For newbies (or anyone interested), here's a WHIZZED 1857 half!

[James_OldeTowne]

This one is consigned to me to be sold on eBay (it's not available for direct sale, and I won't say when it'll get dumped). It's an 1857 Seated half that has stunning, mind-blowing, turbo-charged blistering cartwheel luster - that is totally 100% fake!

 

Check it out:

 

JUMBO Obverse

 

JUMBO Reverse

 

If anyone is unfamiliar with what "whizzing" is, please ask!

 

James

[Hoot]

Has a lot more detail than most whizzed coins. Not bad definition to the edges of devices either. Wish I could see it in person for the sake of better understanding the coin.

 

More description please!

 

Hoot

[chinook]

That looks like a nice Ebay MS 65+++ WOW L@@K.

 

[James_OldeTowne]

Mark, you're correct, it actually is a slider in terms of detail. Most of the time, whizzers would apply their craft to XF coins to try to get a big jump in value from XF to BU. An AU-55 coin like this is usually not a good candidate since there's not a huge value jump between AU-55 and BU.

 

On this particular example, the most blatant evidence of whizzing is that the "luster" is not only the fields, but is also layed on the detail as well. That just doesn't happen on a real coin.

 

James

[HaydenTubbs]

it's too bad, it probably was a nice coin for the grade before.

It's even more terrible when coins that were once very nice Unc.s are whizzed.

[SilverDollarMan]

This one is consigned to me to be sold on eBay (it's not available for direct sale, and I won't say when it'll get dumped). It's an 1857 Seated half that has stunning, mind-blowing, turbo-charged blistering cartwheel luster - that is totally 100% fake!

 

Check it out:

 

JUMBO Obverse

 

JUMBO Reverse

 

If anyone is unfamiliar with what "whizzing" is, please ask!

 

James

 

OK, I'm noob enough, got a pretty good idea. Plz, sir, what is "whizzing"? And are whizzed coin's available in ALL grades or are they common 2 certain grades and dates? Thx

[melmcbee]

I thought whizzing was a word used to say it was cleaned or dipped. I am new also SDM, so please don't listen to me as I am also asking for clarification. James, I know you meant this thread to teach us what to watch out for but I love that coin. Sorry to disappoint you, but my grading skills may improve by say 2025. .

[Wihlborg]

SDM & Melanie,

 

The term ‘whizzed’ or ‘whizzing’ is used to describe a coin that has had it's luster artificially restored or enhanced. This is usually done by using a tool such as a dremel and a small wire wheel to lightly ‘polish’ the coins surface.

 

The wire wheel imparts fine lines into the coins surface that mimic the natural flow lines of a freshly minted coin which give a coin its luster. If done well, a whizzed coin can be very deceiving to someone not familiar with how they look.

 

A whizzed coin’s luster will not have a cartwheel look to it. It will look unnatural. One tell tail sign of whizzing is to look at where the fields of the coin meet the devices using a loupe. Whizzing will cause the metal that was displaced from the fields to be pushed up against the devices. This does not happen during the normal minting process.

 

Any grade or date coin can whizzed, but whizzing is probably used most on a coin with light wear and impaired natural luster in an effort to fool someone into thinking the coin is mint state.

 

Hope this helps.

 

John

[DaveG]

Also, whizzing, leaves behind fine parallel scratches, which you never otherwise see.

 

If you rotate the coin under a light and see those parallel scratches or hairlines, you know the coin has been either wiped or whizzed, especially if the fine lines are not only present on the coin's fields, but also on its devices, such as the eagle or Lady Liberty.

[TomB]

Excellent replies, and DaveG brought up a terrific point to keep in mind when looking at coins.

[resslme-migration]

Here's another of my personal ebay lessons .... it's kinda comical, though, if you think about being the guy with the Dremel; especially at that moment of, "D'oh!" when the 1 of 1922 was whizzed away in a blink.

[SilverDollarMan]

THx,Wihlborg and Dave. I thought it was also followed by a dip and I thought u used a buffer not a wire brush. Thx again!

[James_OldeTowne]

While I was on vacation, I received an email from "Jordan" (not this person's real name) asking what "whizzed" means.

 

Jordan, I have bumped this thread to the top as promised, and invite you to read through this information. You may ask any additional questions here, and many board members will be glad to help you out. I invite you to consider joining the Collector's Society forum, which is absolutely free, yet gives you access to a wealth of coin collecting knowledge.

 

Thanks!

 

James

[James_OldeTowne]

Here's the final follow-up on this coin.

 

It sold on eBay on 12/29/2004 in this listing , where I clearly stated it to be whizzed. The buyer left me feedback as follows:

 

"VERY nice coin, Fast shipping, AAAAA+++++++" (my emphasis)

 

I guess the moral is, even "problem" coins can be "nice coins" in the eyes of the right collector. For a price significantly less than EF money, the buyer is now the proud owner of a coin with details close to UNC! I myself have coins in my collection that are "problem" coins simply because I can't afford something nicer.

 

Thanks to everyone who contributed!

 

James