Appalachian Hoard And Other Wildly Toned Hoards Of Jefferson Nickels

[TomB]

There is a discussion going on over at PCGS about the Appalachian Hoard nickels and, within the discussion, there is a link to a thread about them some two-and-a-half years ago where I wrote the following-

 

This coin is one of a hoard known as the "Appalachian Hoard" and it covers nearly all the War nickels. I own several of these coins, as do a number of other Board members. I believe the toning is real and I have successfully crossed these into PCGS holders. My coins were NGC MS67* coins and are awesome. The initial selling price was about $225-$325 per coin, so, this seller stands to make an enormous profit at the Buy It Now price.

 

One of the PCGS members asked if PCGS ever slabbed these and, aside from the crossover coins I sent to them, I don’t know that they have ever done so. Also, I don’t know if they were ever presented to PCGS before they went to NGC, so, there is every possibility that if these had gone to PCGS first then they would have been slabbed by PCGS. This is something that I don't like about either service and that is their desire or willingness to slab hoards brought to them but potentially exclude the same coins if they are slabbed by the other service, first.

 

Anyway, this got me to thinking about the other wildly toned Jefferson nickels that sprang up from seemingly thin air. These are those deeply and intensely toned proof nickels from the 1960s and 1970s. I have to state for the record that I believe the bulk of those toned proofs are AT. What has always bothered me about them is that I have been searching for and buying superbly toned coins for many years, and I have not been an anonymous buyer; many major players in the niche have known me and have shown me or sold me things. So, I was quite surprised when these coins hit the market and there were so many of them. There weren’t just one or two, there were literally hundreds and the final total may be into the thousands. They popped up at about the same time. I asked about where these coins might have come from and the replies that I remember were along the lines of “These coins toned this way in their original proof sets”. I find this extremely hard to believe. Here is my thinking on these-

 

1) Why had I never, through a decade of looking for such coins, not run across even a single piece that looked like that? I did the ANA, Baltimore, Boston, FUN and GSNA shows every year yet never saw anything like that. I searched ebay for wonderfully toned coins yet never saw nickels that had that type of toning. I also had dealers with a national presence who knew me and who never came up with material like that. The sheer volume of coins, apparently all at one time and from supposedly different sources, made me wonder.

 

2) How come the coins that toned were only from these years in the 1960s and 1970s? If they are from original proof sets then they would have had different packaging around them through this time period as the Mint changed packaging of the sets. Were they all from a single source? If so, then this potentially contradicts the statements from others who said that they independently found similar coins in original proof sets.

 

3) Only the Jefferson nickels toned this way. Except for two Washington quarters, one PF and one MS, and a few Ike dollars, none of the coins that toned in these deep and intense colors were anything but nickels. Before anyone gets the knee-jerk reaction that nickels are made of a different exterior alloy than clad dimes, quarters and halves please realize that all those denominations (nickels and all clad coinage) are made from the same exterior alloy of 0.750 copper and 0.250 nickel. The interior core of copper would not effect the exterior clad layer from toning, in my opinion, since toning is a surface layer phenomena. So, why didn’t the other clad coinage from those original proof sets yield wildly and spectacularly toned coins like the Jeffersons? My opinion, and it is opinion only, is that the person or people who produced these coins didn’t realize that they were all the same exterior alloy.

 

4) Has anyone ever seen any other nickel tone this way? Any other Jefferson, Buffalo, Liberty or Shield nickel? It would seem to me that we would find the occasional coin in another nickel series that would look like these. Perhaps they are out there, I admit that I have not made an exhaustive search for them.

 

Please note that I don’t think all of the nicely toned proof Jeffersons are AT, just a great many of them from this time period with those colors. Please also note that I am not attacking these coins, the people who own these coins or those who are selling them. I am only writing my thought out opinions that are heavily based upon my years of experience in this niche market.

