shipping supplies were another $30.  Now I drop that much just on shipping labels.  The most important purchase was a camera that could take a decent photo.  At this point I'm looking for a replacement that will take an awesome photo.  Total spending to get my sales effort up and running smoothly was about $300.  6 good sales days would be enough to recover my investment.  This does not include several thousand spent on coins over the years.  I've got lots of stuff just sitting around, seems to me I'd much rather stay home and do my coin thing than punch a clock.  Putting those coins to work is a whole lot easier on my back, and I get to sleep in. 

For the coins needed to make a good day of sales I need about $300.  It takes time to bid, time for the coins to arrive, time to inspect them and return when necessary, time to photograph and list, time for bidders to work themselves into a frenzy, and once they win, more time for them to pay and for that payment to make it into my account. 

1924-D Lincoln Cent found in a 5000 count bag
Paid: $0.04
Sold: $12

At best I can go from cash in the bank to purchase to sale to cash back in the bank in a couple weeks.  If I want to offer coins each week, I will need several weeks investment involved, perhaps $1500 in coin purchases.  If I want to do this every day, I'll need several thousand dollars.
I'm fortunate that I happen to have that much already invested which is why I'm looking to do more buying and selling.  Even without a high dollar investment, anyone with a good head for coins can do this.


While typing this article up I was also keeping an eye on eBay.  Along with some other items, I won a 1914-S Lincoln Cent, seen above, with a bid of $15.25.  One of these other items was with the same seller, and the seller will combine shipping charges.  That's an advantage to keep an eye out for. 

Canada Large Cent, 1886 Obverse #2
Paid $6.50
Sold $30

Some sellers don't or won't or can't combine shipping.  This is common when the seller is working with someone else's coins.  This particular 1914-S looks to be in VF condition.  Numis fair market value suggests $27.60 for that coin in VF.  In F, the value listed is 24.15.  My experience tells me I will likely sell this coin in the $20-24 range.  I should be able to make 5-10 bucks on a $15 investment.  That $5 profit is not a target.  It is a starting point.  I've made considerably more on single coin sales.  I'm finding a $10 profit on a $30-50 coin purchase to be in my most frequent range.  I've netted over $50 several times on single coin sales.  Better dates, better grades, there is a progression, an evolution.  There is always another coin to go after and prices are pretty darn reasonable on a whole lot of stuff out there.

When I put a coin up for sale the starting price is what I paid, plus a little more.  I need to break even and cover my expenses.  Sometimes that's all I get.  Sometimes I have to list the coin several times.  I'm finding most items I list do pretty well.  Every now and then I list one that outperforms my expectations.  The big dollar and break even sales are infrequent.  Most of the time my sales put at least 5 bucks in my pocket, with 10-20 being more typical.  Just a couple of weeks ago I had a great week-$500 in sales on coins that cost me closer to $250.  If I can do that every week, I'll never work for The Man again.

2000 Wide AM found Coin Roll Hunting
Cost: $0.01
Sold: $10.00

Part of what I do is search through bank rolls, hunting for doubled dies, RPMs, errors, and other varieties.  I find lots of stuff valued at a buck or two: minor DDRs and RPMs, a BIE here and there.  Bigger ticket items are out there: WAMs are one of my favorite CRH targets, and they sell.  I've found doubled dies with values ranging from $10 to $75.  The best part of all is getting them for face value.  If I lost everything I own tomorrow in a forest fire I could start over from scratch with the money I have in my coin checking and paypal accounts.  New laptop, printer, camera, 50 bucks for a couple of boxes of pennies, and use the rest to hunt for deals.  It might take me a year or two to get back to where I am now, but my experience tells me it can be done without question.  I know of no job that offers this sort of income security. 

The Case Against Saving Copper Cents

There are Coin Roll Hunters who will save pre-82 copper cents.  They are not 100% copper.  The US mint stopped using 100% copper when produced began on the Flying Eagle Cent.  Lincoln Memorial Cents were produced with 'French Brass", a mix of 95% copper, 5% tin and zinc.  Nonetheless, the idea is sound: the value of the metal content of the coin is greater than the face value of the coin.  If the coins can be melted down, a premium can be realized.  At the time of this writing, the melt value of a pre 1982 95% copper cent is 1.8¢.  An 80% return on investment would get anyone's attention.   If not for the prohibition against melting down cents, a vast quantity would be removed from circulation in a hurry.  It's not just the copper, the zinc cents would be removed as part of a sorting operation.  In addition, an uninformed public would likely hoard all cents when they catch wind that something is up.  Right now, the percentage of copper in circulation is about 15%.  Perhaps one day when that percentage drops to a level that becomes unattractive to machine sorting operations the law will be repealed.  It is the hope that the law will be repealed that invites some folks to hoard copper now, while they are plentiful. 
After the coin shortage of the mid 60, when silver was removed from US coinage, the US government did not want a repeat situation when it transitioned from copper cents to zinc.  As a result the No-Melt law was passed, prohibiting the melting of those copper cents in order to profit from the enterprise.   See 31 CFR 82.1 https://www.law.cornell.edu/cfr/text/31/82.1.

