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Wear vs. Weak Strike - A Brief Discussion (Stolen Mark Feld Post).

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This post is shamelessly stolen from Mark Feld across the street since he hates us and won't post here.

 

 

For many of us, one of the toughest aspects of grading is to be able to distinguish wear from a weak strike.

 

Certain coins (even in higher mint state condition) are typically found with weak strikes and it's often very difficult to know whether you are looking at a weakly struck coin or one that is slightly worn.

 

There are a few things to consider and look for, however, in order to be able to tell the difference :

 

1) Usually, wear from light circulation appears in a slightly different color/shade compared to the rest of a coin's surface. It is often a grayish or whitish color and stands out from the non-worn surface/color. Please note - this color difference can vary, depending upon whether one is examining a silver vs. a copper vs. a gold vs. a nickel coin.

 

If, on the other hand, the coin is merely softly struck, the weakly struck areas are usually the same color as the remainder of the coin.

 

2) If a coin is lightly worn, as opposed to weakly struck, in addition to the wear on the high points, there will usually be some evidence of circulation in the fields, too. This evidence often appears as hairlines and/or very minor abrasions and/or impaired luster.

 

3) It is good to be familiar with the typical strike characteristics of the coin you are examining - to know which issues are typically found with a soft (or worse) strike, for example. This knowledge will give you a better starting point and a better reference upon which to base your conclusions.

 

Below you will find images of two 1919-S Buffalo nickels. This date is one which is often seen with a mushy strike. The top one is a PCGS AU58 and the bottom one is a PCGS MS64. While it is difficult to see any evidence of circulation in the fields of the AU58 (first) piece, hopefully you can see the difference in color on the slightly worn areas, especially on the obverse. Such is not the case with the weakly struck areas of the MS64 (second) coin.

 

This is very difficult, but hopefully not impossible to do with images. If enough people are interested, I will try to illustrate these points with other coins and images at a future date. Any feedback and suggestions are welcomed.

 

AU58:

markfeldcoin1.jpg

 

MS64:

markfeldcoin2.jpg

 

 

For many of us, one of the toughest aspects of grading is to be able to distinguish wear from a weak strike.

Certain coins (even in higher mint state condition) are typically found with weak strikes and it's often very difficult to know whether you are looking at a weakly struck coin or one that is slightly worn.

 

There are a few things to consider and look for, however, in order to be able to tell the difference :

 

1) Usually, wear from light circulation appears in a slightly different color/shade compared to the rest of a coin's surface. It is often a grayish or whitish color and stands out from the non-worn surface/color. Please note - this color difference can vary, depending upon whether one is examining a silver vs. a copper vs. a gold vs. a nickel coin.

 

If, on the other hand, the coin is merely softly struck, the weakly struck areas are usually the same color as the remainder of the coin.

 

2) If a coin is lightly worn, as opposed to weakly struck, in addition to the wear on the high points, there will usually be some evidence of circulation in the fields, too. This evidence often appears as hairlines and/or very minor abrasions and/or impaired luster.

 

3) It is good to be familiar with the typical strike characteristics of the coin you are examining - to know which issues are typically found with a soft (or worse) strike, for example. This knowledge will give you a better starting point and a better reference upon which to base your conclusions.

 

I have included images of $2.50 Indian gold pieces, a type which MANY people have a very hard time grading. One of these is a PCGS AU58 and the other is a PCGS MS62. I chose examples which I hope/think will allow most of you to be able to see the difference - not all of them are this easy to distinguish!

 

Take a look at the images and let us know which you think is the AU58, which you think is the MS62 and why. Enjoy.

 

 

markfeldcoin3.jpg

 

markfeldcoin4.jpg

 

ALL OF THE ABOVE WRITTEN BY MARK FELD. poindexter.gif

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I added these pics to the posts:

 

stuff.jpg

 

This is one I've used before to show typical areas of Strike weakness ("S") and usually wear areas ("W"). This coin was bought (by me) as NGC 62 but when sent to PCGS came back AU58. PCGS was technically correct as it seems NGC market graded the coin.

 

This next pic I found show why Indian gold can be a pain. This has seemingly "wear" on the eagles shoulder but from what I can tell this coin is MS. The "wear" is probably either weak strike OR weak die impression...I favor the latter. This is an 08-D Half Eagle and I know the 08-P Quarter Eagle has a similar problem. That being said the coin was graded MS62 by PCGS. I borrowed this pic from Ebay....

 

aaa2.jpg

 

jom

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Looking back at this post I'm wondering whether it was such a good idea to engrave those "S"s and "W"s into my Buffalo Nickel. What was I thinking?!!! foreheadslap.gif

 

laugh.gif

 

jom

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Which Indian?

 

The Buffalo is AU...I know as it is my coin.

 

The gold piece might be...I don't know as it is only a picture I took from Ebay. My comments on that were based on the "assumption" PCGS got the grade right (MS 62). Usually you see wear on that eagle's wing but in this case it is probably the weak die. As to the cheek: much that is seen as wear could be stacking friction. But, again, since I never saw the coin in person I don't really know.

 

jom

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Sorry Jom,

 

I forgot there were two Indians. I was referring to the gold. The lustre break on the cheek IMO looks like honest wear rather than stack friction. The color is just too dull for me. But this is certainly not an area in which I have alot of experience. If I were a buyer I would not pay 62 money for it, but then again I may be missing on an opportunity.

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You might be right. Like I said I never saw the coin so PCGS certainly could be market grading the coin for some reason. As to it's worth, it would depend on the luster. A picture is a poor representation of a coins luster so it could be nice. Although, I do not see the luster bands above the eagle's shoulders in the pic so I probably wouldn't bid on it if it were an Ebay coin. I don't know if that is a sign of wear because many $5 Indians lack that luster....

 

jom

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