All for the coin

[Hoot]

Early this week I received my winning lots from the Heritage Bullet sale in Orlando. I was wild with delight to open the package that contained an MS67FS 1941-S Jefferson and what I thought would be an MS67FS 1943/2-P Jefferson. Both lots I had bid on blindly, since Heritage only had descriptions up with no pictures. These coins had come from an extensive high grade collection of full step (FS) Jefferson nickels, so I had thought the bids worth the risk. With the latter coin, I had paid what I thought was a song.

 

Nothing is free.

 

I opened the package and was first struck with the beauty of the 1941-S. A stunning coin with a wild mix of blue, mauve, and green toning. Super clean surfaces and a mighty strike from a fresh die. WOW! The 1943/2-P, however, was not a visually striking coin. I was so focused on the coin that I missed the label. Turns out this was critical . I looked closely at the surfaces of the coin, which were rather drab and VERY marked up for an MS67 coin, and also at the steps of Monticello. I puzzled over the steps thinking, "How could this be a FS designated coin?" AH-HA! I looked at the label.

 

Somehow, Heritage had made a simple mistake in describing the coin. The label included the Cherrypicker's guide FS number for the coin! The Heritage personnel had accidentally assigned the full step designation to the coin due to the Fivaz-Stanton designation! The coin was definitely not full steps.

 

The most puzzling part of the coin to me was the grade. It was graded MS67 and had no business as such. It was no more than an MS65 coin. Also, the coin was unappealing as it was from a very late die state of the famous overdate.

 

Heritage was easy to deal with and took the coin back. For the price I paid, the coin would have been a keeper if it were a true 67, full steps or not, but there was no way. My registry would have benefited, but to hell with that! I've already used the cash to buy a raw 1925-S buffalo nickel that is the greatest knock out for the issue I've ever seen !!!!

 

Hoot

[EVillageProwler]

Did you at least write down the serial # of the bogus 43/2? You can always enter the serial # into your set, and no one would be the wiser!

 

 

EVP

 

[Weidel Legacy Collection]

Thanks for the story Hoot! Buying blind is definitely a case of buyer beware! Glad it was resolved to your satisfaction.

[keithdagen]

So, those FS numbers come back to haunt you for this series?

 

Funny story, and I'm glad that Heritage was easy to return the coin to. Thanks for sharing.

[bigd5]

A raw '25-s Buffalo? That's the kind of coin that would scare the begeezes out of me!!!!!!!

[Hoot]

The FS numbers in the Jefferson series are indeed a detriment Keith! !

 

As for that 25-S Darin, It's gonna grade a solid 64, and it's the best struck 25-S I've ever seen! Scared? Of course I am!!!!!!!! This was such a gorgeous example of the 25-S, I feel pretty confident about the purchase. It was one of several extraordinary nickels plucked from an old album collection. Unreal stuff.

 

Hoot