The idea of getting 1.8¢ for each penny in your stash is deceptive.  Copper cents, being 5% tin and zinc, would be considered #2 copper for recycling purposes.  Looking at today's prices, #2 copper commands a price of $1.97/pound, 74.6% of the copper spot price.  Without a doubt the recycling centers would want to run your coins through a ryedale sorter before they handed over good money, further increasing their costs and decreasing what they would pay you.  Small amounts, under 100 pounds, are not be of interest to a lot of these recycling centers.  It costs them too much in labor to tally up the load and write a check.  Aluminum cans are a fine example of small volume scrapping.  Recycling yards are paying 25¢/pound, barely 28% of aluminum spot at 88¢/pound.  A minimum load of 100 pounds demands 3300 cans.  Yes, they'll pay you $25, but if it costs you $10 in fuel to get there and back hauling a trailer you really need a giant load to make it worthwhile.  To make a profit on your cents, the price of copper would need to be terrifically high, you would need a lot of them, and you'd still have to bear the cost of transporting all those cents to the recycle center.  When you hit the $600 mark, you get 1099 paperwork added to the mix because the gubmint wants a piece of the action

In the event the No-Melt were to be repealed smelting operations would pop up all over the country.  Industrial sites, recycling centers, machine shops, and backyard operations would spring up like weeds after the rain.  If the metal content of your cents is 1.8¢, the best you can hope for is 75% of that.  Extracting pure copper from French Brass is expensive.  If you could get 75% of melt value that would be a miracle.  The scrapyards have to transport coins, pay for equipment, energy to melt them down, labor and administration, and still turn a profit.  Using aluminum as a reference, copper spot would have to be in the $5-6/pound range for you to break even.  Cents would disappear, being melted down for their copper content.  The resulting flood of copper bullion on the market would see the copper spot price crash. 

With each passing year billions of new cents are produced with the effect of diluting the copper cent population.  In the last box I counted the copper was 12.4% of the total after 30+ years of zinc cent production.  It needs to be cost prohibitive to sort the cents or a shortage of circulating coins will occur.  There is a greater chance the cent will be eliminated long before copper is diluted to a point it is not worthwhile to sort.  Canada has already eliminated their cent and provide the example for the US to follow: banks are required to return cents to the Canadian Mint.  It will be gubmint that snatches up all the copper when cents are returned to the treasury.  The No-Melt law will not be repealed.  It would cost the gubmint Billions.

Copper cents are an asset that will never perform.  I do not save those non-BU copper cents.  I search my boxes, pick out a few dozen coins that I consider worthwhile, and deposit the rest, including all those copper cents.

Opportunity Cost

Part of making an investment is comparing options and alternatives.  By choosing to hoard copper you elect not to make a different investment with those funds.  Opportunity Cost is the missed return on investment from an alternative.  Those same funds, invested in an alternative, can easily outperform the potential gain from hoarding copper.

Example
Lets say 2 people, Joe and Jim, have $100 in copper cents.
Joe elects to keep his copper in the hopes that one day legislation will change to allow melting the copper, refining costs make it feasible, and demand rises to a point that he can receive a return on his investment.
Jim takes his $100 to his drop bank, exchanges them for $100.
He then goes to his pick up bank, exchanges the $100 for 4 fresh boxes of cents. He picks out an average of 10 wheat cents per box. He repeats this process 100 times in 100 days with the result being 1000 wheat cents, and $90 in cash.
Those 1000 wheat cents will easily fetch $40 + shipping (I get $50 for 1000 wheats). Even after 13% in seller fees for eBay and Paypal, Joe has $34.80 for those 1000 wheats, and $90 in cash, for a total of 124.80.
Jim has a 24% return on his investment in less than 6 months.
Joe still has a bucket of copper cents.
Not only is Jim going to repeat his efforts, he stands to find other cents of value, in particular, errors and die varieties, which will offer considerably more return on his investment than would staring at a bucket and relying on hope.

---

15 April 2017
Here's some news. 

Act Seeks 1c Coin and $1 Note Elimination; 5c Composition Change

 

 

Homework Assignment: Errors

Not every oddball coin is an error.
Most oddballs are intentionally damaged by people, or unintentionally by the environment, machines out in the real world, or contact with contaminants.
You have to do a little homework on your own.

This is your assignment for today: Check out http://www.error-ref.com/

Read the whole site. It explains a great many error types, how they are created, and pictures to go with them.

New Video with a Packing Tip

I ordered a few dozen rolls of coins from a feller by the name of Timmerman.  More than enough to fill a couple small flat rate boxes.  He had to use a Medium flat rate box.   To fill the space and provide superior cushion, he added empty small flat rate boxes on the ends.

Have a look https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MOKH_aKp4rE

If you like this sort of thing, be sure to subscribe to my Youtube Channel: kpeavey2.

See also: Coin Video Directory

Coming Soon to a Pocket Near You: 2017 Doubled Die Cents

With the near year comes the new year's coinage along with all the excitement of finding your first example of the 2017 cent with the P mintmark.  For error and variety hunters there is the challenge to be the first kid on the block with a confirmed doubled die.  Wexler will be needing a bigger mailbox!

A facebook user posted this specimen in a coin group, asking if it was a doubled die. 

Click image to enlarge

Unfortunately this is a classic case of Machine Doublig. The bottom horizontal of the 2 is the dead giveaway. Note how the remaining detail is thinner than normal with an evident flat shelf clearly discernible.

This reinforces the idea that the mint is operating within normal parameters and has made no significant changes in production methods or quality control.  Keep an eye out for DDOs. They are surely coming. 

With previous issues being the best indicator of what to look for, focus your attention on the date and Liberty.  Look for wider than normal letters and numbers, oblong zeroes, and notches on the ends.