 

So, how about those Appalachian Hoard nickels? I have to admit that if these coins were presented to me raw, at a show and at significant premiums, I would walk away from the deal and be suspicious that they were AT. The fact that NGC has slabbed them and that PCGS had, at least at one time, crossed them over makes me believe that they both think that the coins are market acceptable, at minimum. Still, this doesn’t explain how these coins toned this way. The manganese content in the alloy might be the smoking gun, if these are completely naturally toned. These coins are 0.560 copper, 0.350 silver and 0.090 manganese. To my knowledge, this is the first and only time we have used manganese in our coinage. The alloy might have contributed heavily to the ability of these coins to tone this way, though I can not prove such.

 

In total, there have been three of these coins that I have owned; an MS65*T 1943-D, MS67*T 1944-D and this MS67*T 1945-D. The MS65*T 1943-D was brought to one show and it sold to the first person who saw it. This happened to be a dealer/collector who specializes in toned coinage and he was quite happy with the purchase. I believe he was placing it in his collection, though it might have been sold since. The coin I have scanned in this thread has a nearly uniform, blazing lemon obverse that has hints of light red patches of color beneath the lemon in various areas. The reverse is an amazing, medium-depth pink that also has some other colors underneath. The other colors are pastel lime and red patches. The luster on both sides is very good.

 

When these coins were put on Andy Kimmel's web site, they sold out in one weekend and he was charging anywhere from $225 (for the lowest graded, most common date) to $325 with some other up to $495 (for the highest graded, better dates). The highest graded coin is MS67. There are only a few dates in this hoard, most of the dates from the War nickels are represented. If I recall correctly, there are from a half-roll to a roll of each date represented and the story is that they came from a family who had the rolls saved since the time of issue and that the family is from the Appalachian area, hence the name of the hoard. I bought what I considered to be the two best nickels in the hoard, the 1944-D and 1945-D, and I was able to pick through them before he put them up on his web site. In hindsight, I would likely have done very well to have bought a dozen or so coins and then re-sold most of them. But, one never knows these things...

 

Pricing information on thse is scant since most sell privately, but there has been one coin that made it to Heritage for an auction sale. It sold last August in a Bullet sale and Heritage described it as follows-

 

Psychedelic yellow, yellow-green, and magenta envelopes the obverse surfaces, while the reverse shows bright rose, magenta, yellow, and blue coloration throughout. An astonishingly toned premium Gem that is worthy of every designation placed on it by NGC.

 

The coin was an MS66*T 1945-D and sold for $265. The Heritage image is poor and makes the coin look darker than it likely is.

 

There have been some people who claim that PCGS will not cross these coins because they believe they are AT; this is incorrect. I submitted my MS67*T 1944-D to PCGS as a crossover and they gave it a grade of MS66FS in a PCGS holder. So, they will cross.

 

Here is an image of a 1945-D MS67*T-

[braddick]

If I consider your questions as being retorical, I would then, in that context, state you are correct in all your speculations, IMHO, regarding your thesis of these Jeffersons (both hoards).

 

SEGS also has about a dozen of these floating around (I've dealt with four of them-).

 

Even though I KNOW these are not genuine, they're pretty and I wouldn't sell the three (NGC T MS67*'s) for about any price as I know they're not replaceable IN the NGC holder!

Also Tom, from what I've gathered, the ones you've crossed into PCGS are the ONLY ones out there as PCGS quickly put a stop to holdering this hoard.

 

Like the Peacock Ikes and the Marty Hoard, the App. Hoard is a part of our Numismatic past, deservingly.

[gmarguli]

Anyway, this got me to thinking about the other wildly toned Jefferson nickels that sprang up from seemingly thin air. These are those deeply and intensely toned proof nickels from the 1960s and 1970s.

 

I’m sure you’ve heard the story on these. They are 100% AT. You’ve probably met the person who did the AT at some of the shows.

