Planchet preparation at branch mints - questions which need answers

[physics-fan3.14]

Could someone tell me the process for preparing planchets, with specific applications to branch mints? I'm talking early 50's here - through the duration of the Franklin half specifically. I'm most interested in the San Francisco mint.

 

At this point in time, did each mint receive bullion individually and prepare their own planchets? Did the mother mint prepare planchets and ship them to branch mints? At what point did outside manufacturers start shipping stock to the mint, and again, do they ship to all the mints for individual preparation or just the Philly mint?

 

Any other info you guys might have will be helpful. Don't hold anything back!

[bsshog40]

Here's a wikipedia link that tells a little. Kind of more modern preparations but they do mention of earlier times.

[WoodenJefferson]

 

I don’t think I’ve shown this image before, probably cuz it’s labeled, but here’s an early, mid 50's picture of rolls of coin silver on rollers, awaiting to be punched into blanks.

 

[wtc911coins]

wow what a cool picture have never seen production like that before, its like being there cool picture

[physics-fan3.14]

Woody - cool pic. Do you happen to know where it was taken?

[BillJones]

In the early 1950s all of the branch mints prepared their own planchets. As it had been from the very beginning of branch minting, the Philadelphia mint prepared all of the dies. Mint marks were added after the dies were made which explains why the mint marks "wonder" from place to place from one die to another.

 

I can't remember this perfectly, but one of the reasons that the government decided to close the San Francisco mint was the building was not long enough to accommodate a modern minting facility. I don’t know if this had anything to do with the ingot rolling – planchet preparation process or not.

 

[Brando]

That picture is too cool!

[Conder101]

As Bill says, typically the mints made their own planchets. Sometimes, but rarely, if one mint was scheduled for heavy production and another mint was not, one mint might prepare some additional planchets for the other. The mints did not start receiving rolled stock for outside suppliers until the clad composition began in 1965. The mints did not have the equipment for the production of the clad ingots and their rolling. After they stopped producing silver coins they did continue forging and rolling the strip for the cents and nickels until the late 70's or early 80's. I know the Philidelphia mint was still rolling in 1976 but even then they were talking about removing the foundry and all the cent planchets were coming from outside suppliers by 82. I'm not sure when the five cent strip production stopped but it was probably about the same time. Examination of the Annual Mint reports from this period should be able to tell you exactly when it occurred.

[WoodenJefferson]

Woody - cool pic. Do you happen to know where it was taken?

 

Sorry to say I do not know what Mint this picture is from, but if you look in the back to the left, you can also see forged “bar stock” getting prepared to be rolled out to blank coin thickness.