 

 

 

So, I was quite surprised when these coins hit the market and there were so many of them. There weren’t just one or two, there were literally hundreds and the final total may be into the thousands. They popped up at about the same time.

 

More and more of these coins are created every day. I’ve seen quite a few raw ones that I believe did not come from the original source. Of course PCGS wised up to these and won’t slab them anymore. The raw ones sell for under $10. None of the major services will slab them, but occasionally one will slip thru.

 

 

I asked about where these coins might have come from and the replies that I remember were along the lines of “These coins toned this way in their original proof sets”. I find this extremely hard to believe. Here is my thinking on these-

 

I’ve heard this too. The people who say this are thinking of the more common toned Jeffersons that can be found with ease in the proof sets of these years (They can be found with lovely shades of blue. These AT ones look nothing like the originals). Perhaps they are just protecting the maker since he is part of their "in crowd" - yet would lynch anyone else that did the same even without evidence?

 

 

 

The sheer volume of coins, apparently all at one time and from supposedly different sources, made me wonder.

 

Different sources? I thought they came from one source and then a few months later started to be seen from secondary sources that either bought them from him or figured out how to replicate what he was doing to them.

 

 

Only the Jefferson nickels toned this way. Except for two Washington quarters, one PF and one MS, and a few Ike dollars, none of the coins that toned in these deep and intense colors were anything but nickels...... So, why didn’t the other clad coinage from those original proof sets yield wildly and spectacularly toned coins like the Jeffersons?

 

My guess is that the nickels were worked on because they are the cheapest coin in the set. There are other coins out that that have been ATed like this from these years. None seem to be big sellers. They can’t be put in slabs with regularity.

 

 

Has anyone ever seen any other nickel tone this way? Any other Jefferson, Buffalo, Liberty or Shield nickel?

 

I have seen some Peace dollars with this type of toning. Yes, I am serious.

 

 

So, how about those Appalachian Hoard nickels?

 

It’s the hoard that keeps on growing.

[bigd5]

SEGS also has about a dozen of these floating around (I've dealt with four of them-).

 

Even though I KNOW these are not genuine, they're pretty and I wouldn't sell the three (NGC T MS67*'s) for about any price as I know they're not replaceable IN the NGC holder!

 

Braddick,

 

Are you saying the Appalachian hoard cents are not genuine, or that the Segs graded coins are not genuiune?

 

I've seen a bunch of these coins, and have no reason to believe they are not NT.

 

I'm of the same train of thought as Tom concerning those brightly colored proof Jefferson nickels.

[bigd5]

Anyway, this got me to thinking about the other wildly toned Jefferson nickels that sprang up from seemingly thin air. These are those deeply and intensely toned proof nickels from the 1960s and 1970s.

 

I’m sure you’ve heard the story on these. They are 100% AT. You’ve probably met the person who did the AT at some of the shows.

 

 

Let's hear the story again.

[airplanenut]

Tom,

 

Wonderful post! I have a few comments about what you wrote, and of my own:

 

1- At the past New York show, I saw an Appalachian in NGC MS68*, so MS67 is no longer the highest graded piece. It was the signature bright green, with a good amount of red/pink--a BEAUTIFUL piece screaming with lustre.

 

2- Regarding the proof nickels that are deeply toned... first, I don't believe PCGS has slabbed them since the first or second submission--now they are all being bagged, as far as I've heard. Secondly, the most common dates for these coins are 1961-1962 (about 95%+ of the ones I've seen, and I've seen cases full of them), making me question your theory about the metal composition, as most coins in the sets at the time would have been silver. That said, I do find them suspect, and have never before seen any nickels with a solid color, unless the color was quite light.

 

3- Regarding nickels as a whole. As a collector of toned coins, I've really seen two main types of mint state nickels. There are regular nickels, and then there are war nickels. For example, I have an original Mehrig album of nickels, BU 1938-1961 (you've seen it). In it, the coins are almost all identical, with varying "thicknesses" of color... here's the most colorful coin:

 

 

In addition to this album, I've had a few similarly-toned pieces in PCGS holders pass through my hands within the past year.

 

I have also seen other album-toned examples, including this recent purchase:

 

 

Interesting, though, is that the war nickels are not, so much as I remember, toned this way.

 

However, another coin that you have seen, is a war nickel, housed in an ANACS MS67 holder... it has toned a way I have never seen on a regular nickel, supporting the theory of how differently war nickels tone.

 

 

With regards to proof nickels as a whole, however, I have seen them tone differently than regular nickels, however, the ones I've seen I believe have come out of the proof sets, similar to how the target-toned 1970s proof lincolns came to be. All of these proofs, though, are not solid, but usually target-toned an array of colors. Here is another recent aquisition:

 

 

I also have one of these nickels still in a proof set, leading me to believe that is the cause of the toning. Whether the coins I've seen that have a much greater array of colors came from proof sets or out of albums I can't be sure--all I know is they are most prevalent for the 1970s, which could indicate something with the plastic/inserts used to make those proof sets.

 

What I'd like to know, too, is how many dates each toning pattern is seen on. For example, two dates for lincolns notorious for color on proofs are 1970-S and 1976-S--I have had multiple examples of colorful coins from these sets, with colors I've never seen on other dates. That in mind, was it really the proof set plastic? With this information, it may be easier to track the target toning on the Jefferson nickels, and then possibly hypothesize on the solid-color nickels with more education. Knowing that they came from one hoard, maybe they really were in the perfect temperature and humidity setting... or maybe they were in a kiln.

 

Jeremy

[Leothelion]

I have personally passed them all up. Couldn't get excited about the App hoard nickels, they're usually of poor quality, weak strikes and overgraded! Of course, I haven't seen them all but until I see something of high quality, I might get excited.

Here's a nice one! See attachment! Perhaps it's from those hills?

 

Leo

[TomB]

Just a quick note on something Pat wrote before I comment on Jeremy's very cool post; that is, I think you may very well be correct, Pat, in stating that PCGS likely slabbed no other Appalachian Hoard coins other than mine. The reason I write this is not because I have searched for them, rather, it is because I have heard more than one person say that PCGS wouldn't slab theirs.

 

Jeremy...cool post!

 

I had no idea that there was an NGC MS68* out there, all the coins on Andy's site, that I had seen at least, had been no higher than MS67* and I had never heard of one going to MS68*. My experience with those deeply toned proof nickels seemed to be that they were mostly mintmarked, therefore, they would have to have been from 1968 or after. Of course, we could have seen different batches of coins, that is entirely plausible.

 

Your Mehrig set is way cool and your '54-S is a wonderful coin, though you know that I like your '38-D out of that set the most. The ANACS war nickel has superb color and I remember you buying it, that's a nice coin and has color unusual for a nickel. It wouldn't surprise me if it turned out that there was something in the plastic that helped tone the coins. This would be analogous to the paper double US Mint Sets from 1947-1958 that have characteristic toning based upon the paper used.

 

Thanks for the comments.

[airplanenut]

Tom,

 

No pics of the 38-D right now... one day I'll just shoot the entire album.

 

Regarding the mint-marked proofs. If that's the case, I think there are far fewer of those than the main hoard. Last year, MadMarty (CU) came out with tons of nickels, from 1961-1963 mostly, that were deep royal blue, aqua, purple, or fire-red. These nickels were solid colors, and many graded PR69 at PCGS, with some at PR67. At first, they were all slabbed--a couple hundred of them. Then, PCGS just stopped grading them, bagging them all as questionable color. One example can be seen here, in one of Braddick's recent auctions .

 

With that said, I distinctly remember two sellers who took a ton of those coins--Jason Stevens and, I believe, Orlando Coin. At the ANA Baltimore show last year, they both had piles of these coins in their cases, coins that were partially rare due to the fact that they just couldn't get into holders any more.

 

From what I've seen, the mint-marked proofs tend to have two colors--purple and either yellow or light orange. However, those colors have appeared, though not prevalently, on the earlier-dated proofs, such as this one. As seen here, the older colors have rarely appeared on the later-date pieces, but not monotone. Although slabbed, I personally believe that coin is not natural because of the change in color being so sudden, over areas that one would expect to be the same distance from the source of the toning (unlike a device being a different color, because it's a little closer to the source).

 

On the later-dates, it is these colors that I have seen most often--both purple and orange, albeit the obverse is monotone.

 

If we again revert our train of thought to the two large hoards: Appalachian and MadMarty (I'm not sure if he also had the 1970s coins). The appalachian coins were stored in a humid, hot area of the country, and the nickels were made largely of two nickels known only to those select dates for war nickels. The MadMarty hoard consisted of coins supposedly stored in proof sets (cellophane), producing color that hasn't been found in any of the other millions of proof sets. The numbers would dictate the odds that at least someone else would have encountered proofs like the MadMarty coins, whereas the Appalachian coins were far more unique, both by metallic content, as well as storage location. For that reason alone, I think more suspicion should follow the MadMarty hoard, whereas the Appalachian coins seem to have a more realistic story, even though it, too, could be considered a fabrication.

 

Jeremy

[braddick]

SEGS also has about a dozen of these floating around (I've dealt with four of them-).

 

Even though I KNOW these are not genuine, they're pretty and I wouldn't sell the three (NGC T MS67*'s) for about any price as I know they're not replaceable IN the NGC holder!

 

Braddick,

 

Are you saying the Appalachian hoard cents are not genuine, or that the Segs graded coins are not genuiune?

 

I've seen a bunch of these coins, and have no reason to believe they are not NT.

 

I'm of the same train of thought as Tom concerning those brightly colored proof Jefferson nickels.

Other than hearing the "inside story" from a trusted Dealer regarding these Jeffersons I would ask you to ponder this:

 

Out of the tens of millions of War Jeffersons and out of the hundreds of ways these coins have been and are currently stored, why is there only ONE "Hoard" of these coins? Certainly the style and method these Appl. nickels were 'stored' has been duplicated yet with NONE of the Appl. Hoard results.

 

As a side note: The SEGS Jeffersons were NOT from this hoard but were from another source. They are absolutely a duplicate of the Appl. for all intent and purposes yet are also, first hand knowledge, AT.

[airplanenut]

Hmmm... I just remembered one fact that may (or may not) be relevant.

 

The war nickel in my type set is toned--green, yellow, and pink, but much lighter shades than the appalachian hoard. Knowing that, it's possible that the conditions have been right elsewhere, they just haven't been exactly right.

 

Jeremy

[Hoot]

I've come across many prettily and even wildly toned nickels while humting down great Jeffs. They all look as if the toning is in the surface of the coin and not laying on it. The colors can be amazing and vivid, but never "neon." I believe that have found enough excellently toned Jefferson nickels to know what they look like as nature will render them. That said, I agree that those that exhibit "neon" colors are AT, including the Appalachian hoard and the neon nickels of 1960-64, and 1968-70.

 

About the neon proof nickels of 1960-70, what I believe occurred is that someone with doctoring on their mind looked at enough nickels in that era (which, by the way, also includes the proof nickels of 1971-78) to see that many of them could gain vivid colors of blue and purple, and sometimes even lime green and red. The NT coins of that era can be quite stunning, but they never POP! at you like a neon sign. I have several of these coins that I extracted from original Mint sets, cardboard flips, and Whitman albums. What the coin doctor(s) did was exploit that natural tendency for these coins to tone that way and took it running to an extreme. The coins are simply absurdly colored.

 

Here are a couple of NT examples. Please bear in mind that the coins are much more delicate in person. The 1962 shows an even purple over the entire surface that is striking but NOT neon. The 1974 shows a deep ice blue that is more pronounced at the rims then fades to a center of yellow-orange. Very difficult for me to capture.

 

From a mylar flat pack - now NGC PF67

 

From a cardboard flip - now in my IS album

 

I also have wonderfully colored 1957 and 1963 proofs. The 1957 is blue/orange/purple and quite vivid, and the 63 is lime green/red, but VERY subltle. I simply cannot capture their colors.

 

Again, what I think is that someone observed these NATURAL colors and then exploited them to make the extreme versions of the neon coins by AT processes.

 

As for the Appalachian coins, the reason I think they are AT is the same as the proofs above. Wartime nickels can tone to some pretty wild states, but the surfaces have a more "transparent" look to them than the Appalachian coins and are not so extreme. I recently picked up a 1944-D that is one of the most wildly toned wartime nickels I've encountered. In person, the coin is very lovely with well blended transparent toning over all of the surfaces - more pastel-like than neon and the colors glow with the underlying luster of the coin, and not all by themselves. The coin was one of two such toned pieces in a Cap Plastics holder. (I didn't buy the other due to a couple of nasty carbon spots.) I have found that Jefferson nickels stored for long periods of time in Cap Plas holders, and under the right conditions, will gain some pretty nice and vivid colors. Perhaps it's only their permeability to air, but whatever it is, the coins tone.

 

From a Cap Plas holder - now NGC MS67

 

In person, this coin is not stark and the colors blend well, one into the other.

 

Other nickels in the series that are doctored are easy to spot. I saw a couple on eBay the other day and here they are:

 

 

Notice how thick the toning is, and how on the '46 the toning looks like puddles of water! (The reverses of both coins were silly too.) The absurd blue color is always a dead give-away.

 

My 5 cents worth, anyhow.

 

Hoot

[airplanenut]

Hoot,

 

From what I've seen, the Appalachian nickels do have the color and lustre blend well--I've never seen one that wasn't dripping in lustre.

 

Also, your last two photos are unfair--that guy is an aweful coin doctor, and he makes everything look like that--cents-dollars, including G-4 barbers and the such. Granted, it's a good example of AT, but I think it's a poor choice in showing AT that is just a saturated version of something natural.

 

Jeremy

[Hoot]

Hoot,

 

From what I've seen, the Appalachian nickels do have the color and lustre blend well--I've never seen one that wasn't dripping in lustre.

 

Have to disagree with you about the Appalachian hoard coins. They are indelicate and simply appear unnatural to me. That's why I've never bought one, although I had the chance many times. Why spend silly money on something that you question?

 

Also, your last two photos are unfair--that guy is an aweful coin doctor, and he makes everything look like that--cents-dollars, including G-4 barbers and the such. Granted, it's a good example of AT, but I think it's a poor choice in showing AT that is just a saturated version of something natural.

 

Jeremy

 

The coins I showed were intended to do just what you said, show blatant AT, so I fail to see your objection. The first is also the color of many of the neon proofs with the exception that the neon proofs often have a more uniform appearance.

 

AT nickels often want to turn blue. True for buffs as well.

 

Hoot

[bigd5]

Out of the tens of millions of War Jeffersons and out of the hundreds of ways these coins have been and are currently stored, why is there only ONE "Hoard" of these coins? Certainly the style and method these Appl. nickels were 'stored' has been duplicated yet with NONE of the Appl. Hoard results.

 

Good point, and one well taken. From the App Hoard coins that I have seen, and admittedly, I probably haven't seen enough of the coins to make a statement that would concern ALL these coins, but going by the coins that I did see, I didn't see a problem with the coins. They looked NT to me, with a nice blend of luster and flowing color.

 

With that said, I could be dead wrong.

 

My question to you would be who saved war nickels? No one I knew of. I could picture the nickels being stored in an old Morgan dollar bag and put away for years on end.

 

Maybe a doubtful scenario, but plausible........maybe.

 

And another thing, I was offered a few of these coins to purchase......I passed, and would most likely always pass, so maybe I'm not as comfortable with the toning as I think I am. At least when I have to open my wallet.

[jom]

I agree with Greg on this. I do NOT know if this Appalachian hoard is the same set of coins as I don't follow Jeffs all that closely but I do know that a certain doctor created a whole bunch of flourecent (sp?) Jeffs. I know who the guy was that made these and he pretty much admits as much.

 

jom

[airplanenut]

The coins I showed were intended to do just what you said, show blatant AT, so I fail to see your objection. The first is also the color of many of the neon proofs with the exception that the neon proofs often have a more uniform appearance.

Granted it's blatant AT--but those coins look like a chemical spill, and I fail to see how lustre would seep through it. The toned proofs we're talking about are uniform in a rich color (which happens not to be any of the predominant colors on the first nickel) and have excellent mirrors. Even if they are AT, I think the way they were done has no true comparison to the images you provided.

 

Then again, those are a good example of plain ol' POS AT

 

Jeremy

[Hoot]

The toned proofs we're talking about are uniform in a rich color (which happens not to be any of the predominant colors on the first nickel) and have excellent mirrors.

 

Jeremy - the AT proofs and the Appalachian coins are two different topic areas. Read my first post and you'll see that I made that distinction. I only pointed to the AT coins on eBay to show how blatant I think they can be. (Also, they were handy. )

 

Hoot

[CarlWohlforth]

I like the AH Jeffs. They have cool colors. I can't imagine how they came to be so doubt their authenticity. However they are scarce in holders so seem to be valuable for that.

 

One point: I was told that the AH did include some Morgans.

 

I was able to get one of the MM coins into a holder. I regret only submitting one. These also are more valuable in holders. Albanese was selling one for $400. I offered him some raw ones and he said he would buy them but I had to get them into PCGS holders first.

 

I sold most of my MM coins, but saved the best for last. Here is yellow/orange one.

 

[CarlWohlforth]

I've seen a lot of Jeffs, and other nickels, with blue or gold tint colors. Here is a proof Jeff with a combo of a purplish portrait with gold fields. I like it and think it is natural.

 

[airplanenut]

Jeremy - the AT proofs and the Appalachian coins are two different topic areas. Read my first post and you'll see that I made that distinction. I only pointed to the AT coins on eBay to show how blatant I think they can be. (Also, they were handy. )

 

Hoot

Hoot, I agree that the coins you posted are blatant... I think the toned proofs are less so, simple because the toning allows the mirrors to show through, and they don't look like chemical spills. That said, the slabbed proofs may be AT, but I wouldn't classify them as blatant, at least not in the same manner that the pics you posted are.

 

Carl,

 

Do you know any more on the appalachian morgans? I just bought (am waiting for delivery) a morgan with one side an electric lime green with some pinks and reds... my first though seeing it was it had the same colors. Could it be?

 

If it doesn't come today, though, I'll be away a week before I see it, and before I can take a picture

 

Jeremy

[CarlWohlforth]

I was told by someone who helped distribute the AH that there were a few other coins in addition to the War Nickels. That person kept some of the few Morgans. I don't know any more than that.

[Hoot]

That said, the slabbed proofs may be AT, but I wouldn't classify them as blatant, at least not in the same manner that the pics you posted are.

 

The proofs that I posted are NT and it's tough to get a good picture depicting their toning. They are like Carl's - subtle and pretty.

 

The neon proofs that I've seen - perhaps as many as 200 in PCGS holders - are blatantly rediculous coins to me. Just because someone did a better job with their AT, doesn't make them less absurd in my eyes.

[airplanenut]

The proofs that I posted are NT and it's tough to get a good picture depicting their toning. They are like Carl's - subtle and pretty.

Sorry, I was referring to the few eBay pics you posted--not the coins in your collection.